Founded in 1929, Universal Lubricants is a large independent lubricant manufacturer and distributor based in Wichita, Kansas. The company operates one manufacturing facility in Wichita, Kansas and has distribution centers in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Texas.

In addition to its own brand of lubricants, Universal Lubricants, Inc. distributes major branded lubricating oil for Pennzoil-Quaker State, Shell and Castrol. The company is also engaged in reprocesses used oil for sale as an industrial fuel oil.

Pegasus Capital Advisors, L. P. is a private equity fund manager that focuses on middle market companies across a wide variety of industries. It's portfolio does not appear to currently include other lubricant companies.

Shell says its Mysella XL extended drain gas engine oil significantly prolongs oil life relative to our regular drain gas engine oil by resisting oxidation, viscosity increase and the formation of harmful acids. In a field trial, the company reports that Shell Mysella XL gas engine oil also provided up to a 25% longer oil drain interval, compared to the leading competitor’s regular drain gas engine oil. “Maintenance intervals have been increased with the introduction of improved spark plugs, oil filtration and tighter control of the oil consumption rate,” says Dennis Woodley, Product Application Specialist for Shell Lubricants. “A high performance oil is required for synchronizing the oil drain interval with the engine maintenance interval. By using a high performance engine oil such as Shell Mysella XL, operators can help to extend maintenance intervals and minimize costs.”

Mysella XL reportedly helps keep pistons free of deposits and helps prolong the life of valves, valve seats and spark plugs. Additionally, Shell Mysella XL is compatible with engines equipped with emission catalytic converters and meets the requirements of Caterpillar and Waukesha regular service.

Shell Mysella XL extended drain gas engine oil was specially developed to help meet the needs of maintenance operators who service remote, un-manned engines (e.g., engines associated with oil and gas field operations). Extending the maintenance interval of these engines can help reduce labor, transportation, and service costs.

During their recent Annual Sales Conference in Las Vegas Lubrication Engineers Inc (L.E.) announced to their U.S. Sales Force some exciting changes to their Management team. After five very successful years as President, Randall L. Kressler announced his decision to retire with immediate effect and that his successor as President & CEO would be Scott Schwindaman. Jeff Turner is promoted to Scott's previous role as Executive Vice-President. Other notable promotions include Vincent Tofani as Vice President Sales, Darren Booth Vice President Manufacturing & Operations and Patrick Kraus as Vice President Administration & Treasurer.

Scott Schwindaman has been involved in the lubricant field for over 28 years. Prior to joining Lubrication Engineers in 1981 he worked for Southwest Petro-Chem. He is a graduate of Wichita State University with a BS in Industrial Technology. Scott's career to date has been in both production/operations as well as Research & Development of new lubricant products.

"Randy has done an outstanding job refocusing our company & establishing a strong foundation for the future. L.E.'s new management team is really looking forward to taking L.E. to the next level as the world's Lubrication Reliability Source. We have an excellent global team & strategy -- we aim to provide the very best service & reliability solutions to all our valued L.E. customers," said Scott Schwindaman, President, Lubrication Engineers Inc.

Randy will continue to serve L.E. on a part time consultancy basis regarding strategy for future corporate growth. L.E.'s successful new focus as the 'Lubrication Reliability Source" has resulted in a range of corporate partnerships with other Reliability based companies which allow L.E. Lubrication Consultants to provide customers with a high level of quality support that is often lacking from certain lubricant suppliers.

Ford says improved emissions is another advantage 5W-20 has over 5W-30. According to Ford, its use of 5W-20 has reduced carbon dioxide emissions by about one million metric tons a year. This is roughly equivalent to taking 180,000 cars off the road.

As a side bar, its it's interesting to note during Jobbers World's recently store checks it observed Ford's Motorcraft conventional and synthetic blend engine oil is priced the same at one of the leading autoparts chains. In both cases the products were priced at $2.59 a quart. Although this could be anomaly, it could also be a strategy that takes a page out of ConocoPhillips book. As readers may recall, ConocoPhillips made a splash last year when it announced it was offering synthetic blend PCEO at conventional engine oil prices.

Chemtool has also made two acquisitions in the last 10 years. It acquired Barrington Chemical in 1992. Barrington, based in Brighton Michigan, manufactured specialty cleaners and conversion coatings. That same year Chemtool also acquired Metalcote. Metalcote was a well recognized leader in specialty greases.

Chemtool is a privately held corporation founded in l963, and it’s a company clearly on the move. In addition to its business activity in the US, Chemtool also has a distribution facility in Diegem, Belgium where it ships to locations throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

It is important to note that Delo Synthetic Gear Lubricant SAE 75W-90 also meets SHAES 256 Rev C. This is a new specification for Dana Spicer axles which will go into affect April 1, 2007. This new specification requires performance testing at -40º C and is designed to improve both low and high-temperature performance of gear oil.