Business is a ball at Tsubaki Nakashima. Formerly Tsubakimo Precision Products, the company churns out linear motion ball screws, bearing balls, blowers, and precision machinery. It also produces chrome, carbon, and steel cylindrical roller bearings. The lineup is primarily used in the feeding mechanisms of machinery; consumer electronics, optical instruments, and lasers are a few applications. Its US Hoover Precision Products unit makes ceramic, metal, and plastic-based ball bearings. Customers include auto and machinery OEMs. Founded in 1934, Tsubaki Nakashima was taken over in a management buyout led by Nomura Holdings in 2007. In 2011 Carlyle Group purchased the company for ¥66 billion (about $804 million).