Lubrication is the key to reducing energy wastage and parts deterioration. Wear reduction can become the key to maintaining mechanical equipment at their optimum efficiency and to extending machine life.

Lubricants can be either gas, liquid, solid or synthetic. They are important in keeping contaminants from delicate machinery parts in environmentally-polluted areas. Heat build-up is a major problem area for maintenance engineers as machines work longer and faster without stoppage. Special additives are increasingly important to help reduce generated heat which would otherwise cause the machine to break down.

The direct results of lubrication:

Effective lubrication
To maintain efficient and continuous performance of plants, factories and workshops, it is essential to set up 'corrective' and 'preventive' maintenance systems.

Corrective maintenance is when slight damage to equipment or machinery occurs. It encompasses the repair of the part and is generally the policy in smaller industries which have a small number of machines and any damage would not normally affect the flow of production.

Preventive maintenance is directed towards getting the longest period of machine performance without problems or damage which would cause a disruption of production flow. With effective preventive maintenance, it is possible to maintain maximum efficiency in industrial production with minimum time loss caused by interruptions. This makes it possible to obtain the lowest cost for the final product.

Preventive lubrication is perhaps the most important aspect of preventive maintenance: From statistics collected over many years, Omega researchers have calculated that general maintenance costs about 5-10% of the total operational cost and the maintenance lubrication costs only 2.5% of the general maintenance cost. In other words, the cost of maintenance lubrication when compared with the total cost of production, comes to between 0.125-0.25%.

Analysis by Omega Manufacturing Division of maintenance lubrication needs show that this is the main support of general preventive maintenance program and that inadequate lubrication will cost disproportionately more than the money foolishly saved by using low-quality lubricants.

Benefits of adequate lubrication
Modern machinery is complicated, compact and requires precise adjustments in operating conditions that are severe and varied. This has resulted in a great number of different types of lubricants being used, but it takes a great deal of attention and effort to ensure proper application.

Cost saving - the savings possible Omega lubricants are about 100 times the cost of lubrication.

Performance observation - Better quality Omega Lubricants last longer even working at maximum speeds and generally, lesser quantities are required to do the job than with a less expensive lubricant.

Maintenance costs - High quality Omega Lubricants result in less replacement parts and less damage to machinery.

Minimum breakdown - Breakdown is not only expensive to repair but also very costly in terms of production failure. This is true not only in highly-automated factories, even a small farm that has a tractor down can lose a lot of money. Lubrication with Omega cuts down the number of breakdowns dramatically.

Less production rejection - Many products are rejected when undergoing inspection. Many rejected products are the direct result of the machinery not performing according to plan because of wear due to inadequate lubrication.

Preventative lubrication program
The first step to ensure proper lubrication is to develop an Omega lubrication program. First, you need to: