Synthetic oil helps keep trucks running in extreme conditions
Written by REM Staff
For Silverline Coil, an oilrig service company that operates out of Slave Lake, Alta., reputation is the key to success.
Were a service company, says Mark Bonafrenski, manager of
services/operations at Silverline. If our rigs break down, we lose
money and its a huge loss. We cant afford to let that happen. Our
reputation is what is going to help us grow over time.
Silverline is a company that operates coil-tubing trucks that service
oil and gas wells in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and up to
the border of the Northwest Territories. The company has six employees,
and depending on the size of the job, uses a crew of two or three per
truck. Its clients include CNRL, Pengrove Corp., Pioneer Resources and
Paramount Trust.
We clean out gas and oil wells with nitrogen and air, Bonafrenski
explains. We pump different kinds of chemicals into formations to
break down oils and gases that are down there, clean wells out, run
different kinds of tools like packers, and deal with cement jobs in
abandoning wells.
Since it is a year-round business, Silverline has to operate in severe
conditions and extreme temperatures. Temperatures can be as low as
-40C in the winter and up to 35C in the summer. Plus, the equipment
must be in excellent condition all the time.
You never know what kind of job is going to come up, Bonafrenski
says. We do emergency calls as well as regular service for our
clients, so the trucks always have to be ready to roll. An injection
well can go down in a field at any time, and if it does, they have to
shut the whole field down. All the water coming out of any gas well can
go into the injection well, and if the injection well takes on water,
the whole gas well will shut down. The cost of something like that is
mind-boggling.
He adds: So, were called to do an emergency cleanout. Ive been on
one that has lasted as long as 30 hours. Then you go on to your regular
service call. The trucks sometimes work 24/7.
Thats where the Traxon E Synthetic 75W-90
comes in. It saves Bonafrenski time and money, and provides extended
drain intervals. In fact, as he put it, he cant operate his business
successfully unless he has a synthetic lubricant that enables him to
lower costs. He has been using Traxon E Synthetic on his rigs rear
ends and transmissions for as long as he can remember - and he says it
always delivers.
With Traxon E, the company is able to make a profit, he says. We only
change gear oil once a year. Traxon E doesnt break down; we check it
regularly - weekly, sometimes even daily - but it hardly needs to be
changed at all.
He continues: Traxon E is formulated to operate under a variety of
load conditions all the time. It simply works so good we dont have any
problems with our rear ends. … There is less wear and corrosion on the
gears, axles and bearings than with other products, and Traxon E
maintains its viscosity. When you drain the oil after a lot of use,
Traxon E is still fairly thick and holds up well; not like a lot of
other oils. Traxon E also performs well in all weather conditions. All
of this means that weve spent less on repairs and less on replacing
equipment. Plus, theres the added benefit of less downtime.
Silverline has two units, and Bonafrenski says if both are down, the
company can lose between $10,000 and $14,000 a day. However, he no
longer has to worry about that.
Traxon E is the best gear lubricant you can get and, in my opinion,
everybody else should be using Traxon E, he says. It helps all the
way around. I just cant say enough good things about it from a
performance and cost point of view. Im sure going to continue using
it.
This is an edited article provided by Petro-Canada. For more information, visit www.petro-canada.com.
For Silverline Coil, an oilrig service company that operates out of Slave Lake, Alta., reputation is the key to success.
