What SKF makes

SKF is the world's largest manufacturer of rolling bearings, and bearings remain the core of the business: ball bearings, roller bearings, spherical and toroidal roller bearings, and bearing units built for everything from passenger-car wheel hubs to wind-turbine main shafts. Around the bearing, SKF sells the parts and services that keep rotating machinery running, seals, lubrication systems, mechatronics and sensor-equipped bearings, plus condition monitoring, maintenance, and remanufacturing. The company frames all of it as friction reduction, a thread that runs back to Sven Wingquist's 1907 patent for the double-row self-aligning ball bearing.

The business is run in two market segments. The Industrial Market segment covers railway, aerospace, heavy industries, renewable energy, and the industrial distribution channel, and it carries the larger share of both sales and profit. The Automotive Market segment supplies carmakers and the vehicle aftermarket with wheel hub bearing units, clutch and release systems, seals, and related components for cars, light and heavy trucks, and two-wheelers. As of 2026, SKF is separating that Automotive business into a standalone listed company (see Ownership and history below). For buyers, the practical point is that SKF sits at the top of the Tier 1 / Tier 2 bearing supply base, selling both directly to OEMs and through more than 17,000 distributor locations.

Financial performance

SKF reported net sales of SEK 91,583 million in 2025 and SEK 98,722 million in 2024. Sales declined organically by 5.4% in 2024 in a soft industrial market, then stabilized: organic growth turned positive at 1.4% in the second quarter of 2026. Profitability held up through the downturn. The adjusted operating margin was 12.3% in 2024 (12.5% in 2023) and rose to 13.9% in the second quarter of 2026, which the company attributed to cost management and price/mix actions. Reported operating margin was 10.5% in 2024. Net cash flow from operating activities was about SEK 10.8 billion in 2024, and SKF invests roughly 3.4% of revenue in R&D.

The balance sheet is investment grade. At the end of 2024 net debt to EBITDA was 1.1. As of 31 December 2025, SKF carried a Moody's Baa1 rating and a Fitch BBB+ rating, both with a stable outlook, and held an unutilized EUR 800 million revolving credit facility maturing in 2029 alongside several outstanding green bonds. The company employed 37,271 people at the end of 2025, down from 38,743 a year earlier.

Ownership and history

SKF was founded in Gothenburg on 16 February 1907 as Svenska Kullagerfabriken, spun out of Gamlestadens Fabriker after Wingquist's bearing invention. It became a global company within a decade and is today represented in around 130 countries with more than 100 manufacturing plants. AB SKF has been publicly traded since 1963 and is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm under the tickers SKF A and SKF B, in the OMX Stockholm 30 index. The registered office is at Sven Wingquists Gata 2 in the Gamlestaden district of Gothenburg.

The headline corporate event underway is the separation of the Automotive business. SKF's Board decided in September 2024 to spin it off as a separately listed company on Nasdaq Stockholm through a Lex Asea distribution to shareholders. In February 2026 SKF named the future standalone company SKF Vertevo, with a listing planned for the fourth quarter of 2026. Automotive is the smaller of the two segments; after the separation, the remaining SKF is the industrial bearings and services business. Leadership as of 2026: Rickard Gustafson is President and CEO, Hans Straberg chairs the Board, Greg Roberts is Chief Operating Officer, and Kerstin Enochsson leads the Automotive business into its standalone future.

Certifications and quality

SKF holds ISO 9001:2015 certification group-wide, issued by Lloyd's Register, covering the Group headquarters, Bearing Operations, Industrial Market sales units, and Group Purchasing. Automotive plants additionally carry IATF 16949, the automotive quality-management standard, and ISO 14001 environmental certification, consistent with sector norms for a bearing supplier serving carmakers. The company positions precision and reliability as its product promise, grinding bearings to micrometre tolerances and testing wheel bearings for noise and vibration. Buyers evaluating SKF for a program can expect the PPAP and quality-planning discipline standard among Tier 1 automotive suppliers.

Known customers

SKF sells into more than 20 industries and rarely names individual OEM programs, which is normal for a bearing supplier operating under customer confidentiality. What is on the public record is the shape of its markets. In its 2024 annual report, SKF describes a leading position in railway, aerospace, heavy industries, and industrial distribution, and a prominent position across other sectors. Its automotive customers are the world's carmakers and truck builders plus the independent vehicle aftermarket, served through both OEM contracts and branded aftermarket parts. On the industrial side, SKF supplies wind-turbine builders, rail operators, and heavy-machinery manufacturers. In 2026 the company also formed a venture with Leaderdrive for precision components used in humanoid robots, an early signal of where it sees new demand.

Sourcing evidence

SKF's US operations are a heavy, steady importer. Its main US import entity, SKF USA in Crossville, Tennessee, appears in US customs records with more than 16,000 ocean shipments, the most recent dated September 25, 2026. A separate SKF Automotive USA entity at the adjacent Crossville address shows roughly 2,400 shipments, most recently September 24, 2026. The bill-of-lading record is dominated by intra-group flows from SKF India and SKF's Chinese bearing plants, alongside independent bearing-component makers such as Rolex Rings and Harsha Engineers, the sourcing footprint of a manufacturer that produces bearings and components across a global plant network and moves them between regions rather than a company that imports finished goods to resell.

Coverage caveats apply: these are US ocean-freight records only, so air, truck, and rail movements do not appear, and some records name freight intermediaries rather than the ultimate manufacturer. For a company SKF's size, US imports are one window onto a supply chain that spans around 130 countries. Buyers weighing tariff exposure or regional sourcing should note that SKF manufactures on multiple continents, which gives it options that a single-region supplier does not have.

Frequently asked questions

What does SKF make?

SKF makes rolling bearings, bearing units, seals, lubrication systems, mechatronics and sensorized bearings, and condition-monitoring and maintenance services for rotating machinery. It is the world's largest bearing manufacturer. Its products serve automotive, railway, aerospace, wind energy, and general industrial machinery, from car wheel hubs to wind-turbine main shafts.

Who owns SKF?

SKF is a publicly traded company listed on Nasdaq Stockholm under the tickers SKF A and SKF B, part of the OMX Stockholm 30 index. It has been public since 1963. The company was founded in 1907 in Gothenburg, Sweden, where it remains headquartered.

What is SKF's revenue?

SKF reported net sales of SEK 91,583 million in 2025 and SEK 98,722 million in 2024. Its adjusted operating margin was 12.3% in 2024 and improved to 13.9% in the second quarter of 2026. The company holds investment-grade credit ratings of Baa1 (Moody's) and BBB+ (Fitch).

Where is SKF headquartered?

SKF is headquartered at Sven Wingquists Gata 2 in the Gamlestaden district of Gothenburg, Sweden. The company operates in around 130 countries with more than 100 manufacturing plants and over 17,000 distributor locations worldwide.

Who are SKF's customers?

SKF serves more than 20 industries, including automotive OEMs and the vehicle aftermarket, railway, aerospace, wind energy, and heavy industry, plus a large industrial distribution channel. It rarely names individual programs, but reports leading positions in railway, aerospace, and heavy industries. In 2026 it also began supplying precision components for humanoid robots through a venture with Leaderdrive.

Is SKF spinning off its automotive business?

Yes. SKF's Board decided in September 2024 to separate its Automotive business into a standalone company listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, via a distribution to shareholders. In February 2026 the company named the future standalone business SKF Vertevo, with a listing planned for the fourth quarter of 2026. After the separation, the remaining SKF is its industrial bearings and services business.

Last verified September 28, 2026. Is this your company? Request a correction.