Keywords
Citation
(2002), "Award-winning performance from Castrol Alusol XT", Industrial Lubrication and Tribology, Vol. 54 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/ilt.2002.01854ead.004
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2002, MCB UP Limited
Award-winning performance from Castrol Alusol XT
Award-winning performance from Castrol Alusol XTKeywords: Castrol, Lubricants
Castrol's high performance water-soluble metal-working fluid Alusol XT has won the prestigious Lubricants World annual award for Metal-working, which recognises products and services that are expected to enjoy significant success or represent outstanding technical achievement in the lubricants and affiliated industries.
Chlorine-free Castrol Alusol XT, which was in competition with all other metal-working fluids launched in 2001, has been specifically formulated for difficult aluminium machining operations such as tapping and reaming.
Commenting on the award, Lubricants World Editor-in-Chief, Kathryn Games, says that Castrol Alusol XT was chosen in part because of the increasing importance of aluminium in automotive manufacturing but also because the fluid is chlorine-free, has high bioresistance and special stability and high performance characteristics that can reduce manufacturing costs.
Feedback from actual machining operations confirms this view. Customers report improvements in performance at 30 per cent lower concentrations; an impressive 400 per cent improvement in surface finish; a 260 per cent improvement in tool life; a fivefold improvement in sump life; and elimination of hard water soaps and foaming in a variety of water conditions.
Castrol Alusol XT also demonstrated its performance advantage during a recent benchmarking operation with a leading automotive manufacturer in the UK.
Statistical process control (SPC) measurement was used to evaluate Alusol XT against a competitive fluid in three machines, each cutting a different aluminium in operations that included fine finishing, boring and reaming.
The results were convincing and resulted in total savings of over 34,000, including a saving on tooling of 21,281 on one machine!
Other performance benefits recorded during the benchmarking were improved tramp oil rejection, reduced waste costs, savings on anti-foam additives and a reduction in downtime of 20 per cent.
For more information contact: Graham Wignall on +44 179 345 2212; Fax: +44 179 349 1442; E-mail: wignalg@castrol.com