On May 8, Bearing Specialists Association and the Power Transmission Distributors Association  announced two new product categories for the PIE Technology Platform: belt drives and bearing accessories & tools.

PTDA describes PIE a a cloud-based platform that gives industrial manufacturers and distributors access to “the most comprehensive catalog for the exchange of rich content product information.”

Belt drives is the first power transmissions product category introduced to the platform. With the addition of bearing accessories & tools, the total number of PIE categories is now 24, PTDA said.

“Chains and sprockets, iron sheaves, linear bearings and seals are also expected to launch this year,” PTDA said in its announcement. “An additional nine categories are planned, including brushing/hub fixes, shaft couplings, conveyors & material handling, gearing, adjustable speed drives, motor/motion control, clutches & brakes and motors.”

Both manufacturers and distributors are expected to benefit from PIE thanks to reduced errors and staff time spent correcting inaccurate or outdated content, PTDA said.