TAIYUAN -- A Chinese firm has rolled out oil film bearings which could enable a rolling mill to have a maximum loading capacity of 14,494 tons, the largest in the world.

Cao Keshun, a Taiyuan Heavy Machinery Group Co Ltd (TZ) spokesman, said that the company's new bearings product is the largest of its kind in the world in both diameter and loading capacity.

Each of TZ's new bearings has a working diameter of 1,670 millimeters and a loading capacity of 7,247 tons.

Dubbed as the "heart" of the rolling mill, oil film bearings are used on mills to roll out steel bars and plates.

TZ-developed bearings are globally competitive in both precision and price, and have good market potential, Cao said.

Founded in 1950, TZ was the first independent heavy-duty machinery manufacturing firm established in China. Its products have been exported to countries around the world.