A lubricants and technical support provider to the pharmaceutical industry, has recently helped a plant engineering team to devise a comprehensive lubricant training programme for a hundred engineers.

Castrol, which provides lubricants and technical support to the pharmaceutical industry, has recently helped a plant engineering team in the North West UK to devise a comprehensive lubricant training programme for a hundred engineers. The plant employs about 600 people manufacturing antibiotics and other pharmaceutical products. Processing equipment at the site totals around 1,000 machines including compressors, mixers, gearboxes, turbines, treatment plant, cooling towers with fans and pumps, etc.

The engineering team at the site had always followed the equipment manufacturers' recommendations for lubrication, which meant they were buying products from a number of different suppliers.

When, in 1994, they decided to rationalise lubricant usage, Castrol was one of number of suppliers invited to present a proposal.

Commenting on the review, the site Engineering Manager said Castrol's approach was very thorough, starting with a complete survey of the site to produce a schedule of lubricants for all the various machines.

'One of the main reasons we chose to work with Castrol was the overall engineering support they can provide and the breadth of experience we could easily access.

' He says.

Castrol lubricants are now specified throughout the site.

The engineering team handles stock and lubricant management in-house, but relies on Castrol for trouble shooting, problem solving, and help in identifying additional opportunities to rationalise lubricant use.

Quoting an example, the Engineering Manager says Castrol is helping with the trial of a single lubricant in the site's turbines, to replace the three or four that are currently used.

The plant also operates its own condition monitoring and the engineering team works closely with the Jost Institute of Technology - part of the University of Central Lancashire - which puts plant engineers at the forefront of the technology, especially with lubricants.

Even so, Castrol engineers have been invited to the site and have contributed useful suggestions that the team had not thought of.

However, whilst acknowledging the quality and level of support that Castrol provides, the Engineering Manager says that a recent and extremely important contribution Castrol has made to the site's lubricant management programme is the participation of account managers Steve Lampkowski and David Gibbin in helping to devise and present a joint lubrication training seminar for one hundred of the plant's engineers.

Says Steve Lampkowski: 'Quality is a vital issue in a plant where all the processing equipment is operating in ultra clean conditions, so we needed to ensure that the lubricants were applied and maintained correctly in every machine.' Castrol was involved from the beginning, working with a team comprising the plant engineering manager and the training and development manager to agree the key objectives for the seminar which were: to provide underpinning knowledge in lubrication basics, the care and storage of lubricants and the application of food grade lubricants.

The training focused on lubrication fundamentals, site applications, equipment reliability and good manufacturing practice (GMP) for food grade lubricants, and involved all staff who specify, change or use lubricants, and those who have a responsibility for equipment maintenance and reliability.

Initially Castrol provided technical information and a draft presentation on CD.

This, together with the site's own data, was then used to produce a presentation.

The seminar was presented to an audience of one hundred, which included staff ranging from managers to fitters and a small number of regular contractors who work on projects on the site.

Following the four half-day training sessions all delegates underwent an assessment devised jointly by the site team and Castrol.

All scored above the required 80% pass level and were presented with certificates to mark the successful completion of the training.

The seminar was supported with a comprehensive training pack, including a CD from Castrol, which was presented to everyone who participated.

Explaining the importance of the seminar, the Engineering Manager says lubrication was identified as a key element within a comprehensive programme of engineering training that addresses issues such plant reliability, right-first-time practices, etc.

He adds that the programme plays an essential part in demonstrating compliance with the Provision and Use of work equipment regulations (PUWER) and has included a risk assessment to determine where food grade lubricants should be used.

As part of the exercise Steve Lampkowski and David Gibbin also spent time updating the lubrication schedules for all the machines on site.

These revised schedules, together with the relevant standards, also formed part of the training package.

The Engineering Manager says the motivation for developing the training programme was to ensure that the highest standards of lubrication are maintained throughout the plant.

However, he reports that, whilst it is difficult to quantify financial benefits from this type of training, they are seeing improved levels of staff awareness at the plant in areas such as order processing, safe lubricant storage and machine maintenance.

Summing up, he says 'We are proud of the seminar, which has generated interest from other plants within the UK group.