OLIPES is a Spanish manufacturer of high-performance lubricating greases and oils that offers a combined range of products and services aimed at professionals in 70 industrial sectors. It is present in more than 45 countries and has a portfolio of nearly 3,000 references.
Its facilities in Spain include both the central offices and its production plant, as well as a certified technical laboratory and a robotic logistics warehouse of 18,000 m3. The production capacity exceeds 20,000 Tn / year in lubricating greases and 100,000 Tn / year between the different product lines, with a storage volume of 3.6 million liters of raw materials and 7,200 tons of finished product.
The OLIPES manufacturing plant is one of the largest production capacity and flexibility in Europe, and for this reason, more than 80 original equipment manufacturers, leading brands and distribution brands trust their facilities to manufacture and package their lubricants, and all this, with approvals from the main OEM’s and manufacturers such as Volkswagen, Mercedes Benz and ZF.
Interview with Diego García de la Rosa, Export Area Manager at OLIPES.
Easy Engineering: What are the main areas of activity of the company?
Diego García de la Rosa: As we have mentioned, we manufacture professional quality greases, oils and lubricants for 70 industrial sectors and we have a portfolio of nearly 3,000 references.
Within these sectors we can highlight the automotive, transport, agricultural and public works machinery, mining, industrial maintenance and the nautical / naval sector…
It is also important to highlight within our activity the “private label” service that we offer to other companies and distribution chains, where we put our experience in the design and management of all phases of the “own brand” project: advice on the creation of brand, branding, commercial promotion and corporate image, design of standardized and personalized packaging and labels, flexibility in manufacturing and packaging of reduced quantities of different products, in record time and at a competitive cost, technical support, after-sales service, stock management and logistics integrated…
All this under a strict quality control system, thanks to which OLIPES is an ENAC ACCREDITED company in accordance with the ISO 9001 quality and ISO 14001 environmental standards.
E.E: What’s the news for 2021 about new products?
D.G.R: At OLIPES, we develop an average of 50 to 60 new formulations each year. If we have to highlight the most recent novelties that we are presenting in the market, we undoubtedly highlight the new Mid SAPS motor lubricants, with Fully Synthetic technology, such as AVEROIL 0W20 Hybrid and AVEROIL 0W30 Blue Technology.
AVEROIL 0W20 Hybrid is a synthetic lubricant created for new 3-cylinder petrol start-stop engines and for hybrid engines. Its exclusive formulation reduces the risk of preignition at low revs (LSPI) and ensures a perfect operation of the triple-way catalysts (TWC), essential factors to guarantee the correct protection of the engine and a significant reduction in fuel consumption.
Another novelty is the synthetic lubricant AVEROIL 0W30 Blue Technology, a new concept of Blue Technology lubricant developed especially for the new Euro 6, gasoline and diesel engines, equipped with GPF or DPF particle filters, SCR catalytic converter or with after-treatment systems of gases based on AdBlue (in the case of diesel). AVEROIL 0W30 Blue Technology is the perfect lubricant when looking for the best engine protection, without sacrificing maximum power and fuel economy. Its SAE 0W30 viscosity grade favors engine starting at very low temperatures.
We have also expanded the range of transmission fluids with the new MAXIGEAR MS 3500, a premium Total Drive Line SAE 75W90 GL5/GL4+ synthetic lubricant, specially developed to provide advanced protection for manual transmissions, differentials and axles, and with the MAXIFLUID DX-VI, also made of synthetic technology, a low viscosity oil for high-end automatic transmissions, which require lubricants that help reduce fuel consumption and provide high protection under extreme conditions.
Diego García de la Rosa, Export Area Manager at OLIPES.
E.E: What are the ranges of products?
D.G.R: OLIPES manufactures a wide range of products aimed at the aforementioned sectors, its main line being lubricants for engines of all types of vehicles and machinery. As a complement to this line, we offer a complete range of transmission fluids, coolants, additives and products for vehicle and workshop maintenance…
No less important are industrial oils and machining lubricants for the metalworking sector, as well as release agents for the construction industry. In short, we have an answer for every lubrication need.
OLIPES is also a recognized manufacturer of professional greases. We offer a wide range of self-formulated greases aimed at both vehicles of all types and heavy machinery, as well as the industrial, food or naval sector… That is why OLIPES is an accredited member of ELGI (European Lubricating Grease Institute), composed by associates from more than 25 countries and one of the most active scientific and technical institutes in Europe in this field.
E.E: At what stage is the market where you are currently active?
D.G.R: The year 2019 closed with good results for independent lubricant manufacturers such as OLIPES, both in the national and export markets, consolidating a stable growth in the sector that pointed to good expectations for 2020. Mainly due to an industrial sector, which although it showed signs of a slight slowdown, it continued to grow a few tenths; an automobile market that was beginning to show signs of recovery with positive figures for dealership sales after years of accumulated losses and a growing and increasingly professionalized aftermarket sector.
But the pandemic broke out in 2020 and expectations were reversed, mainly due to the tightening of sanitary measures that led to a tightening of confinements and greater control of mobility, which undoubtedly produced a drop in the mileage traveled per vehicle, which It led to a reduction in maintenance operations and therefore a new drop in the sale of lubricants, which we can estimate between 12% and 16% below the sales of 2019.
E.E: What can you tell us about market trends?
D.G.R: The trends, not only in the lubricants market, but in all markets, are marked by the need to reduce the environmental impact of all the activities from the society. This aspect in the automotive sector translates into the search for formulations that reduce consumption with increasingly low viscosities, also adapting to new electric and hybrid engines.
E.E: What estimations do you have for 2021?
D.G.R: The forecasts for the first months of 2021 are not promising: lockdowns, unemployment, reduction of industrial and service activities, teleworking and sale of vehicles older than 15 years will affect the sector, which will also have to face a fleet of vehicles getting older every day.
This uncertainty, combined with the volatility of the price of raw materials in the market, makes the management of stocks for the lubricant sector an increasingly complicated task, even at a financial level, with greater liquidity risks for companies, in addition to loss of margin and competitiveness.
For the third quarter of 2021 we expect an increase in general economic activity in Europe, related to the arrival of Next Generation European recovery funds to national markets and the extension of vaccination to the majority of citizens of the European Union, which will gradually eliminate restrictions on mobility and the reactivation of commercial activity.
Moreover, Olipes has the great advantage of having the best distributor network with high experimented local partners, offering us the direct contact of the market in each country where we are present, as AUTO GROUP C.M.B. SRL in Arad.
