What was your most significant professional accomplishment in 2011?
TLT Sounding Board January 2012
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The appeal of STLE’s Certified Lubrication Specialist credential just keeps growing. Obtaining the CLS was far and away the No. 1 answer when readers listed their 2011 greatest achievements, and nearly as many identified it as their top professional goal for 2012. Also cited by many readers as a top 2011 accomplishment was earning one of the society’s two Oil Monitoring Analyst certifications. Looking beyond certification, many members said business picked up significantly last year, a goal they hope continues in 2012. Others said they were still fighting to hang on to their jobs in a still-uncertain economy. Many survey respondents mentioned the successful introduction of new product lines and landing new accounts. Several readers said their top 2012 objective is to better educate their customers about lubricants and related best practices. That’s a worthwhile objective for every year.
Consolidated lubrication efforts that reduced the total amount of lubricants needed in the facility.
Due to corporate “redeployment,” I made the transition from architecture to tribology, then from tribology back to architecture...servicing the plant in a different capacity.
Development of lubricated contact models.
Tribocorrosion behavior of carbon-based coating in AISI 316L steel.
Passed STLE’s OMA-I certification exam.
We had a product which, under some very unusual conditions, stained machines yellow. After thousands of dollars in research and countless manhours in the lab, we figured out the problem, removed the culprit chemical and replaced it with a cheaper and more effective alternate. Since then, no more complaints.
Delivering my first technical presentation at STLE’s Annual Meeting.
I can’t discuss—it’s a trade secret!
We actually grew our lubricant business by 10%—without a stimulus package.
Signed a five-year supply contract with a major customer.
Obtained approval for my formulation by a major OEM.
Learned about automotive oil blending and testing.
Added two new huge pieces of business, one of which required a number of new products to be developed.
Trained a colleague replacement.
I gave a presentation at the 4th Metal Removal Fluids Symposium in Barcelona, Spain.
Implemented a new CMMS in 50% of the company’s plants.
Added a new sulfur additive line.
I introduced a completely new product from lab scale to production, selling more than 100 tons in full scale.
Retained my job!
Attained ISO 9001 and AS 9100 certification.
I doubled my department’s revenue over last year, which was previously our record year.
Moved back to Minnesota after being in Alaska for 27 years.
Designed, implemented and standardized a world-class lube room.
Commissioning/implementation of a new laboratory.
Vehicle dyno fuel economy test for determining fuel economy retention over an extended drain.
Completed several special projects during the year, each of which drew upon my particular knowledge and experience.
Nearing $4 million in personal sales.
Testing of a new semisynthetic gas engine oil.
Stewarding the implementation of the ILSAC GF-5 motor oil reformulations for my company across Asia Pacific, from the technical support aspect.
Obtained new filtration account.
Found a job in a down economy.
Developed a process to repair open gears in kilns and mills, on-site and in operation.
PAO in synthetics lubricants, engine and gears.
Reduced power consumption and cycling by about a third in an air compressor by adding a 400-gallon accumulator to an 84-cfm compressor and increasing the pressure band from 10 psi to 20 psi.
Received an offer for a new job. I’m currently working at a temp job outside the lube industry.
We’ve grown our business 25% without doing an acquisition.
Achieved my CLS and OMA certifications and grew my distribution of finished lubricants by 11%.
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Industrial gear oil application in wind turbines.
Started my own business.
To be frank, the fact that I passed the CLS exam administered by the STLE.
I opened three big accounts.
Growing our company by 70% in the MWF division.
Profitable commercial operation of the IPP that I have been working in before joining my current organization.
Optimal design of face-hobbed spiral bevel gears.
As a consultant I was involved in finishing the development of a new propeller shaft bearing system for large ships.
Worked on energy efficiency of different oils, something that makes a impact, though small, on the amount of energy consumed in different equipments.
Retaining key staff.
Wrote and submitted for publication a review of fuel and fuel system biodeterioration developments since 1980.
Gaining back first- and second-quarter lost lube gallons in the third and fourth quarters.
Engaged in STLE exercises by reading the e-newsletters, TLT and getting informed on lubrication, greases, etc.
Tripled sales and commissions.
Conversion of the CLS exam to multiple-choice format.
Do you expect the lubricants industry to grow, shrink or stay about the same in 2012 compared to 2011?
Grow
45%
Shrink
4%
Stay the same
51%
Based on results from some 13,000 TLT readers.
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What is your No. 1 professional objective for 2012?
Promotion to director.
Earn my CLS certification.
I plan to get a good 50% raise and a promotion by utilizing some carefully planned strategies that will make the company millions.
Constant learning and, if possible, a certification.
Installing a new oil room complete with upgraded oil delivery methods.
Purchase another lube company to increase our market share.
Get a promotion—it’s been a long time!
Reach a job related to materials engineering in a multinational of renewables.
Devote some time to catching up on stagnated projects that provide good opportunities for growth. The crazy-busy 2011 year did not allow me to spend time developing.
Find avenues to teach Basic Lubrication 101 so that our current and future customers are wiser in the purchasing and use of lubricants.
Obtain ISO 9001-2008 auditor qualification.
Improve my knowledge through an STLE course and earn an MBA.
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To become a lubricant application consultant, thus helping to sensitize industries about the pros and cons of lubricants in equipment and also provide professional solutions/advices on critical situations.
Continue learning about lubrication as well as complete another STLE course toward CLS certification.
Obtain STLE’s OMA II certification.
Stay employed.
Consolidate on the knowledge reinforced while studying for the CLS exam.
Finish my B.S. degree in business with an emphasis on sales and marketing.
To be appointed to a major federal health and safety advisory committee.
To develop a low-friction lubricant.
Keep my job.
To negotiate a more competitive compensation package, somewhere around 30% more than my current salary.
Raise awareness for large mechanical equipment operators about our onsite surface treatment.
Grow the commercial and industrial division of our business by 30%.
Survive.
Publish two high-quality technical papers.
Become knowledgeable and proficient (in a product technical support sense) across the spectrum of industrial lubricants my company markets. I recently moved into the area of industrial lubes after many years working in a solely automotive lubes technical role.
Commercialization of a new product for surface metal treatment.
Making myself indispensible in my new position.
Spend more time with family.
Start planning to build a fourth plant in 2012.
Continue our organic growth of lubricants so we don’t get gobbled up by some large equity firm.
Expand territory and lube gallons by 25%. Increase education to distributor sales representatives by way of sales and training meetings.
Improve my English and obtain STLE certifications.
Start a new job.
I retired from the university four years ago, so I have no specific professional goals for 2012.
The biggest professional goal for 2012 is to increase product sales to mills, especially high-speed wire rod mills.
Publish the special edition of
International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation. I am the guest editor.
Recapture lost business and hang on to what we have now.
Six Sigma green belt course.
Editor’s Note: Sounding Board is based on an e-mail survey of 13,000 TLT readers. Views expressed are those of the respondents and do not reflect the opinions of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers. STLE does not vouch for the technical accuracy of opinions expressed in Sounding Board, nor does inclusion of a comment represent an endorsement of the technology by STLE.