ship them out from our plant?” and “Who buys this stuff?”. He told me I needed to expand my horizons and I was quickly transferred into chemical sales out to California. What a career change from engineer to technical sales, from making the product to selling the product! After nearly 14 years at Exxon, I thought I had plateaued on the corporate ladder and accepted a sales management position in the lubricant additive business at Ciba-Geigy, which became part of Ciba Specialty Chemicals and ultimately acquired by BASF. I gained international experience while at Ciba for nearly 15 years and then landed where I am today, at Vanderbilt Chemicals.
Are you a lifer? If yes, how do you see your career panning out over the next 20/30/40 years? I have worked my entire career in the chemical industry and for over 35 years in the lubricant industry. I guess that qualifies me as a “lifer”.
How has the industry changed since you started? The biggest change I have seen is the amount of consolidation that has occurred among companies in this industry. I would bet that the majority of my colleagues in the lubricant industry are currently working, or at one time have worked, for a business that has been owned by more than one legal entity over the past 35 years. It is rare to find a company like Vanderbilt Chemicals, LLC, my current employer, that has been around for more than 100 years under the same name and ownership. Another major change has been the evolution of lubricant base stocks. When I started, we were working mostly with API Group I base oils for most lubricants, then transitioned to Group II in the 1990’s and 2000’s, and now we are seeing Group III and IV base oils in an increasing number of applications. Finally, we have seen tremendous change in the globalisation of supply and competition, with the emerging importance of the Asia Pacific region.
What do you like about the industry? And what would you change if you could? What I truly enjoy about this industry is the opportunity it offers for a company to develop new technology that can be leveraged in a market where performance standards are continually moving higher and higher, although sometimes I wish the pace of change could be increased. Additionally, the next best thing to becoming an astronaut (my childhood dream) was for me to be able to explore the world through
international business travel and the opportunity to visit many cities and famous places, while experiencing different cultures in many countries.
What challenges do you think the industry faces? In your role and as a whole? The entire petroleum industry is under siege today by environmentalists who have managed to mainstream their beliefs regarding global warming. This is clearly the biggest challenge to our industry today, especially in automotive lubricants and metal working fluids. Conversely, I believe these challenges will also offer opportunities for companies to innovate, diversify, or reinvent themselves, but only those companies who are tuned in to the drivers of change and can adjust their business strategies accordingly.
How do you balance work life with home life? Before I was married and had children, like many others at the time, my work was my life. Once the kids started coming, I began to transition to have more balance between work and home life. Then, after my wife and I became empty nesters, I set clear boundaries regarding work and home life. From Monday through Friday, between 08:00h and 17:00h, I immerse myself in my work with a strong, personal drive to do the best job that I know I can do. Outside of that time, I become focused on my family and my hobbies.
What are your hobbies?
I truly enjoy cooking (especially Italian), which probably comes from my chemical engineer training. For me, following a food recipe is similar to making a chemical product – there is measuring, blending, and mixing, as well as reaction kinetics and separations. I also enjoy golfing, traveling, flying (as a VFR/SEL private pilot), pontoon boating, playing the piano, and learning other languages.
Favourite quote?
“Carpe Diem”. At the time when Robin Williams uttered these words to his students in the 1989 film “Dead Poet’s Society”, I had been just offered a USA Sales Manager position at Ciba-Geigy while working in technical sales at Exxon Chemical. I took these two words from this very inspiring movie as a sign that I should “sieze the day” and accept the new position. The rest is history as they say.
www.vanderbiltworldwide.com/
LUBE MAGAZINE NO.180 APRIL 2024
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