New facility will develop high-end, low viscosity lubes for the Chinese HDDO market
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In need of some oil? Image: For truck fleets working on economies of scale even marginal improvements can have a significant impact on bottom line profitability.
In China, which even by conservative estimates will account for about half of world truck sales by 2020, Shell sees a significant opportunity.
“For truck operators and drivers, the concern is minimizing fuel costs as well as attaining a much lower service and maintenance costs throughout its operation”, claimed Dr Richard Tucker, Shell’s global technology manager for commercial lubricants and fuels, in a recent interview with Motioncars.com, and will become increasingly dependent on the “latest advances in engine technology to optimise diesels engine performance and use cleaner and better fuels as well as lubricants.”
By Shell’s estimate, the combined impact of low-viscosity synthetic engine oils and drivetrain lubes can improve fuel efficiency by around 2% to 3%. Over the course of one year, this could equal savings of around 2,000 litres of fuel for a typical truck.
A low viscosity oil facilitates the easy movement of parts, explained Tucker, and allows for greater efficiency.
Shell’s new Shanghai lubes tech facility, its third globally, will work closely with surrounding OEMs and laboratories to develop superior products for China’s truck market.
The new centre will also develop Shell’s next generation passenger car motor oils motorcycle oils, duty engine oils, transmission fluids and speciality industrial lubes and greases.