SKF closed its Tortuguitas plant: what happened and what changes for those who buy SKF bearings in Argentina

On October 27, 2025, SKF announced from its headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden, that it was discontinuing production at its plant in Tortuguitas, in the province of Buenos Aires. According to that statement, the manufacturing done there was moved to other plants in the group's global network. The measure affected about 145 people who worked at the plant.

The company presented the decision as part of a reorganization of its manufacturing network, which concentrates production in fewer, larger-scale factories. Manish Bhatnagar, president of the group's industrial region for the Americas, noted that alternatives were evaluated and that no viable option was found to keep the plant operating. In the same text, the company thanked its staff for their work and committed to supporting the exit process.

The statement clarifies a point that matters to buyers: SKF has not withdrawn from Argentina. The company reported that it maintains its local presence to serve customers, with commercial operations and technical support. What ended is manufacturing in the country, not the sale of the brand.

SKF was founded in Sweden in 1907 and has operated in Argentina since 1917, just ten years after its founding. It is one of the bearing brands with the most history in the local industry, and that is why the news had such an impact. For several generations of mechanics and maintenance personnel, the SKF bearing was the everyday reference.

According to information published by the national press at the time of the announcement, local manufacturing had begun in 1972. The Tortuguitas plant produced bearings for the automotive sector and for industry. For more than five decades, a portion of the brand's bearings used in the country came from that factory.

It is worth separating two things that are sometimes mixed up. One is local production, which ended. The other is the brand, with its product program, its designations, and its technical documentation, which remains the same worldwide. No single plant manufactures the entire program alone: a good part of the SKF bearings used by Argentine industry was already coming from other group factories before the closure.

Since the closure, the SKF bearings sold in Argentina come from the group's other plants. The press mentioned origins such as Brazil, Italy, Bulgaria, and China, depending on the type of product. For the user, this is noticeable in the country of origin shown on the box and on the part, not in the designation.

There was also a regulatory change. In May 2026, resolution 784/2026 of the Ministry of Economy repealed the anti-dumping duties that applied to single-row radial ball bearings of Chinese origin. The published rationale was that, without domestic production of that product, the condition supporting the measure was no longer met.

In practice, today there are bearings from more origins and more brands in the market than before. That expands purchasing options and also makes it more important to correctly identify the part, the brand, and the complete code before ordering. An incomplete code or a misread brand is the most common cause of a wrong replacement.

The code of an SKF bearing is the same, no matter where it is manufactured. A 6205-2Z has the same main dimensions and the same design in any group plant, and the same applies to a 22220 EK or an NU 210 ECP. The designation describes the product, not the place where it was made.

Therefore, the correct way to order an SKF bearing has not changed. You must copy the complete designation, with all the letters and numbers that follow the basic code, because those blocks distinguish the sealing, internal clearance, bore type, and other variants. Two bearings with the same basic number may not be interchangeable.

The box indicating a different country of origin than the previous bearing had is not, by itself, a defect or a warning sign. It is the expected consequence of production being spread across several plants. What you should check is that the designation engraved on the part matches the one on the box and the one you ordered.

With more origins in circulation, it is worth taking a minute to look at what you receive. The box must be closed and in good condition, with the designation clearly printed. The bearing has the brand and code engraved on one of the rings, with even and legible marking.

The signs that justify a query are well known: boxes with blurry printing or faded colors, designations that do not match between the box and the part, crooked or hand-made markings, and parts with rust or missing the factory-fitted protector. None of these signs proves anything on its own, but all deserve a second look before mounting.

The brand itself offers channels to verify the authenticity of a product based on photos of the box and the part. And it is always advisable to buy with an invoice from an identifiable business that can say where what it sells comes from. In a bearing, what you cannot see—the steel, the heat treatment, the precision—is what defines how long it lasts.

A change like this is a good occasion to organize the list of critical spare parts. For each important equipment, note the complete designation of its bearings, as shown on the part or in the manual, and not just the basic number. With that list, any query is resolved faster and with less margin for error.

Also review the bearings you have stored. A bearing is well preserved if it is in its original box, lying flat, in a dry place and without vibrations. Those that are loose, without a protector, or with a broken box should be inspected before being considered good.

And anticipate scheduled stops. When you know what you are going to change and when, you can consult each code in advance and confirm the exact design, instead of resolving it with the machine stopped. That applies to any brand, but it makes more sense when the market is changing.

At MR Accesorios Industriales we market and distribute SKF bearings, along with housings, seals, greases, and tools from the brand. We have worked with industry since 1945, from Buenos Aires, Argentina. On the site you can search for each bearing by its designation and view the data sheet.

To request a quote, send us the complete code and the quantity. If you do not have the code, the measurements—inner diameter, outer diameter, and width—a photo of the part, and the equipment where it works are useful. With that we identify the reference and respond via WhatsApp or the quote form.

If you have doubts about a part you already purchased, or want to organize your plant's bearing list, you can also write to us. We review the designations with you and help you complete each code, so that the next order goes right on the first try.