Sustainability also means paying attention to the well-being of our employees. Process fluids in particular have come under the radar of European regulators in recent years. Castrol can call itself a pioneer in developing alternatives without harmful substances such as formaldehyde release agents and boric acid, but with the performance you have come to expect from them. Verolub is not only responsible for distribution, but also supports customers in word and deed.
Verolub celebrated its 25th anniversary last year. A quarter century in which it evolved from multi-brand supplier to official distributor of Castrol, even by far the largest in the Benelux. The key to its success?
"The knowledge of the products. Castrol's products enjoy an excellent reputation in the market. We add to this our knowledge of customer applications," explains Yves Lefèvre, technical and operational advisor for Verolub. "With a team that focuses exclusively on the industry in general and metalworking in particular. That know-how and experience are invaluable today, because it's about much more than just supplying machining fluids. We assist customers to increase their productivity and efficiency."
And that has everything to do with the increasingly stringent REACH and CLP legislation, which has an impact on emulsion composition. Europe wants to minimize or even ban the use of substances that can harm human and environmental health.
"For several years, formaldehyde release agents and boric acid have been officially listed as carcinogenic and hazardous to fertility, respectively. Two basic ingredients in classic processing fluids, which just guarantee longer life and better stability. This is why they may only be used in very limited concentrations and with clear labeling warning of the potential dangers," Lefèvre summarizes. Labels that users obviously prefer not to see on the production floor.
So back to the drawing boards, for manufacturers of machining fluids. Lefèvre: "Castrol was one of the pioneers in that movement. To develop machining fluids without formaldehyde and boric acid that can at least provide equivalent performance."
A mission in which Castrol succeeded with its XBB range back in 2017. Users who switched to Alusol XBB or Hysol XBB felt no difference in the machining fluids' delivered performance for machining aluminum and steel and cast iron, respectively. "However, maintaining the level of the emulsion still requires attention," he said. Measurements that a metal worker can follow up himself. Otherwise, our experts are ready to take the right actions to ensure a long service life."
But Castrol has also already entered the Industry 4.0 era with Smart Control. "A tool for real-time condition monitoring. This allows us to continuously monitor the parameters of emulsions in large, central baths and make adjustments where necessary. In the future there will also be a limited version, for those who want to monitor their individual machines."
If things do go wrong with the emulsion, there are still cleaners to save it until the next maintenance service.
"We have now also made that range completely free of formaldehyde release agents and boric acid, with the Techniclean M XBB product," Lefèvre continues. "Important, because additives often contain higher concentrations to prevent bacterial growth. By providing a safe and environmentally friendly alternative to these products, we are continuing our mission. With Castrol's range, production managers no longer have to choose between quality, safety, productivity and cost. It's an and-and story. We see the trend continuing and the demand for these products growing. With the expansion of the XBB series and the full range of Castrol metalworking fluids, we have the appropriate product for all materials and all types of operations."
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