In this volatile market, everyone looks for ways to protect their margins.

Often, this means doing more with less.

But one corner that should never be cut is lubrication. These essential liquids often determine whether your machinery is running smoothly or in need of repair. The numbers speak for themselves. Roughly 40% of machinery failures are related to improper lubrication. Imagine what it would do for your business if even a fraction of failures were prevented.

In addition to energy savings benefits, lubricants can help your business by:

Lessening wear
Reducing friction
Minimizing corrosion
Controlling temperatures
Safeguarding components

If lubrication is not prioritized, chances are you will see more and more uptime replaced with downtime. To maintain an effective system, it's important to follow a few strategies:

Benchmark

As with numerous aspects of your business, you don’t know what you don’t know. That’s why benchmarking and oil analysis are vital to the process. Taking the time to understand your strengths and weaknesses can set you up for success. After all, if you don’t have a baseline, it can be impossible to measure improvements.

Label

Working with a variety of different lubricants is common. The last thing you want is to mix them up. It’s important to maintain clear labeling that ensures the right lubricant ends up in the right spot. A simple step like this can prevent major problems.

Clean

Opportunities for contamination are everywhere. That’s why everything your lubricants touch must be kept clean. In addition to their containers, this also includes the environments they’re stored in and the dispensers used. For extra protection, use color-coded dispensers so that trace amounts of one oil are not mixed with another. Maintaining a high standard of cleanliness may seem taxing in the moment, but it pays dividends over the long term.

Lubricants are just one of the many business details you need to keep an eye on to maintain healthy margins. You don’t need to carry that burden alone. If you have questions about the products you use or would like to discuss the potential benefits of alternatives, contact General Petroleum.