Oiles America’s Specialty Products for the Hydro Market
An Oiles turbine inlet valve bushing. This particular bushing includes grease grooves, visible at the 10:00 and 2:00 positions, in addition to self-lubricated plugs.
O
iles has supplied self-lubricating wear components to more than 2,000 hydroelectric installations around the world. In this interview, Kurt Garvey, the senior account manager of specialty markets for the Oiles America Corporation, talks about the company’s proprietary materials, markets, and customer service. Hydro Leader: Please tell us about your background and how you came to be in your current position.
Hydro Leader: Would you tell us more about the Oiles America Corporation?
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Kurt Garvey: Oiles was founded in Japan by Mr. Sozo Kawasaki in the late 1940s. The company’s first project was for a wooden bushing that was used in a tobacco-rolling machine. This bushing successfully replaced a metallic bushing that was lubricated by the old-style overhead oil-filled cups that fed lubrication by gravity. We have operations not just in North America but in Asia and Europe as well as South Africa and Australia. Oiles started as a material science company that made proprietary materials specific to its customers’ needs. Today, we produce not only our own specialized material—which in the case of hydro is our 500 series self-lubricated bronze— but our own self-lubricating plug materials as well. Oiles has upward of 2,000 hydro installations globally with a failure rate of zero. We take that very seriously. Hydro is hallowed ground for Oiles. Hydro Leader: Does hydro make up a large part of the company’s overall output? Kurt Garvey: Our largest market is automotive. We supply anything on a car that pivots, including suspension components, door hinges, and seat bearings. Hydro is our second-largest market. But the applications of self-lubricated components are almost endless. We also support the heavy construction equipment market with our components for cranes, large and small construction excavators, and tunnel-boring machines. In addition, we support the commercial marine, offshore, rail, tire, and power generation markets, the last by providing specialty wear components for steam turbines. hydroleadermagazine.com
PHOTOS COURTESY OF OILES AMERICA.
Kurt Garvey: I am a senior account manager in specialty markets for the Oiles America Corporation. My primary focus is the hydroelectric industry. I’ve always enjoyed anything mechanical; it’s just in my DNA. My father owned a machine shop that specialized in the manufacture of precision machine components for the defense and industrial markets. Being raised around and later working at the shop allowed me to develop my mechanical skills. After we sold the business in the late 1990s, I worked in sales for a manufacturer of self-lubricating wear parts for the hydroelectric market, then for a company that designed and manufactured large rolling element bearings for the heavy construction market. I especially enjoyed the hydro market, given its long history of providing renewable energy. I enjoy seeing drawings from the early 1900s. Turbines were somewhat overbuilt in those days. It fascinates me to see them still in operation and being refurbished. With improvements in technology and materials, we can extend the life cycle of turbines.
This diagram indicates where Oiles bushings are used in a turbine inlet valve.
