Europes heavy-duty engine oils will have to deliver increased fuel economy and durability under severe conditions, while also meeting stricter emissions mandates driven by a global focus on air quality. All these needs will have long-felt impacts on viscosity grade recommendations, additive content and base oil supply, says an official with Lubrizol. New regulations are expected to shift heavy-duty engine oils toward lower viscosity grades, possibly as low as SAE 5W-30, David Lancaster, Lubrizo...

Tulstar Products is now marketing in North America a range of lubricant additives manufactured and licensed by Tianhe Chemicals of China. The two companies signed a collaboration agreement in September. As part of Tianhes international strategy to market their technology and products globally, we have selected Tulstar Products to expand our presence in North America, said Colin Stone, Tianhes vice president of international marketing and sales. Tulsa, Okla.-based chemical distributor Tulstar h...

British lube producer Morris Lubricants is investing 600,000 (U.S. $935,000) in improvements to its headquarters, including four new bulk additive tanks with a storage capacity of 220 metric tons. The company opened a blending plant with 50,000 tons per year capacity in September 2010 at the headquarters in Shrewsbury, in Englands Western Midlands. This is part of our five-year plan to improve our efficiencies and working practices, managing director Andrew Goddard told Lube Report. We started...

The National Petrochemical & Refiners Association will change its name in late January 2012 to the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, and the Engine Manufacturers Association changed its name to Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association in early September. Our new name will better describe who we are, what we do, and how we serve the American people, NPRA President Charles Drevna said during a news conference call Oct. 4. We are going to be just as vigorous as NPRA was and ...

BARCELONA, Spain – The 4th Symposium on Metal Removal Fluids demonstrated, in John Burkes words, that the factories of the future will be different, and so will the chemicals inside them. The mid-September conference, organized by UEIL in partnership with ILMA and STLE, offered nearly 40 presentations by industry, academic and government experts on the global challenges that metalworking fluids pose, and possible solutions to them. Major factors influencing the future of metalworking flu...

There have not been any great changes in any of the regional markets over the past couple of weeks. The main reasons are probably the combination of negative economic headlines and the weakness in crude oil markets that ensure buyers remain absent from the market. U.S. Gulf of Mexico The U.S. Gulf-to-Caribbean route has at last regained some momentum with a useful combination of small chemicals parcels as well as some small lots of clean petroleum, some of them paying very high freight rates. A...