Yuchai Lubricant leads national brands to high-end field--An interview with Peng Guoqing, deputy manager of the Sales Department of Nanning Yuchai Lubricant Co., Ltd.

Editor's note: On August 29, 2012, 2012 Guangzhou International Transport Exhibition (GITE 2012) opened at China Import and Export Fair Pazhou Complex. As the largest bus brand exhibition in South China, the three-day exhibition drew attention from a host of industrial customers and distributors. As China's most visited and influential Internet lubricant oil media outlet, Sinolub (www.sinolub.com <http://www.sinolub.com>) fielded a reporting and editing team to cover the exhibition. On the scene, Peng Guoqing, deputy manager of the Sales Department of Nanning Yuchai Lubricant Co., Ltd. (Yuchai Lubricant), gave us an interview, elaborating on the company's development in fields of buses and public transport, and its market strategy.

Consolidating foundation for development

Founded in 1995, subsidiary of Yuchai Group, the leader in the domestic internal combustion engine industry, Yuchai Lubricant is China's first high-end lubricant brand established by an engine enterprise. In early days, Yuchai Lubricant was positioned to produce "lubricant specific to Yuchai engines" and used in warranty services for Yuchai engines only; but now, guided by the goal of "Relying on Yuchai, and going out of Yuchai", Yuchai Lubricant's high-end diesel oil has occupied half of the domestic market, the company's product range has become increasingly wide, and the company has become a high-end benchmark in the industry.

Peng poses with Sinolub's reporter for a photo

At the exhibition, the blue & white-toned booth elaborately designed by Yuchai Lubricant is elegant, displaying a strong lineup. The slogan reading "Yuchai lubricant makes machinery healthier" was striking, attracting attention from a lot of exhibitors and professional visitors. According to Peng, Yuchai Lubricant primarily produces series including high-grade vehicle lubricant, industrial oil and automotive maintenance products, with its key product including series of YC general internal combustion engine oil, limousine oil, "Hanhu" oil, motorcycle oil, highly clean anti-wear hydraulic oil, heavy-duty vehicle gear oil, lubricating grease, high-grade anti-freezing fluid and braking fluid, etc.

As an outstanding high-end lubricant brand, gold-like quality and cutting-edge technology is the weapon of Yuchai Lubricant to remain invincible in the fiercely competitive market, as well as the key to winning in competition and establishing the brand. Yuchai Lubricant has always attached great importance to independent innovation, and ensured product quality based on Yuchai's strong R & D platform. Yuchai Friction and Lubricants Research Institute, a professional lubricant R & D institution jointly established by Yuchai Lubricant and Yuchai R & D Center, is the first enterprise that has accomplished the synchronous R & D of lubricant and engine in the industry. Besides, Yuchai Lubricant has, in cooperation with Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), US, constantly introduced new products according to market demand changes, and has developed lubricant products matching National I to V engines.

Lubricant boosts green transport

In recent years, Yuchai Lubricant has cut a figure in the field of public transport, and has frequently been listed among "outstanding suppliers" by major public transport companies in the country. Referring to market development, Peng said, "In recent years, Yuchai Lubricant has cooperated with many major public transport companies in the country, such as Beijing Public Transport, Tianjin Pubilc Transport, Shanghai Public Transport, Xiamen Public Transport, Hangzhou Public Transport, Wenzhou Public Transport, etc.

The booth of Yuchai Lubricant

"Low Carbon, Energy Conservation, Green Transport" is the theme of the exhibition. To protect environment and reduce vehicle exhaust, National IV emission standards will come into effect in July 2013, raising higher requirements to diesel oil. Then what have Yuchai Lubricant done for this? Peng said, "We have been committed to reducing vehicle exhaust by improving lubrication technology, we have developed oil specific to National III, IV and V engines and launched them. Our newly developed LNG/CNG gas oil has achieved a technical breakthrough, is more energy-conserving and environment-friendly, and the drain period has extended from 12,000 kilometers to 30,000 kilometers.

"With the acceleration in the process of China's urbanization, the bus market will expand rapidly, raising increasingly higher requirements to lubricant." Based on his judgment on the outlook of the public transport industry, Peng came up with the development emphasis of the enterprise for the future, "We will increase the R & D input into bus oil, especially high-grade bus oil, to sharpen product competitiveness and quicken the pace of market development."

Yuchai Lubricant win honors in Guangzhou's and Jiaxing's public transport field

Expanding production capacity for nationwide operations

Yuchai Lubricant has formed a layout of "four regions and three bases". The company has had lubricant operations in four regions--Nanning, Beihai, Chongqing and Dalian, and established three production bases--Beihai, Chongqing and Dalian. After Beihai Phase 3 project comes on stream, the production capacity of Beihai production base will soar from 65,000 tons to 120,000 tons, to become a top lubricant blending and production plant in Asia. Remarkably, in the project, Yuchai Lubricant introduced full-automatic blending equipment and filling lines from the US and Italy, to ensure product quality and increase production efficiency, thus further expanding production capacity and rapidly meeting market demands.

Yuchai lubricant products on show

According to Sinolub, in recent years, Yuchai Lubricant has, based on Yuchai's tremendous strength, yielded a bumper harvest in market development, maintained an annual sales growth of over 20 percent, established a nationwide network of over 100 tier-1 distributors and over 3,000 tier-2 distributors, shared Yuchai "95098" hotline and resources of over 2,700 Yuchai service outlets, made use of the front-end sales system developed in cooperation with a domestic famous IT company to keep up to date with the sales performance of distributors nationwide. "The company has established a special technical marketing team, to intensify support to terminal customers, provide free technical support to machinery plants, public transport companies and repair shops, and carry out activities technical marketing and experience marketing," Peng said, adding Yuchai Lubricant's sales focus on the south of the Yangtze River, the north market is relatively weak, and the company has established production bases in Chongqing and Dalian to intensify north market development.

Every brand grows as man does. What is the most precious wealth of Yuchai Lubricant after a dozen years' accumulation? Peng answered firmly, "We have always valued quality as our life and attached great importance to product R & D, laying a solid foundation for our future development." The Chinese lubricant market is becoming one of the world's most open and competitive markets. We believe Yuchai Lubricant will lead national brands to high-end fields step by step by its tremendous R & D strength, perfect sales network and flexible market response.

(Source: Sinolub)