Though many organizations are already aware of the fact that their per gallon or barrel cost of oil is far from what must actually be paid to get its full value. Disposal costs, labor expenses and vendor price differentials can make the true price of oil much higher than what a naïve organization may believe. This post will breakdown the additional costs associated with oil in the industrial setting, in addition to the ways your organization can reduce the hidden costs necessary to ensure its use is being optimized.
Every business is interested in optimizing their cost effectiveness, especially in regards to machinery. This requires each piece of equipment to be performing at optimal levels. Which requires maintenance such as proper lubrication and completing regular oil changes. Finding a schedule that allows all equipment to be serviced regularly while still partaking in operations is difficult. With this post and accompanying infographic, the process of identifying hidden costs due to mismanaged lubrication in industrial settings will be detailed.
The first hidden cost comes in the form of unnecessary oil changes. Organizations will look to oil changes much too frequently in hopes it can solve a problem actually related to contamination or excessive wear. Before an organization can realize that this wastes valuable resources and time, they’ve already paid out their maintenance providers. The truth is, most issues are much deeper rooted than a simple oil change can solve.
Another example of an additional cost being incurred is due to damage done to a machine. Let’s consider that there’s some form of under-filling the sump or reservoir. This can go on to introduce contaminated or incorrect product. So not only will these instances result in machine damage, but they could also impact the goods that customers receive. This can spring about even more additional expenses for an organization.
Equipment failure is also another hidden cost in that the damages will require maintenance to resolve, but if they’re not resolved, the equipment remains incapable of operating. When considering the most common reason for machine malfunctions, organizations should be weary of bearing issues. Nearly half of all machine failures are a result of improper lubrication or re-lubrication of bearings. Though organizations may be tempted to replace the bearings, shafting or motors of a machine, if nothing is fixed despite the investment, that loss of capital can be detrimental.
While a number of the issues mentioned within this post can result in large amounts of money needing to be spent by an organization, most of these issues can be avoided. To learn more about the different types of solutions in place to minimize machinery damage as well as reduce the amount of hidden costs associated with oil, be sure to continue reading on all the way through the infographic included alongside this post. Courtesy of Isomag.
