Gamal Sarid, an Israeli product grinding manufacturer, operates in an industry in which change only occurs when the same large corporations that dominate the market improve and optimize existing technology. Despite the challenging nature of this conservative marketplace, Gamal Sarid decided to create new innovative products. The company commissioned SIT to help them invent products that would be compatible with existing technology and add value to their company. Throughout the project, the participants developed seventy new product ideas, ten of which were considered technologically feasible and profitable. Gamal Sarid’s Lubriline™, one of the seven ideas that were eventually implemented, substantially improved Gamal Sarid’s status in the industry.

The participating engineers knew that softer materials cut more efficiently but wear out much faster than the typical harder materials. Traditionally, the industry mitigated this tradeoff by optimizing existing processes to enhance the cutting speed or the durability of the disc. To introduce a more innovative improvement, Gamal Sarid needed to break away from this “sum zero” game, either by developing a whole new solution (e.g. a new type of grinding material) or by breaking the fixedness of the way existing technology works.

The Lubriline™ does exactly that. As part of the hard material design, it incorporates a strip made of softer material and lubricants. This new design allows the soft strip to absorb the strain caused by the harder parts of the disc, while the lubes help keep the temperature low. By combining different types of materials, Gamal Sarid was able to substantially improve the grinding efficiency, without compromising the disc’s lifespan – they actually improved lifespan by 30%!

Gamal Sarid’s Lubriline continues to receive recognition worldwide.