Lubricants save Lafarge $1.5m at UK, Jordan cement plants

Belgium, Brussels - Lafarge is set to save $1.5 million through the use of Mobil SHC 600 lubricants and related application expertise, from ExxonMobil Lubricants and Petroleum Specialties Co.. at two of its cement plants, the lubricants maker claims.

At the Jordan Cement Co. site in Fuheis, Jordon, the Lafarge-majority-owned site was experiencing unscheduled downtime due to kiln bearings overheating. The kiln faced ongoing stoppages due to support bearings overheating.

According to ExxonMobil Lubricants, the previously used lubricant was causing the bearings to reach temperatures of 65°C, causing unscheduled downtime, increased bearing maintenance and higher oil costs.

To rectify this problem, Jordan Cement switched to Mobil SHC 639. Mobil SHC 639 lubricants on four support bearings in the middle section. Over a 17-month period, bearing overheating was totally prevented which resulted in an increase in revenue of around $1.7 million, the supplier said.

At Lafarge’s Hope Works site in the UK, meanwhile, the company was looking to optimise the lubrication in its new open gear on the no. 2 raw mill.

The previous open gear was lubricated by a semi-fluid, solid-based grease, which ran a total loss system. However, this approach caused a number of issues including the large amount of grease that had to be used and disposed of and the thick, black nature of the grease coating making essential periodic gear inspections very difficult and time consuming.

Following the introduction of Mobil SHC 639, savings were generated after initial purchase by eliminating an estimated $30,000 per year for the purchase and disposal of the previous grease, as well as providing a safer and more environmentally considerate system. Other benefits included reduced energy consumption through the lubricant reducing internal friction and lowering the operating temperature of the system.