Whether it’s your neighbors putting in a pool, a new house going up, or the local utility company digging up the road and putting in new lines, construction is all around us. Our Mobil experts got together for a roundtable to discuss the latest trends and challenges in the field today and shed a light on how our team helps construction companies stay ahead of the curve and meet their goals.

Meet today's Mobil Experts:

• Chuck Friden, Senior Sales Engineer, New York (Moderator)
• Barry Horsmann, Senior Sales Engineer, Wisconsin
• Jonathan Urbach, Sales Engineer, Minnesota
• Roger Young, Senior Field Technical Advisor, Alberta

Q: What is one of the top services or benefits you offer for construction fleets as a lube engineer?

Barry: It’s so important to help customers find ways to cut costs. For one customer, we went in and did new business plant studies at their sites. One thing I noticed was the greases they were using. I asked the mechanics if they’d seen any failures — they had just finished making repairs that cost about $45,000 – plus the cost of unscheduled downtime.  

It turns out they were using a non-moly grease and had no idea there were better options. By the time we came back, they had already switched to a moly-based grease and had upgraded the equipment. Our expertise helped them reevaluate the products they use and had a huge effect on their overall efficiency.

Jonathan: Another thing that we can bring to the market is that we have a lot of OEM relationships. We’re pretty in-tune with what’s happening with engine technology, treatment technology, diesel engine oil technology, and the like. We’re able to work through those institutional thinking paradigms that don’t change very quickly. We’re prepared to help as people cycle in and out of repair teams.

Q: How often do you find customers are using the wrong products?

Roger: With construction companies, we use lube charts to help figure out the best products to use. One thing I find is customers who are over-consolidating their products, and we end up trying to find the balance of expanding the products they’re using to give their equipment better life without throwing too many new products at them.

Chuck: Right, it's not just about using the fewest lubricants – you need the fewest correct lubricants.

Barry: That’s why I never give a like-to-like recommendation on a product. This is how we build trust – by taking the time to look at the specifications and give them the best recommendations.

Q: How do lube charts reduce complexity? 

Jonathan: I love our lube charts. They start so many conversations and help us easily identify pain points. It’s a simple service from our side, but it opens the door for all kinds of things we can address down the road.

Chuck: It’s one of the best services I use. Most OEMS have their own product recommendations and maintenance guidelines, which means maintenance managers have to keep track of 20 or so lubricants. That’s where we can go in and narrow it down to the fewest correct lubricants and create that to improve efficiency of the maintenance operation.

Roger: We give them booklets they can keep in their pockets with equipment and compartments and the lubes being recommended. They love it. It helps keep the right product in the right compartment.

Q: Do you help with maintenance practices that are specific to your region? 

Barry: Our construction season up North is only about six months long, so everyone’s cranking at full capacity. During the off season, we can sit down and chat with customers about what they’re seeing.

One customer in particular is very diligent on their maintenance. They pull all their oil analysis when they’re doing seasonal maintenance in the winter, and then we can go in and download their results for the year and categorize and review them all. And our customers really appreciate how thorough we are with our analysis.  
 
Chuck: Storage and handling management is starting to become an important topic in the construction business, especially in the off-season. That’s an area where our distributors can bring that full service offering to the table. Mobil doesn’t sell storage solutions, but our distributors do – and that’s what a strong distributor relationship looks like. 

Q: How has the current construction environment made you think differently about your recommendations?

Barry: If we can help construction companies eliminate some oil changes, we can help give people more time back in their days so they don’t need to work so many hours and can have a more balanced life. And with the cost of fuel right now, anything we can do to help our customers save on their lubricants is going to be positive.  
 
Chuck: With fuel prices the way they are, we’ve done some excellent work with fuel savings with our synthetics. Between engine oil, transmission oil, and hydraulics, you can walk in with a few percent fuel savings.  
 
Roger: People don’t always think about fuel economy through lubricants. But when you add everything together with an engine, transmission and differential, we’re up to a 4% or 5% economy.

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