Cross Oil Refining and Marketing Inc., of Smackover, Ark., has purchased the assets of Unimark Oil LLC, an automotive and industrial lubricants packaging affiliate located in Kansas City, Kan. Unimark had bought the assets of the former Gard Corp. from the Cohn family in 2000.
The latest transaction took effect April 15. Although Unimark will become a division of Cross, it will continue to operate under the Unimark name.
According to Cross Oil officials, this acquisition gives it a full line of lubricating products, from base oils, electrical oils and process oils, to hydraulic oils and API-licensed multigrade engine oils.
Plans are being laid now to construct a fully integrated, state-of-the-art blending and packaging facility at the Smackover refinery, the company said. This will allow Cross Oil to take advantage of existing infrastructure, such as steam production, electricity, real estate, skilled labor and transportation, including the refinery’s Ouachita River terminal.
This is very exciting for us, because we’ve always handled material in bulk truck and rail cars, not quart and gallon packages, an official at the company told Lube Report yesterday. It’s a big move.
The Unimark products will continue to be marketed under the Xtreme brand name. The packaging plant in Kansas will supply the Midwestern and Central U.S. areas, while the planned Smackover lubricants facility will focus on markets in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
A distribution center for Unimark products already is operating at Smackover. Long-term, the company hopes to establish additional distribution centers throughout its marketing region.
Cross Oil said it has not determined yet how many new jobs will be created in Smackover due to the expansion, nor have any promotions or executive changes been announced yet.