Reliability and Efficiency from Well-Oiled Company

Q: What are the main complementarities between SKF’s global oil and gas portfolio and Mexico’s operational challenges?

A: Oil and gas operators of every type and size understand that in the current business environment, effectively managing assets throughout their lifecycle can deliver real and ongoing value while reducing total cost of ownership. No single company is better prepared to help achieve this than SKF. Although oil production in Mexico has been in steady decline for several years, global demand for oil and natural gas is expected to increase by 30% in the next 20 years. Being one of the world’s top 12 oil producing countries, Mexico will not be left out. SKF sees the Energy Reform as the start of a fundamental paradigm shift for the country’s hydrocarbons sector. The landmark bill takes steps to incentivize private sector involvement through the creation of a flexible contracting system.

SKF’s current commercial strategy for the Mexican oil and gas market is focused on selling to PEMEX, its contractors, and their subcontractors. SKF has been a strategic partner to manufacturers and end users throughout all three segments of the oil and gas industry. From basic bearing upgrades to highly advanced asset management approaches, our company offers solutions that can extend the working life and improve performance of turbines, pumps, motors, fans, and other critical equipment. With expertise in bearings, seals, lubrication systems and lubricants, linear motion technologies, and a broad array of services, SKF offers a range of integrated solutions to common oil and gas industry application problems. These solutions range from specialized bearing types for rig surface equipment to sealed, pressure-compensated bearing units for deep downhole drilling and production. SKF also provides intrinsically safe condition monitoring for explosive environments, as well as expert consultancy and reliability services to help both original equipment manufacturers and end users increase performance and reliability, reduce operating and maintenance costs, reduce lubricant usage, minimize capital expenses, and satisfy environmental regulations. From developing new products to remanufacturing existing products, SKF delivers indepth support for designers, manufacturers and end users.

Over decades of close cooperation with oil and gas producers, large and small, we have been able to deliver substantial and measurable improvements in machine reliability and maintenance efficiency. For instance, by implementing an SKF maintenance strategy review, one customer was able to reduce annual maintenance costs by 20%. Installation of SKF’s sour gas bearings in a gas compressor enabled another customer to extend maintenance intervals from three months to three years. Finally, installing SKF magnetic bearings in yet another customer’s turboexpanders resulted in a reliability rating of 99.6 % and significantly reduced maintenance costs.

Q: What are SKF’s manufacturing and distribution capabilities within Mexico?

A: SKF’s manufacturing capabilities within Mexico are represented by our Bearing and Units Factory located in Puebla, our Seals Factory located in Guadalajara, and our Solution Factory in Monterrey. By combining multiple areas of product expertise, the SKF Solution Factory is able to provide integrated, value-added solutions. SKF Authorized Distributors also combine local market knowledge, efficient IT and logistics systems, and support from expert SKF application engineers to offer our customers the highest level of service.

Q: How would you define SKF’s competitive edge in the market?

A: One of SKF´s best competitive advantages is our ability to define, deliver, and measure value. SKF has the knowledge to define where in the customer’s manufacturing process it can deliver the most value to optimize asset efficiency. The value SKF delivers is determined by the customer and can come in various forms. For some clients, this means providing unique technical solutions, while for others it can come from reducing total cost of ownership. Finally, SKF uses its Documented Solutions Programme tool to measure and confirm the value that it provides to a given customer. Using online software that calculates the expected value of a machine solution, the SKF Documented Solutions Program allows clients to see how SKF technologies can benefit their particular situation.