PACKAGING
Consistency and control: The key to confronting oil and lubricant counterfeits
Bob Tilling, VP of Global Sales, Kallik
This article discusses the impact that counterfeits have on highly-regulated sectors, like oil and lubricants, and the tactics businesses can adopt to prevent counterfeit goods from entering the market and hampering their brand.
Counterfeits in the oil and lubricant industry are not a new phenomenon, but their severity has escalated in recent years, with data revealing that 10 percent of global lubricant sales are counterfeits; a worrying figure that is on the rise.
According to experts, the issue was inflated by the COVID-19 pandemic, because of the drastic increase in online shopping, and the rising cost-of-living, both resulting in consumers choosing cheaper alternatives.
This ‘open door’ gave unregulated criminals the prime opportunity to target online shopping giants, such as eBay and Amazon, with significantly lower-priced products labelled as famous household brands, to an audience with potentially little to no knowledge of the product or the implications for its misuse. The complex structure of the global supply chain presents a difficulty for businesses looking to prevent counterfeits from reaching their customers. Such challenges arise due to less stringent copyright laws, differing regulation, and enforcement mechanisms in certain international markets, making the prompt shutdown of counterfeit production an ongoing struggle.
The infiltration of fake products into the marketplace is a multifaceted problem with profound consequences, with authenticity and quality assurance becoming critical concerns for industries that rely on these essential fluids.
Generally, counterfeit products contain lower-grade alternatives, including unbranded, cheap lubricants, mixed, or ‘cut’ products, and recycled lubricants, which can pose threats of cross-contamination if not properly reclaimed.
Lubricants are specifically tailored for specific machinery to ensure smooth operation; playing a crucial role across the manufacturing, refrigeration, automotive and HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) systems industries, to name a few.
Each product must possess distinct properties, i.e. viscosity, chemical stability, and sulphur content, to ensure optimal performance. Consequently, substituting genuine products with unauthorised, non-specialised alternatives can have a considerable impact on operations, which may lead to unsafe
Continued on page 16 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.179 FEBRUARY 2024 15
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