Gary Roberts

Gary Roberts

Technical Advisor for Northeastern US

Gary has worked with lubricants since 1992, and has been with Shell since 2001. He has years of experience providing technical solutions and sales support to industrial and transport customers. Gary’s been a member of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE) since 1993, and has been STLE-CLS certified as a lubrication specialist since 1999. He’s previously served as the Chair of the Hudson-Mohawk area of the STLE. He focuses on training, oil analysis, proper fluid selection, fluid-related problems, and root cause and failure analysis.

Read Gary’s top tips on Lubrication

1. Embrace lubrication as a total programme, and educate yourself, your maintenance technicians and your management on the total cost of ownership (TCO) within your plant. If everyone’s on board with the importance of lubrication you should see real TCO results.
2. Let Shell come in and assess your lubrication programme, or help you set one up if you lack one. An independent set of eyes can spot the obvious and help make sure you’re doing everything right.
3. When you send out electric motors for rebuilding, specify the grease that should be used. Better yet, shrink-wrap a tube to the motor when you send it out. If you provide each rebuild shop with your grease, you’ll cut down on cross-contamination and mixing incompatible grease thickeners.
4. Don’t hand down lubrication recommendations within your business like folklore; every 5-7 years, check the latest OEM lubrication specifications. A newly formulated product may work better for that equipment and/or provide a longer service life.
5. Test contamination levels in your older bulk lubricant storage equipment. Install desiccant breathers on all bulk tanks, totes and open drums. Keep your lubricant as clean and dry as possible before use. It will last for longer, and so will your equipment.