Schaeffler Group president and CEO Dr. Jürgen M. Geißinger has been elected president of the World Bearing Association (WBA) at the organization’s fourth annual meeting in Tokyo. The WBA represents the interests of the bearing industry where initiatives of individual companies have proved to be insufficient. Its objectives include the elimination of competition distorting trade restraints as well as the introduction of uniform environmental protection standards. Special focus is on the fight against product piracy.

“Counterfeiting earns large sums of money and causes immense economic damage,” explained Dr. Geißinger. “WBA will therefore further reinforce its initiatives – this means intensified information and clarification of facts for customers on one hand and uncompromising prosecution of offenders on the other,” said Dr. Geißinger.

WBA was established as an umbrella organization of the American Bearing Manufacturers’ Association (ABMA), the Japan Bearing Industrial Association (JBIA) and the European Bearing Manufacturers’ Association (FEBMA) in September 2006. It represents the leading global bearing companies with sales of approximately 20 billion euros, which equates to about 75 per cent of the rolling bearing market worldwide.