Kingsbury

What Kingsbury does

Kingsbury, Inc. is a fifth-generation, family-owned manufacturer of hydrodynamic fluid film bearings, founded in 1912 by Dr. Albert Kingsbury, the inventor of the tilting pad thrust bearing. The company designs and builds custom-engineered thrust bearings, journal bearings, combination bearing systems, and fixed profile bearings — including patented Leading Edge Groove (LEG) and Between-Pad Groove (BPG) directed-lubrication technologies — alongside the self-contained CH bearing system and the German-built G-MD modular thrust bearing for reversing-load applications. Its wholly owned subsidiary Messinger Bearings adds large rolling element bearings up to 25 feet in diameter for heavy industrial use, and a recently established Additure arm distributes ATLIX 3D metal printing systems in the UK, Ireland, and GCC.

The company sells primarily to enterprise OEMs and end-users across power generation, hydropower, marine and naval, renewable energy (nuclear, geothermal, wind), oil and gas turbomachinery, and industrial pumps. Pricing is quote-based on custom specifications under multi-year contracts, with revenue split between new equipment sales and a recurring aftermarket stream of bearing repair, babbitting, inspection, and field service for the installed base.

Kingsbury is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with a second manufacturing and service facility in Göttingen, Germany (Kingsbury GmbH, est. 2012). Distribution combines direct enterprise field sales with a global network of authorized sales and service representatives, supported by a technical literature and knowledge center that serves as the primary top-of-funnel content channel. Customers named in company materials include Siemens, General Electric, Sulzer, MAN, Solar Turbines, and Dongfang Turbine.

Name

Kingsbury

Legal name

Kingsbury, Inc.

Website

https://kingsbury.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1912

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Kingsbury is a fifth-generation, family-owned manufacturer of hydrodynamic fluid film bearings — including patented tilting pad thrust and journal bearings — serving enterprise OEMs in power generation, hydropower, marine, renewable energy, oil and gas turbomachinery, and industrial pumps.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Bearings

NAICS

Ball and Roller Bearing Manufacturing (332991), Oil and Gas Field Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing (333132)

SIC

Ball & Roller Bearings (3562), Oil & Gas Field Machinery & Equipment (3533)

akta.pro primary industry

Aerospace Bearings, Bushings & Motion Components (IMABANAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Propulsion Drives, Gearboxes & Shaftlines (IMAJAHAD)

Keywords

• Hydrodynamic bearings
• Tilting pad bearings
• Fluid film bearings
• Thrust bearings
• Industrial bearing manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Philadelphia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Hydrodynamic Bearings Sales: Kingsbury generates revenue through the sale of custom-engineered hydrodynamic fluid film bearings including tilting pad thrust bearings, journal bearings, and combination bearing systems. Products are sold directly to industrial OEMs and end-users for applications in power generation, oil and gas, marine, and renewable energy sectors. The company also manufactures replacement bearings and provides repair/refurbishment services.
2. Bearing Services and Repair: Kingsbury provides comprehensive bearing repair services including turbine thrust and journal bearing repair, babbitting, ultrasonic and dye penetrant inspection, and field service support. Services support the installed base of bearings and generate recurring service revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Kingsbury designs, manufactures, and services custom-engineered hydrodynamic fluid-film bearings, principally tilting-pad thrust and journal bearings, fixed-profile bearings, combination bearing systems, and pedestal-mounted units, for industrial OEMs and operators in power generation, oil and gas, marine and naval, hydropower, renewable energy, and pumps. The company also provides bearing repair, refurbishment, and field services, and complements its portfolio with large rolling element bearings through its wholly owned subsidiary Messinger Bearings.

Product overview

Kingsbury is a specialist manufacturer of hydrodynamic fluid film bearings, founded in 1912 and now in its fifth generation of family ownership. The company's core product portfolio centers on tilting pad bearings for hydrodynamic, fluid-film applications, organized into three main categories: (1) Tilting Pad Thrust Bearings including EQH equalizing, NE non-equalizing, VK vertical hydro, G-MD modular, KingCole, SlimLine, and LEG (Leading Edge Groove) J/B/S-style designs; (2) Tilting Pad Journal Bearings including LEG, BPG (Between-Pad-Groove), and PJ (Pivoted Shoe Flooded) models; and (3) Combination Bearings integrating thrust and journal functions. The portfolio also includes Fixed Profile Bearings for lower-demand applications, the self-contained CH Thrust & Journal Bearing System, and Pedestal-Mounted Thrust/Journal Bearings. Beyond fluid film bearings, the company offers large rolling element bearings through its Messinger Bearings subsidiary and has recently entered additive manufacturing via its Additure arm and an exclusive dealer partnership for ATLIX 3D metal printing systems including the TruPrint 5000. Kingsbury serves power generation, hydro power, marine, renewable energy, turbomachinery, and pump industries with a comprehensive bearing selection tool and repair/service capabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Messinger Bearings: Large rolling element bearing solutions offered through Kingsbury's wholly owned company. Since 1912, Messinger has specialized in the design, manufacture, and repair of custom rolling element bearings for heavy industrial applications, including bearings up to 25 feet in diameter.

Products and services

• Tilting Pad Thrust Bearings Hydrodynamic thrust bearings delivering exceptional load capacity and efficiency with smooth operation and extended service life, engineered for high-speed rotating machinery in power generation, oil and gas, marine, and renewable energy applications.
• Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Hydrodynamic journal bearings providing high load capacity, durability, and efficiency for smooth, reliable operation in demanding industrial applications such as turbines, compressors, gearboxes, and pumps.
• Combination Bearings Thrust and journal combination bearing system in its own housing, integrating both bearing functions to save OEMs money and simplify rotating equipment design.
• Fixed Profile Bearings Fixed profile fluid-film bearings designed for less challenging low-load and low-speed rotating equipment applications.
• CH Thrust & Journal Bearing System Self-contained bearing solution combining an equalized thrust bearing and precision journal bearing within a single housing, with self-sufficient oil cooling and autonomous lubrication eliminating the need for an external lubrication skid. Operates with air, fresh water, or seawater cooling.
• Pedestal-Mounted Thrust/Journal Bearings (PMH) Custom engineered support solution for high-power rotating equipment delivering both radial and axial load capacity within a single pedestal-mounted housing.
• Leading Edge Groove (LEG) Journal Bearings Patented high-speed, high-load journal bearings with directed lubrication delivering cool oil directly into the hydrodynamic film, reducing operating temperatures by 6-17°C and oil flow by up to 50%.
• Between-Pad-Groove (BPG) Journal Bearings Patented high-speed turbomachinery journal bearings with directed lubrication between pads, reducing total oil flow by up to 50%, lowering operating temperatures by 8-28°C, and improving load-carrying capacity by 10-20%.
• Pivoted Shoe Journal (PJ) Flooded Lubrication Bearings Tilting pad journal bearings employing pivoted shoe design for moderate-speed rotating machinery, providing stable shaft support and predictable thermal behavior.
• Fixed Profile Journal (FPJ) Bearings Reliable radial stability for standard-speed rotating equipment featuring thick-walled metric construction with babbitt-lined steel backing.
• G-MD Modular Tilting Pad Thrust Bearings Modular thrust bearings engineered for reversing load conditions in industrial gearboxes, gas turbines, compressors, and pumps requiring bi-directional rotation, built in Germany with self-equalizing support.
• EQH Equalizing Flooded Thrust Bearings High-capacity equalizing hydrodynamic thrust bearings using spherical pivots and leveling plates to ensure precise load distribution across pads, accommodating misalignment and shaft deflection in high-capacity rotating equipment.
• NE Non-Equalizing Thrust Bearings Compact, non-equalizing fluid-film bearings designed for moderate axial loads in pumps, horizontal motors, and light-to-medium-duty rotating equipment.
• Vertical Hydro (VK) Thrust Bearings High-capacity vertical turbine bearings for hydropower applications with non-equalizing pivoted-shoe configuration minimizing deflection under load.
• KingCole Tilting Pad Thrust Bearing Advanced tilting pad thrust bearing design engineered for demanding turbomachinery applications.
• SlimLine Tilting Pad Thrust Bearing Compact tilting pad thrust bearing designed for space-constrained rotating equipment applications.
• J-Style, B-Style, S-Style Leading Edge Groove (LEG) Thrust Bearings Leading edge groove thrust bearing designs in J, B, and S styles with patented directed lubrication for high-performance rotating machinery.
• Messinger Bearings (Large Rolling Element Bearings) Large rolling element bearing solutions for heavy industrial applications, including custom-designed and manufactured bearings up to 25 feet in diameter, offered through Kingsbury's wholly owned subsidiary Messinger Bearings.
• Bearing Repair & Service Comprehensive turbine thrust and journal bearing repair services for hydrodynamic systems including babbitting, ultrasonic and dye penetrant inspection, and field service support.
• Additure Industrial 3D Metal Printing Systems (ATLIX) Industrial 3D metal printing systems (including the ATLIX TruPrint 5000) offered exclusively by Kingsbury's Additure arm across the UK, Ireland, and GCC regions, with full sales, installation, service, and aftermarket support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Oil flow reduction up to 50% with BPG and LEG designs
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• ATLIXcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2026Strategic alliance making Kingsbury the exclusive dealer of ATLIX 3D metal printing systems across the UK, Ireland, and GCC regions, effective January 2026. Kingsbury's additive manufacturing arm, Additure, handles sales, installation, service, and aftermarket support for ATLIX's industrial systems including the flagship TruPrint 5000.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Waukesha Bearings: Waukesha Bearings (a Dover Corporation subsidiary) is the closest direct peer to Kingsbury, manufacturing hydrodynamic tilting-pad thrust and journal bearings for turbomachinery, power generation, oil & gas, and marine applications. Both companies compete head-to-head on custom-engineered fluid-film bearings for large rotating equipment.

Broad incumbents

• SKF: SKF is the world's largest bearing manufacturer and offers fluid-film and tilting-pad bearings alongside a much broader rolling-element bearing portfolio. While Kingsbury specializes in hydrodynamic bearings, SKF competes on multi-product OEM contracts that bundle fluid-film with other bearing types.
• Schaeffler Group (INA/FAG): Schaeffler produces a comprehensive range of bearings, including hydrodynamic plain bearings, and serves the same industrial OEM customer base as Kingsbury. The company competes through INA and FAG brands in rotating-equipment and large industrial machinery.
• Timken: Timken is a major bearing and power transmission manufacturer with engineered bearings for industrial, energy, and aerospace markets. Timken's fluid-film bearing products overlap with Kingsbury's portfolio for industrial and energy customers.
• NSK Ltd.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kingsbury