In reading this month’s Heavy Duty Aftermarket Journal, I came across a headline that grabbed my attention. It was apropos as lately I’ve been contemplating the importance of oil analysis in preventance maintenance programs.
“Who is Bob the Oil Guy?” the Journal rhetorically asked.
A couple of weeks earlier, Bob Pudlewski, the retired vice president of fleet operations for Laidlaw and First Student and the chair of NSTA’s maintenance technology committee, told a room full of school bus contractors that oil analysis is quickly becoming the No. 1 tool that school bus technicians can utilize when gauging fleet performance and service intervals.
In fact he called it the “best preventative maintenance problem solver” that can be employed in garages. It’s not only a good investment to regularly test engine oil but it makes perfect sense, he said, especially as later model school buses are becoming more and more reliant increased turbocharging and fuel injection.
Basically, oil analysis, which has been around for nearly 70 years, checks for a certain grouping of metal contaminants. It’s a blood test, if you will, for your engine, and you can obtain this from any oil manufacturer. This can make the expense inconsequential for most fleets to incorporate into their PM, whether they be small or large operators. And it can be much less costly than repairing a big breakdown in the future. Many of the oil companies regularly perform oil analysis for the FedExs and UPSs of the world, and the process is down to a science, meaning it only costs them a handful of dollars to perform the tests.
And that brings us back to our friend “Bob.”
BobistheOilGuy.com has been around since May 2002 and has grown its oil forums it 28,000 registered members, the site told me. It’s become a consumer advocate of sorts for, as it says, “Anything and everything about motor oil!” In addition to allowing users to ask and answer questions about vehicle oil, the site gives a good primer on oil analysis and offers information on oil viscosity, bearing wear analysis, lubrication design, moly, shearing, grease and air filtration.
The article in Heavy Duty Aftermarket Journal ended its short article on Bob by writing that, if you’re selling oil or anything closely related to it, you better get to know the guy. Actually, if you use oil, it might be a good idea to introduce yourself.
