Hans Wildeboer, Product Application Specialist, Shell Global Solutions
Finishing a project on time and on budget is a business imperative for construction managers if they want to stay competitive. Lubricants play a critical role in achieving this task bymaintaining machinery, maximising vehicle uptime and, subsequently, minimising costs.
Managers cannot afford for equipment to be out of action, both in terms of the time lost and the expense of repairs. At the same time, it’s not always possible to control where projects take place and the heavy toll that certain conditions take on equipment; whether it’s hot, cold, dusty, muddy or steep, in or below water-surface; remote and off-road or urban locations. The Shell Lubricants business works with OEMs around the world to improve the efficiency of their fleets and other construction equipment when they operate in those challenging conditions. These are often conditions so severe that the risk of potential breakdown at a critical point in a project is raised. Add to those challenges other pressures facing construction managers, such as tight budgets, complying with environmental standards and new equipment specifications and it can feel like it’s not just the vehicles that are bearing a heavy load.
The construction industry has a vast array of complicated and critical operations. Some require lubricating oils, but others will require a grease. Greases are applied to mechanisms that can only be lubricated infrequently and where a lubricating oil would not remain in position.In construction, greases are used in a number of pieces of machinery varying from journal bearings, roller bearings, slow running gears, pivots andcables.Across the sector, equipment grease is especially useful for the lubrication of bearings, pins, bushes and all kinds of chassis lubrication for off-highway vehicles.
Through our work with construction customers across the world, we know that the application of these products comes with certain challenges. Greasing of equipment components can be cumbersome, labour intensive and fault prone. A centralised grease lubrication system will ensure the right amount of grease is applied at the right spot at the right time.This can be done by seeking professional advice from lubrication specialists who will ensure that the right lubrication strategy is implemented in the operations.
One area of common concern for operators is the degradation of greases. It is critical that off-highway fleet operators for example,keep contaminants out of their greases. I have seen cases where contractors are pumping out of a drum where the lid is not on tightly and it is allowing contaminants — dust particulates and rain — to get in. Implementation of a contamination prevention programme starts with proper storage and handling of products. It’s a simple but effective mantra.
Consorcio Camargo Correa, a Brazil-based constructioncompany, was constructing a large dam in Venezuela,and was experiencing spiralling maintenance costs anddowntime for its excavators.Extracting stone from the river to be crushed for use in cement for theconstruction of the dam was resulting in a rapid decrease in the life of bucketpins and bushes of the excavation machines owing to water contamination.
The bucket pins and bushes needed replacing every 250 hours. Consequently,a water-resistant lubricant was becoming increasingly critical for reducingConsorcio’s operational costs.The Shell Lubricants technical team recommended Shell Gadus S3 V460D 2,a grease with strong water resistance, to suit the project’s working conditions.The change to Shell Gadus S3 V460D 2 had a significant impact onproductivity. The excavator component life increased from 250 to 350 hours; productivity was improved owing to the better availability of equipment; maintenance and labour costs for changing components were lower; and there was less unscheduled downtime.
This resulted in a reported 28% reduction in costs calculated at US$3,800,000 per annum.High-performance, extreme-pressure multi-purpose grease Shell Gadus S3 V460D 2 is a high-performance, high-temperature grease for slow-moving, heavily loaded large bearings subject to shock loads. It is based on a high-viscosity mineral oil and a lithium complex soap thickener. Apart from containing the latest additives to ensure excellent high-temperature, anticorrosion and anti-oxidation performance, the grease also contains molybdenum di-sulphate to help ensure that it can handle shock loads and aneffective tackifier to help ensure low water spray-off, strong adherence to the lubricated parts and a very robust collar that avoids the ingress of moisture and contaminants into the lubrication zone
Off-highway fleet operators can make use of Shell LubeMatch, an oil selector service that provides instant lubricant recommendations for a wide variety of vehicles and equipment. It is available to a wide audience online and as an app for Android and iPhone mobile devices. The service recommends the right choice of Shell engine oils and lubricants for any given vehicle, and has been designed especially for the busy fleet environment.
Introducing an effective lubrication strategy could increase the reliability of the machinery in use and that means less downtime and unexpected associated costs. In today’s unpredictable economic conditions, having a solid maintenance plan in place could provide peace of mind that expensive equipment is being protected.
