RS and IMI Make Pneumatic Motion Control Quick, Easy, and Economical
May 28, 2025
The RS portfolio of IMI pneumatic actuators for industrial and process automation applications includes IMI Bimba Original Line® cylinders, which are quick, easy, and economical to replace and offer more sizes and options than comparable solutions.
RS, a high-service global product and service solutions provider for industrial customers, offers a wide range of IMI pneumatic actuators engineered to serve industrial and process automation applications in an extremely broad range of industries and applications, as well as the technical expertise needed to help customers identify the right pneumatic actuators for their unique demands.
IMI is a global leader in fluid and motion control dedicated to solving customer challenges in the process automation, industrial automation, climate control, life sciences, and transportation industries with scalable solutions that drive sustainable growth. Its portfolio of pneumatic actuators extends across two separate but unified brands, IMI Bimba and IMI Norgren, and serves both original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and end-users around the world.
Pneumatic actuators, also commonly referred to as pneumatic cylinders or pneumatic drives, convert compressed air into linear and rotary motion and deliver a substantial amount of force and power for their size. Even relatively low-pressure actuators still capable of moving hundreds of pounds. They’re also simpler and typically more durable than electric and hydraulic actuators, with lifecycles extending into the millions of cycles.
IMI Bimba and IMI Norgren offer single- and double-acting pneumatic actuators in a variety of different styles — including roundline, compact, NFPA (National Fluid Power Association), guided thruster, rodless, rotary, non-rotating, repairable, nonrepairable, and ISO — to solve automated motion challenges in industries with considerable differences in operating and regulatory environments and requirements. IMI pneumatic actuators are particularly popular in the agriculture, automotive, food and beverage, material handling, packaging, medical, battery and hydrogen production, industrial process, commercial vehicle, rail transportation, and theme park industries.
Roundline pneumatic actuators, like the IMI Bimba Original Line®, are well suited for light- to medium-duty, lower-force applications and are widely available with options including bumpers, magnets, or adjustable cushioning. The Original Line introduced the first nonrepairable air cylinders to market back in 1957 — enabling quick, easy, and cost-effective pneumatic motion control — and continues to set standards today, offering more sizes and options than comparable solutions with an exceptional service life of 3,000 miles of travel or more.
The IMI Bimba Original Line currently offers more than 150,000 different standard cylinders. The range includes an expansive selection of standard single-acting, reverse single-acting, and double-acting cylinders with 12 bore sizes extending from 5/16” to 3”, as well as a selection of specialty styles (e.g., three-position, non-rotating, Z-line, rod lock, and hole punch cylinders), all of which are available in a wide variety of stroke lengths and mounting styles and lubricated with a permanent semi-synthetic grease that eliminates the need for additional lubrication at any point in the product’s lifecycle.
The line also offers features:
- Type 304 stainless steel bodies made with a double rolled construction and a mirror-finish inside diameter (ID) for superior performance
- High-strength carbon steel or Type 303 stainless steel piston rods equipped with high-strength roll-formed rod threads
- Low breakaway frictional characteristics, including collapsible Buna N “U” cup rod and piston seals and oil-impregnated sintered bronze rod guide bushings
- Durable aluminum alloy pistons
- Secure piston-rod connections that are threaded, sealed, and riveted
- Robust aluminum or stainless steel end caps machined for minimal breakaway during initial pressurization
- A 250psi rating
Additional options for IMI Bimba Original Line pneumatic actuators include magnetic pistons for position detection, bumpers for noise reduction, wipers for contamination, adjustable cushions to reduce energy, extra rod extensions, standard and heavy-duty springs, and high- and low-temperature capabilities and heavy-duty materials for harsh environments.
Both IMI Bimba and IMI Norgren also offer a variety of components crucial to deploying pneumatic actuators in various industries and applications, including air preparation devices that filter, regulate, and lubricate the air, valves that control the directional flow of the air, and corresponding accessories, such as mounting solutions.
More Information
For more information about IMI pneumatic actuators — including selection tips — check out “Unlocking the power and versatility of pneumatic actuators,” an RS Expert Advice interview with Sarah Manuel, the Training Manager at IMI, and visit the links embedded here.
For assistance identifying, procuring, deploying, and maintaining IMI pneumatic actuators sure to satisfy your unique application demands, please contact your local RS representative at 1.866.433.5722 or reach out to the RS technical support team.
About IMI
IMI plc is a FTSE100 global specialist engineering company that designs, manufactures and services highly engineered products to control the precise movement of fluids. Its innovative motion and flow control technologies, built around valves and actuators, enable vital sectors to become safer, more sustainable and more productive. IMI combines world class applications engineering expertise with a continued focus on customer satisfaction, market-led innovation and complexity reduction to solve its customers most acute engineering problems. IMI employs approximately 10,000 people, has manufacturing facilities in 18 countries and operates a global service network. The Company is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Further information is available at www.imiplc.com.
About RS
RS is a high-service global product and service solutions provider for industrial customers, enabling them to operate efficiently and sustainably.
They operate in 36 markets, stock over 830,000 industrial and specialist products, and list an additional five million relevant for their industrial customers, sourced from over 2,500 suppliers. This extensive range supports their customers across the industrial lifecycle of designing, building, and maintaining equipment and operations. RS enhances their experience through a tailored service model, leveraging their efficient physical, digital, and process infrastructure sustainably. They combine a technically led and digitally enabled approach with an exceptional team of experts; ultimately, it’s their people that make the difference.
Their purpose, making amazing happen for a better world, reflects their focus on delivering results for people, planet, and profit.
RS Group plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange with stock ticker RS1 and in the year ended 31 March 2025 reported revenue of £2,904 million.
For more information, please visit https://www.rsgroup.com/ or connect with us on LinkedIn or X (Twitter).
About RS in the Americas
In the Americas region, RS stocks more than 250,000 industrial and electronic products from more than 700 trusted suppliers. These solutions cover categories extending from automation and control equipment to interconnect, passive, active, and electromechanical components and include more than 80,000 high-quality, competitively priced RS PRO products. For more information, please visit https://us.rs-online.com or connect with us via social media on Facebook, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube.
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