Ben Vicary, Gulf Western Oil Director, speaks with Waste Management Review about achieving machine and vehicle efficiency with high-quality oils and lubricants.
Sustainability discourse often centres around big ideas – the circular economy, digital transformation and export markets. Without consistent and steady operational chains on the ground, however, the ability to translate those ideas into practice is limited.
While not as glamourous as high-tech plastic reprocessing plants or multi-million-dollar waste-to-energy facilities, kerbside collections and waste transfer stations are a critical component of the sustainability system. So too are the vehicles and equipment that facilitate their operations and function as a link between consumer and recycler.
As Director of a national lubricant manufacture and supply company, Ben Vicary of Gulf Western Oil understands the importance of streamlined processes. Given accelerating waste generation rates, he says it’s important now more than ever that waste and resource recovery vehicles maintain uptime and high efficiency levels.
Ben adds that lubricants, an often-forgotten component of waste and resource recovery operations, are critical to machine and vehicle maintenance in harsh, stop-start waste environments.
“Waste facilities have some of the harshest conditions for heavy vehicles possible. Trucks collecting at kerbside for example have to deal with a lot of dust, while waste transfer station vehicles need to contend with extreme temperatures and constant heavy loads,”
“It is definitely a very demanding environment, that’s for sure.”
To minimise vehicle challenges and ensure productivity, Ben says Gulf Western Oil has long-term lubricants and maintenance contracts with a range of leading Australian waste management and resource recovery organisations.
“We work with a number of companies that operate hundreds of vehicles for municipal and commercial waste contracts, including heavy vehicles, cars and various light vehicles,” he says.
“If they don’t keep their equipment lubricated and in-check, they won’t be able to effectively service those contracts, which highlights the importance of reliable and trustworthy relationships with quality lubricant suppliers.”
As a family-owned and operated business, Gulf Western Oil has been producing maintenance products for the Australian market since 1988.
Embracing leading global lubricant programs such as the ISO 9001 Quality Assurance Management System Certification, API and OEM approvals, Gulf Western Oil prides itself on only using the highest quality virgin base oils and technologically advanced American Petroleum Institute approved additive systems.
Gulf Western Oil’s extensive range of products includes full synthetic and semi synthetic engine oils, transmission fluids, diff and hydraulic oils, gear oils, coolants, greases and cleaners. Ben adds that the Gulf Western Oil range is continually growing. One of Gulf Western’s most popular ranges is “Top Dog” which has both mineral and semi synthetic options available.
The unique formulation of this particular range contains performance-enhancing wear protection, oxidation control and contaminant handling technology that exceeds the requirements of current lubricant specifications. This facilitates improved efficiencies, Ben says, while reducing downtime within mixed fleets, especially in the harsh conditions of the waste management sector.
Additionally, Gulf Western Oil’s range of coolants and greases work to manage load bearing in high-temperature, high-load and extreme operating environments. The waste sector has highly stringent industry standards and corrective services and maintenance regimes, Ben says. He adds that Gulf Western Oil’s products always go above and beyond those standards.
“We’ve been told by clients that they often drain oil that’s still in good condition, which goes to show the quality of our product. This kind of feedback is what we love to hear,” he says.
In addition to product quality, Ben says Gulf Western Oil’s commitment to service and after-sales support is a high priority for the company.
When clients require oil sampling or information on a product, Ben says they can send an information request via phone, email or through their website. “Customer service is something we pride ourselves on, so we always ensure our responses are prompt, no matter how they are received,” Ben says.
“Our Gulf Western Oil sales representatives work extremely hard to develop strong relationships with their clients and their teams. They make sure to touch base with everyone regularly, keeping them up to date with new developments and products.”
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