Mumbai, November, 2016 – Shell Lubricants, the global market share leader in finished lubricants recently held the 5th edition of its Metals Technology Forum in Mumbai. The forum was attended by leading industry experts in the metal and steel industry, to discuss the challenges faced by the lubricants industry and find solutions for the same. In addition, the forum was aimed at showcasing Shell Lubricants’ innovative technology and its holistic solutions, with a special focus on offerings for modern day steel plants.

The event witnessed over 90 participants from different metal and steel companies including Tata Sponge & Iron Steel; JSW, Bhushan Steel Limited, Kalyani Steels and Essar Steels, among others. The key trends discussed during the forum included: dynamics of increasing energy efficiency and reducing maintenance costs; the best lubricant-related operation and maintenance practices; outlook on growth of the metal and steel sector; and challenges of controlling leakages in pumps and valves.

The sessions at the technology forum were addressed by Mr. D P Deshpande, Managing Director, Tata Sponge Iron Limited; Mr Arvind Kumar, CEO, Kaytek Solutions OU; Mr Prashant Godbole, Sr Manager Sales & Predictive Maintenance team, PRIMETALS Technologies; and Mr Mukesh Dubey, Sr Vice President – Mechanical, Kalyani Steels. Additionally, the forum was led by Mr Akhil Jha, Vice President – Technical, Shell Lubricants India; Mr Ajay Agarwal, Technical Team Lead, Shell India and Mr Umesh Dwivedi, BDM, Shell India, and was concluded with a vote of thanks by Mr Vineet Thakar, Vice President – Sales, B2B, Shell India.

Commenting on the occasion, Mr Akhil Jha, said, “The Indian metals industry is very modern and consists of state-of-the-art mills and plants. It has always strived to continuously modernise and upgrade its existing plants to achieve higher productivity levels. At Shell Lubricants, we recognise that even one break-down or unscheduled maintenance can lead to stoppage of a steel plant, therefore resulting in significant loss of production. High-temperatures, high load and wet conditions can place significant demands on the metal processing equipment.”

Mr Arvind Kumar, CEO, Kaytek Solutions OÜ, Estonia and Director of Tech Xpert Consortium LLP said, “This forum organised by Shell Lubricants is an innovative knowledge exchange session. It brings together different companies to deliberate on technological developments, and their use in industry. It helps to disseminate knowledge in fields like lubricants that have significantly evolved in the last decade. The tangible and intangible benefits of the same are immense. The knowledge shared at this forum is a great value addition, and the platform in itself is a laudable initiative.”

Shell Lubricants’ product portfolio for metal industry includes gear oils such as Shell Omala; bearing and circulating oils such as Shell Morlina; greases like Shell Gadus; and hydraulic fluids like Shell Tellus.