It would be great if technicians came standard with a few more sets of hands. Everyone is attempting to answer the industry’s dire technician shortage, but unfortunately, a fruitful solution still seems more mirage than material.
Until technicians saturate repair shops, the best we can do is find the places and tools that can be used to take weight off the shoulders of the overburdened staffs. Oil and coolant analyses are two such programs.
Fluid analysis does double-duty as a preventive maintenance tool and a keystone to the engine or cooling system. With higher underhood temperatures and the accompanying CJ-4 oil formulation in place, monitoring coolant and oil through thorough analysis is more important than ever before. Establish analysis trends and let the tests lend a hand with consistently efficient repairs.
Oil Analysis
Catching potentially catastrophic engine problems before they occur, thus preventing unscheduled downtime, is invaluable to a customer. Oil analysis helps a technician evaluate the level of contaminants present, assess the oil’s condition and establish safe oil drain intervals for customers’ vehicles.
“Basically, oil analysis is a preventive maintenance procedure,” said Dan Arcy, technical marketing manager, Shell Lubricants.
But there are other reasons why a technician should put his customers on a solid oil analysis program. “To start, your customer may have purchased a warranty program from an equipment builder that makes oil analysis part of the warranty requirement,” said Mark Betner, heavy-duty lubricant manager, CITGO Lubricants.
Good oil analysis record keeping makes one defensible in cases of warranty disputes and, according to Betner, can help with equipment resale.
