My cousin Dean Maier also works in the forest industry, as a lubrication specialist at Industrial Autolube International.

Dean has developed some very unique solutions to reduce the volumes of lubricant traditionally applied to equipment in sawmills.  His saw guide lubrication system is a trademark of the company’s success, whereby an inefficient system of multiple valves and flow controls is converted to hi-tech.  As Dean says, “When you can actually see all the data in real time, as to what’s flowing, oil and water use can be optimized, which reduces waste.”

Autolube’s saw guide system alone can reduce oil consumption in the mill by up to 112 gallons per week, providing an annual savings of over $30,000.  When lubrication systems have been optimized throughout the mill, savings of over $200,000 have been realized.

OK – well, that concludes a bit of a plug for my cousin Dean’s company – although I must say, I have always found learning about his current project, and creative solutions, fascinating.

A screen shot - showing all parameters in real time