Publisher’s Note

The global market for Lubricating Oils and Greases is projected to reach 47 billion litres by 2020, driven both by an increase in the vehicle ownership in the developing countries and also increased consumption in the industrial sector due to increased demand of fnished manufactured goods.

Automotive industry is one of the major markets for lubricating oils and greases. Automotive lubricants are used in the crankcase of a vehicle engine and transmission to ensure smooth operation.

Strict standards for controlling exhaust gas emissions from vehicles are necessitating production of advanced lubricants produced out of better base oils and additives. This scenario creates lucrative opportunities for lubricant manufacturers. India like the rest of the world is committed to comply with BS IV norms in the next couple of years. With this in mind oil companies are investing heavily into research and production of compliant fuels and lubes.

Industrial machinery also represents a major end-use market for Lubrication Oils & Greases. The health of manufacturing sector therefore influences demand dynamics in the market. Improving global manufacturing PMI indices and the resulting expansion in production capacities will help drive growth in the industrial lube market. The increase in manufacturing activity will spur investments in production machinery, thus creating a strong business case for the use of industrial lubes.

Asia-Pacifc represents the greatest & fastest growing market, with volume sales projected to grow at a CAGR of 5% over the period. Four of the top ten major players in lubricants are from Asia (Idemitsu Kosan Co Ltd. (Japan), Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (India), JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corporation (Japan) & Sinopec Corporation (China). Mankind always wanted to use its resources indefnitely. The current issue has a cover story on a case study where an organisation has given its experience on their using oil for 30 years and the challenges faced by them.

Your publication was the “Media Partner” for the NLGI –India Chapter conference cum exhibition hosted in Varanasi (India) from 2-4th Feb 2017. It was heartening to see the participation through presentation of papers on the new developments in grease technology and also display of newer and advanced testing equipments.

We thank our readers the valuable feedback and suggestions, which we regularly receive and look forward to your continuing inputs on the quality of content and presentation. We would also like to thank our advertisers for their continued support.

Warm regards,

Udey Dhir