On September 19th, our VP of Human Resources & Administration, Tony Espinosa, and Staffing Coordinator, Amanda Sutton, had the privilege of attending the 4th Tribology Minor Symposium hosted by Auburn University. Our attendance provided a valuable opportunity to interview soon-to-be tribologists for future roles at our company. Amanda felt the symposium was tremendously successful, “I believe we were able to establish a relationship with the Auburn University’s Engineering Department and Tribology minor program that will prove to be mutually beneficial over the coming years. We are excited to see students leave college prepared for jobs in this industry in a way they haven’t been previously and we have high hopes for finding qualified employees to join us at Des-Case coming from this program. Dr. Jackson has started a wonderful program with this Tribology minor and we are excited to support it and see how it grows.”
Also, in attendance were several of our distribution partners and other industrial leaders which marked this as a significant event, not only for those students seeking a career in the lubrication industry, but also for Des-Case as a recognized brand when discussing proactive maintenance/equipment reliability.
The event commemorated the accomplishments of the late Ralph Beard, Chairman of the Auburn University Tribology Minor’s Industry Advisory Board.
WHAT IS TRIBOLOGY AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
Merriam-Webster defines tribology as, “a study that deals with the design, friction, wear, and lubrication of interacting surfaces in relative motion (as in bearings or gears).” Tribology provides the knowledgebase that supports our mission to enhance our customer’s equipment reliability through precision lubrication. Research by the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE) and the National Research Council of Canada (NRCC) found up to 82% of mechanical wear of industrial machinery is due to particle contamination of the lubricating oil. Although lubricant purchase is typically one of the smallest items in a plant’s operational costs, lubrication continues to be one of the most important factors impacting machinery reliability and productivity.
Want to learn more about the cost of poor lubrication? Read our blog post “Decrease Maintenance Spending by Increasing Reliability”
