Longer life for coolant and tools
May 1st 2007

At the Gardner Group's Basildon site, the combination of Castrol product expertise and Optimum Oils' service has resulted in extended coolant life and a 50% saving in tool life.

Two years ago, the machine shop which operates 15 machines, had a problem with the sump life of cutting fluid in three CNC machines.

Castrol recommended Hysol XF, a coolant formulated for aerospace manufacturing companies.

Samples and environmental checks were carried out before two of the machines were filled with Hysol XF. The fluid passed its six month trial, resulting in it being used for the other machines.

Since then, none of the machines has had to be drained and there has been no need to change the coolant in a single sump.

Tool life has increased by 50% on the mix of metals machined.

Gardner is impressed by Optimum's service. The company makes monthly visits to monitor machine sumps, carry out health checks on coolant and advise operators if they need to dilute or concentrate the Hysol XF.

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