Industry representatives said during the past week that a lawsuit filed by unions seeking to toughen oil mist exposure limits is based on unfounded claims about the dangers posed by such exposures. At the same time, industry and union sources agreed that exposure levels encountered by factory workers have dropped significantly in recent years. Still, they predicted that the trend will not keep the sides from battling each other in the courtroom. The United Auto Workers and United Steelworkers of...

It appears that even foreign suppliers are not to be left out of the disruptions that have afflicted the U.S. base oil market this year. A fire broke out at SK Corp.s Ulsan, Korea, refinery Oct. 20, causing damage that left the plant operating at less than 60 percent capacity. The company, which sells Group III oils into the United States through agent Lithcon Petroleum USA Inc., said it hoped to resume normal operations in one month and did not expect customers – at least those in North A...

Quaker Chemical Corp. announced Monday that it has acquired Cincinnati Vulcan Co.s steel and food-grade lubricants businesses. Quaker said the transaction builds on its leading position serving the global steel industry and gives it a foothold in the food-grade market. Vulcan kept its metalworking fluids and fuel oil businesses and will continue operating from its facilities in Cincinnati. Terms of the deal were not announced, although the companies did say the operations involved have annual r...

As Ineos Chlor seeks to become a prominent North American supplier of chlorinated paraffins, it has allied with two chemical distributors freed up by the merger that precipitated that foray. Sea-Land Chemical Co., of Westlake, Ohio, announced last week that it has reached an agreement to market Ineos chlorinated paraffins to blenders of metalworking fluids and related markets. Ineos said this week that it has also contracted Tri-iso Inc., of Claremont, Calif., to carry its products on the West C...