Whereas a majority of car owners once performed their own engine oil changes, today most pay someone else to do it for them. A new study says the same shift may now be occurring with commercial truck operators. Kline and Co. said its Opportunities in Lubricants North America, 2002-2004 – Volume I, suggests that the do-it-for-me segment of the heavy duty engine oil market may be primed to expand, thanks to quick lube centers for trucks and truck stops angling to attract fleet operators that...

U.S. lubricant sales for the second quarter of 2003 were 8 percent lower than the same period of 2002, according to the latest Quarterly Lubricant Sales Survey from the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association. The report, released by the association Oct. 1, showed second-quarter demand for automotive lubes falling 7.3 percent, year-to-year, while the industrial segment slid 9 percent. Grease sales were off by 9.5 percent. Such results are especiallygrim given the fact that the second qua...

Aspen Chemicalis nowcarrying the products of two additional companies in the northeastern United States. Uniqema announced last week that it has appointed the Medford, N.J., company to distribute its automotive and industrial lubricant components. Atofina Chemicals Inc. said recently that Aspen now carries its extreme pressure additives and biostabilizing amines. Atofina Chemicals, based in Philadelphia, also named chemical distributor TH Hilson Co., Aspen’s parent company based in Wheaton...