New acquisitions by Burmah Castrol

Citation

(1999), "New acquisitions by Burmah Castrol", Industrial Lubrication and Tribology, Vol. 51 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/ilt.1999.01851dab.003

New acquisitions by Burmah Castrol

New acquisitions by Burmah Castrol

Keywords Burmah Castrol

Burmah Castrol plc ("Burmah Castrol"), the international specialised lubricants and chemicals group, announced in February the further expansion of its Castrol Industrial business with two acquisitions totalling £15 million. The acquisitions support Burmah Castrol's strategy to double profits in its Castrol Industrial business within five years whilst improving margins.

In the USA, Burmah Castrol has acquired Lubecon Systems Inc., which specialises in the conveyor lubrication market. The acquisition will make Castrol Industrial the leading supplier of performance lubricants, equipment and maintenance services in the USA. Based in Michigan in the USA, Lubecon has an annual turnover of »10 million, with a strong customer base across a broad range of industries including the automotive, electronic, aerospace and food manufacturing sectors.

Burmah Castrol also announced the acquisition of the performance lubricants business of Applied Chemicals International. This business, with a turnover of £5.5 million, primarily involves the marketing and distribution operations for Tribol Lubricants, particularly to the mining industry in Australia and the food and beverage industry in the UK.

The worldwide business of Tribol, acquired by Burmah Castrol in 1993, is a leading international manufacturer and marketer of speciality performance lubricants in most industrial segments including automotive, cement, electronics and aerospace.

Both acquisitions allow Burmah Castrol to capitalise further on the growing trend towards the outsourcing of chemicals and lubricants management by industrial customers, a field in which Castrol is the global leader.

Burmah Castrol businesses market specialised lubricant and chemical products and services on a worldwide basis. The group has a turnover close to £3 billion and operating profits of almost £300 million. It has over 150 subsidiaries operating in some 50 countries and employs more than 20,000 people. Four of the group's businesses trade under the Castrol name and the remaining businesses operate in speciality chemicals.