ExxonMobil Lubricants Private Limited participated at the 18^th National Lubricating Grease Institute (NLGI) – India Chapter’s Annual Conference and showcased its expertly formulated comprehensive range of greases available in India. The conference, organized by NLGI – India chapter from Feb. 05^th to 7^th, 2016 in Lonavala, is a premier platform for grease-related industry stakeholders in India. ExxonMobil elaborated on how leveraging comprehensive lubricant technologies and service solutions can help companies enhance safety, achieve environmental care-related goals, and maximize productivity, attracting wide attention from participating companies and representatives at the annual grease conference.

Advancement in machine and equipment designs have affected operating parameters and thus the requirement for lubricating greases. As operating parameters like speed, load, temperature, etc., vary significantly based upon the equipment, it is practically impossible for a single grease to handle all the diversified applications. Mobil has a balanced portfolio of state-of-the-art, well proved, high-performance lubricants and greases that can cater to the needs of many industrial sectors – including metals, cement, construction, mining, power generation, general manufacturing, plastics, food and beverage, pulp and paper – all backed by ExxonMobil’s technology leadership and unmatched industry expertise.

“In modern machinery design and construction, machines function under severe operating conditions with the expectation of increased productivity and less downtime. This has made it difficult for conventional lithium greases to satisfactorily fulfill these requirements. In light of this fact, high performance greases like lithium-complex and calcium-sulfonate are the best candidates for the said applications. While lithium-complex greases have excellent compatibility with the most widely used lithium greases, calcium-sulfonate greases are also moderately compatible. Lithium-complex greases generally possess good stability, high-temperature characteristics and water-resistance properties which meet the needs of a wide variety of heavy-duty applications and operating conditions. They provide balanced load-carrying capability across a spectrum of loads, speeds and temperatures,” said Mr.Imtiaz Ahmed, Asia Pacific Mobil SHC Brand Manager, ExxonMobil Lubricants Private Limited.         

To fulfill the unique needs of a wide range of industries, Mobil offers a comprehensive line of greases with advanced technology that are designed to offer customers extended re-greasing intervals, longer equipment life, and greater productivity. This includes synthetics for extreme conditions, polyurea thickener based greases for long life and use in high temperatures, food-grade solutions, and grease for environmentally sensitive applications. The level of grease’s performance depends on the formulation approach. Greases that are developed through a balanced formulation approach often offer significant performance benefits and advantages. Mobil’s advanced formulation greases are designed to provide all-round balanced performance for severe conditions experienced by today’s industrial and mobile equipment.

The mining industry is one of the most fundamental components of the industrial landscape, and also one of the most challenging from a lubrication standpoint. By combining the use of high quality lubricants and an effective technical services program, mining operators can achieve a competitive advantage in their operations, by enhancing productivity and reducing their lubrication consumption which will potentially increase the productivity and reduce downtime of their mining machinery and equipment. In addition, health and safety benefits may also be realized.

“Operators in the mining sector have to balance multiple concerns, as they try to enhance operational safety and keep their machinery running at peak performance, even when it is subjected to extreme temperatures and heavy loads. To help address these issues, it is essential to work closely with mining customers to develop a solutions-focused approach to help protect and maintain equipment across their entire operation. This can be done by leveraging comprehensive lubricant technologies and service solutions, helping companies enhance safety, achieve environmental care-related goals, and maximize productivity. Lubricant programs and services – when delivered from a solutions-oriented approach – can play an important role in advancing productivity in mining operations,” said Mr Shankar Karnik, General Manager Industrial, ExxonMobil Lubricants Private Limited.

While the primary function of a lubricant is to protect equipment, reduce unscheduled downtime and extend oil drain intervals, advancements in lubricant technology now mean mining companies can select oils and greases which provide outstanding levels of protection as well as other potential benefits such as improved fuel economy. Heavy-duty diesel engine oils, hydraulic oils and greases work hand-in-hand to enable mobile machinery on mining sites to operate effectively.

“ExxonMobil’s comprehensive portfolio of oils and greases along with robust services, combine to offer holistic solutions for mining operators. The benefits offered have been widely acknowledged by successful mining operators located all across the world. The technology leadership embodied in our greases, along with the application expertise of our engineers, can help mines: address safety exposure, mitigate environmental touch and support their desire to be more productive,” said Umut Urkun, Global Grease Marketing Advisor, ExxonMobil Fuels & Lubricants.

Backed by more than 100 years of industry expertise, Mobil’s range of  greases are expertly formulated to meet a wide variety of operating conditions in both industrial and mobile equipment, including extreme applications such as high and low temperatures; water contamination; heavy or shock loads; or variable speeds. Mobil greases are available in a range of viscosity grades to offer customers added choice and flexibility. Mobil’s grease portfolio in India includes Mobil SHC Polyrex, Mobilith SHC, Mobilgrease XHP series and Mobil Centaur XHP. The Mobilgrease XHP series includes Mobilgrease XHP 461/462, Mobilgrease XHP 222 and Mobilgrease XHP 222 Special.

Global demand for energy is expected to increase by more than 35% by 2040 as compared to levels in 2010 – states ExxonMobil’s Energy Outlook Report 2040.

ExxonMobil shares its perspective on how improvement in efficiency of machinery and equipment can help mitigate the effects of rising energy demand in the industrial sector

August 05, 2015, New Delhi, India – ExxonMobil Lubricants Private Limited, a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corporation shared a perspective on effective lubrication practices and the need for guidelines on industrial lubrication in India’.  Every year ExxonMobil produces an ‘Outlook for Energy’ report – ‘The Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040’, which provides a window to the future of the world’s energy needs. The Outlook for Energy is used to guide strategies and investments at ExxonMobil. One of the key findings of this report is the essential role that energy efficiency will play in the future to help solve energy challenges.

Companies in the industrial sector are increasingly looking at new technologies to reduce their energy usage. One opportunity for energy conservation that is often overlooked in industrial facilities is the technology behind the lubricant used. Lubricants are often considered as a negligible contributor towards the annual profitability of the plant. This is because of lack of appropriate awareness and quantification methods that capture benefits associated with the proper usage of a lubricant. ExxonMobil defines Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) as an effective way to consolidate key benefits. The concept attempts to cover the complete set of cost components from ‘Purchase to Disposal’. TCO comprises capital expenses incurred in acquiring and installing the equipment as well as operating expenses including operating cost, maintenance and repair, downtime cost, energy cost, environment cost, routine and overtime labor, training and disposal cost etc. High performance lubricants with significant energy efficiency benefits have the ability to achieve potential savings in energy, operation and maintenance costs in Indian industry.

According to Dan Kellen, Global Industrial Product Technology Manager, ExxonMobil Fuels, Lubricants and Specialities Marketing Company, “The science of tribology is growing and will become increasingly important in the future because of constantly increasing demands of improved efficiency from the industry. The lubricants of the future have to be more environmentally adapted with a higher level of performance, and lower total life cycle cost (LCC) than commonly used lubricants today. Looking to the future, the trend is toward lubricants and base oils with even higher purity, lower volatility and longer life.”

ExxonMobil continuously analyzes trends that will impact the industrial landscape and also evaluates lubricant technologies and services that will be needed in the future. Our relationship with equipment builders has given us the kind of inputs required specifically for investing in R&D to introduce new products with new technologies. In turn, we have made sure that our mutual customers’, i.e. our customers and our equipment builder customers are benefitted from this.

Mr Glen Sharkowicz, Asia Pacific Industrial Lubricants Marketing Manager, ExxonMobil Fuels & Lubricants said, “Using energy efficient lubricants will enable manufacturing facilities to operate at maximum efficiency at optimal cost. Whether for gearboxes, engines or hydraulic systems, energy efficient lubricants are available, and with upto 6% efficiency improvement having been proven in some applications, they can be a  very smart investment .Improving energy efficiency by utilizing energy efficient lubricants has helped ExxonMobil customers reduce carbon footprint, increase productivity and reduce overall operating costs.”

Along with high performance lubricants implementation of sound lubrication practices including preventative maintenance and monitoring programs are key to help extract peak performance and maximum value. Effective lubrication practices play a valuable role in improving equipment performance, and therefore overall equipment effectiveness. To minimize the risk of unplanned events and to help improve equipment performance, it is important to develop and implement a robust, solutions-oriented lubrication program for operations, which utilizes a combination of high quality products and appropriate technical services to better protect and monitor any industrial equipment.

According to Mr. Shankar Karnik, General Manager Industrial, ExxonMobil Lubricants Pvt Ltd., Mr. Shankar Karnik, “Validated data of real-time case studies establishes that energy efficient lubricants can help in achieving productivity improvement in various industries. Thus, we feel that there is a need in the industry for guidelines to support energy audit. This will be a step forward in the right direction for the lubricant industry in India.”

In today’s globally competitive business landscape, manufacturers feel constantly challenged to get the most out of their equipment. Even incremental increases in machine productivity can alter a profit/loss scenario – often the primary, if not the only consideration in many businesses. Also, in a world increasingly conditioned by a heightened awareness of environmental impact, concerns with the latter demand focus on sustainable business practices and energy efficient systems. In response, industrial and mobile equipment hydraulic systems have become smaller and lighter, and utilize higher pressures to achieve maximum system efficiency.

For instance, while gear lubrication has been commonly considered elementary, it is in fact, a dynamic process requiring sophisticated technology interventions. The differentials that house the gears are out of sight, and therefore, out of mind – a neglected process. But differentials are just as important to the operation of a vehicle as the engine is. An engine without a functioning differential will not move the vehicle. This is why advanced hydraulic fluids are now available, contributing to the overall hydraulic system and energy efficiency.

Apollo Tyres has been in the business of manufacture and sale of tyres since its inception in 1972. The company has a manufacturing presence in Asia, Europe and Africa, with nine modern tyre facilities and exports to over 118 countries. The company offers a comprehensive product portfolio spread across passenger car, light truck, truck-bus, off highway and bicycle tyres, retreading material and retreaded tyres. The company firmly believes that to truly move up the value chain, it is critical to use fewer natural resources while optimizing its manufacturing output. For a growing organization with a long-term focus and commitment, it is critical to safeguard resources for the future even as it creates value today. This is why Apollo is committed to the cautious and careful use of natural resources.

In 2012, Apollo Tyres experienced the benefits of using Mobil premium mineral lubricants in one of their Feed Mill Gearboxes which resulted in a steep drop in temperature, seal life enhancement and significant overall lubrication cost reduction. Thus, Apollo Tyres was satisfied with the services provided by ExxonMobil. But then, Mobil Industrial Lubricants had much more in store for its treasured customer. Keeping “Sustainability in Motion” and as a result of ExxonMobil’s technical approach to Apollo Tyres, they wanted to experience energy conservation by using Mobil synthetic lubricants in their critical applications.

Cracker Mill Gearbox(202) was chosen to demonstrate “Energy Efficiency” by using Mobil SHC 600 Series, a fully synthetic gear lubricant offering following key benefits;

• Increased reliability of the equipment with less wear of internal components
• Reduced “Total Cost of Ownership”
• Increased “Energy Efficiency”, all leading to “Advancing Productivity” of Apollo Tyres Ltd.

ExxonMobil Engineers recommended Apollo Tyres to replace the cracker mill gearbox with Mobil SHC 634 a fully synthetic gear lubricant with energy efficient benefits to customers and provided series of technical services such as thermal imaging of the gearbox and incorporate power logger to measure energy consumption during operation. The gearbox was registered under SIGNUM program to monitor condition of the equipment and Mobil SHC 634.

To achieve above stated objectives, the Cracker Mill gearbox was first charged with fresh competitor ISO VG 460 Gear oil (Conventional) and run for approximately 40 days with energy meter installed from Apollo Tyres Electrical division. The gearbox was flushed and then replaced with Mobil SHC 634 and run for another 40 days with same measurement device and energy readings were compared. During the process the gearbox output as a parameter of production was also measured to ascertain the actual load on the gearbox. The treading process started with Cracker Mill and completed after extruder through a Feed Mill. The production output was measured as number of treads produced per shift (8 hrs duty) after extruder. Only the cracker mill gearbox was charged with Mobil SHC 634 to evaluate energy efficiency.

A 5oC drop in average temperature of gearbox was observed after changeover to Mobil SHC 634

With changeover to Mobil SHC 634 alongside SIGNUM Oil Analysis, Apollo Tyres were able to experience an overall 2.6% energy savings calculated through energy meter readings. This was also substantiated by a temperature drop of 5oC through thermal imaging.

Benefits:

• By changing over to Mobil SHC 634, Apollo Tyres Perambara site achieved following key benefits,
• Extended Oil life and reduction in equipment wear
• Increased reliability of the equipment with reduced overall lubrication cost
• Reduced power consumption by 2.6 % (through Energy meter) and 3.7 % (through Temperature profile measurement)
• Energy savings calculated using energy meter is recorded below,
  –   Motor rating with 80% efficiency, 200 kW
  –  Energy saved per year in units 200 x 0.026 x 8000 = 41600 units
  –  At an average of Rs 5/- as unit cost of energy, annual savings of INR 2,08,000(USD 3,525.42) is recorded

In conclusion, superior product performance of Mobil SHC 634 supported by Signum Oil Analysis based on recommendation by Mobil engineers helped the customer improve energy efficiency of 2.6% in their gearboxes.

Author:

Shankar Karnik, Asia Pacific Mobil SHC Brand Manager & Energy Advisor, ExxonMobil Lubricants Private Limited

Whether a manufacturing company specialises in producing nuts and bolts, complex gear sets or high precision valves, keeping its equipment running efficiently is the key to profitability. Lubrication plays an integral role in reducing friction between critical rotating or moving machine tool components, which can translate into equipment durability and availability.

To help ensure that the machine tool runs smoothly, it is important to choose a combination of high-quality lubricants – slideway oils, water soluble cutting fluids and neat cutting oils.

Slideway Oils
Poorly formulated slideway oils may not separate readily from aqueous coolants. This can result in the formation of ‘tramp oil’ which can compromise the effectiveness of the coolant by shortening its effective life and adversely altering cutting performance. Tramp oil can also lead to bacterial growth resulting in foul odour, short service life and potential health and safety concerns.

To identify high performance slideway oil, maintenance professionals should seek out products with the following performance characteristics:

• Outstanding frictional properties – which enable increased machine accuracy and reduced chatter and stick-slip
• Exceptional coolant separability – which enhances the performance and life of water based metal working fluids

One product that meets these requirements is the Mobil Vactra Oil Numbered Series of slideway oils, which have a proven track record in service.

Water Soluble Cutting Fluids
To optimise productivity it is very important to choose technology-leading aqueous coolants. The highest performing coolants can provide reduced maintenance requirements by resisting biological attack which helps to extend batch life. Ease of maintenance needs to be balanced with good machining performance as well as protecting the machine tools and work pieces from corrosion and sticky deposits. In addition, the fluids should meet the latest Health and Safety regulations and be easy to monitor and maintain in service. Collectively, these properties will help deliver long service life, excellent cutting performance and reduced maintenance downtime.

The new Mobilcut series from ExxonMobil, comprising milky emulsions, high performance micro-emulsions and a fully synthetic grinding fluid, are cutting fluids designed to offer long service life, good operator acceptability and easy waste management. The high performance, long life semi-synthetic cutting fluids in particular have been designed to meet the wide variety of applications and operations found in medium to small sized machine shops where flexibility, inventory management and machine downtime are of paramount importance.

Neat Cutting Oils
Neat or straight cutting oils are used in applications which are beyond the typical performance profile of aqueous coolants, such as tapping and threading of high alloy steels. Properly formulated products can improve machining in high speed automated machining centres through outstanding cutting performance, reduced tool wear and enhanced surface finish. Maintenance professionals should seek products that:

• Are light coloured to allow clear visibility of the workpiece
• Have low misting characteristics to help workplace safety and product usage
• Are chlorine free to support environmental concerns, while balancing with a high degree of lubricity and machining performance

Specially designed to meet the increasing demands of today’s sophisticated machining centres, tooling trends and health and safety regulations, the Mobilmet series of cutting oils and the new series of Mobilgrind grinding oils from ExxonMobil have been developed for applications where excellent surface finish, high precision machining and improved productivity are the primary objectives.

Maximising Productivity
As well as utilising high quality metal working fluids, manufacturing companies should also incorporate an oil and equipment monitoring programme in order to maximise productivity. Oil analysis is a series of tests that help determine the condition of internal parts and in-service lubricants. With this information the useful lives of both equipment and oil can be extended by identifying early warning signs such as contamination and wear, which can help minimise unscheduled maintenance.

For maintenance professionals that want to implement an effective oil analysis programme that can save both time and money, ExxonMobil offers its proprietary online Signum Oil Analysis programme. With a few keystrokes, users can manage all their oil analysis needs including:

• Updating equipment registrations and selecting analysis options based on their equipment or maintenance needs
• Tracking the status of samples at the lab
• Directing actions based on analysis results and requesting sample kits
• Sharing critical results with colleagues in a secure, password protected environment

By following the suggestions provided above, businesses can help enhance overall efficiency and maximise productivity.

By Shankar Karnik, Asia Pacific Mobil SHC Brand Manager, ExxonMobil Lubricants Pvt. Limited