The American manufacturing industry is enormous, and this is possible with a wide variety of factories, manufacturing zones, workshops, and others. Some are larger than others, and some make cars or home appliances or other goods. What is common among all these industrial sites, however, is the need for powerful machines and the upkeep of those machines. A responsible factory owner or workshop manager will not only have the right tools for the job but keep them in good shape. This is mundane work, but a factory may suffer shutdowns if the machines overheat, break, or wear out during a hard day’s work. This ranges from buying and installing new drill bits or drill chucks to new saws or lathe parts all the way to cutting fluids and other lubricants. Wholesale industrial supplies such as heavy duty lubricants, corrosion preventatives, and more are essential to purchase and use to keep machines running well. Brand named lubricants and cutting fluids such as Castrol cutting fluid and its kin are often a fine choice, and a factory owner may find Castrol cutting fluid or lubes online from wholesalers. A search can be done locally, such as “castrol cutting fluid Miami FL” or searching “castrol cutting fluid” with the factory’s ZIP code in the search.

The Uses of Machine Lubricants

These lubricants and oils are used for good reason, to be sure. A machine may suffer all sorts of issues if it operates without any lubricants in it, and such machines may even suffer damage and shut down. A factory may lose a lot of money when that happens, owing to the lost productivity and the time and expense needed to fix that machine and get it running. But having the right lube on hand may help prevent this, making it a critical investment to make.

What might these lubricants do when they’re applied to a factory machine? Overall, they have four main functions to offer: cooling, lubrication, chip removal, and control of corrosion. Lubrication is the most straightforward one of them all. Such oils, synthetic or real, will create a slippery surface on metal parts and allow them to glide past each other with minimal friction. In turn, this allows them to move at maximum speed, and such lube also prevents those surfaces from scraping against each other and suffering damage (and creating harmful sparks). A saw or drill may rotate at maximum speed when enough lube is present, for example.

Simple lubrication is quite important, but that’s not the only function of these industrial lubes and oils. Such materials are also used for temperature control, and without their application, machines may dangerously overheat while in operation. Excess heat generated from work may fry electrical components or warp metal surfaces, and overheating machines may automatically shut down to protect themselves. from further damage. This may prevent a total catastrophe, but a factory owner will be quite upset if their machines are shutting down and losing productivity. Lubes, when applied correctly, will keep surfaces from getting too hot like that.

Lubes may also be used to prevent corrosion of metals such as rust or other effects, and lubes may also help prevent chips from flaking off of metal surfaces. Chips, as loose bits of metal, may strike something at high speed or get stuck in something, causing harm. Chipped surfaces suffer from imperfections that may hamper work.

Getting Lube for Machines

Lubrication is a nearly universal need among factories and machines, leading to quite a large market for them. A 2016 report, for example, said that the metalworking fluids market may reach an estimated value of $9.74 billion by the year 2020. And at one time, some $4 billion worth of metalworking fluids was estimated to be consumed for transportation equipment worldwide in 2017. A factory owner or a truck carrier company owner may want to set up a working relationship with local suppliers of such lubes and acquire them wholesale whenever they need them, and for a fair price. Some factories fall short, however. A recent study estimated that 70% of unplanned equipment shutdowns in factories were due to poor lube use and management, and only 42% of manufacturing companies report having correct lube management procedures in place.