JOST's eco-friendly organic grease for fifth wheels is available now for dealers and customers.
JOST developed a completely biodegradable high-performance lubricant for its fifth wheel couplings and unveiled the innovation last year at the 2018 IAA Commercial Vehicles Show in Hanover, Germany.
“Under normal operating conditions, a fifth wheel coupling requires about 10 kilograms of lubricating grease per year,” JOST said in a statement. “With a vehicle fleet of around 600,000 vehicles in Europe, this makes around 6,000 tons per year. This high amount of grease requires an eco-friendly solution like the biodegradable organic grease.”
With the development of minimal lubrication with LubeTronic, JOST already succeeded in reducing the amount of grease needed to about 1.6 kilograms per year. JOST is now taking the next step by introducing a grease that is biodegradable in accordance with the OECD 301 B biodegradation test.
Considering that JOST’s organic, high-performance lubricant actually exceeded the demands of the test, it received the rating of “readily biodegradable”, which means it degrades especially quickly and easily.
“The lubricant is ideally formulated for use in combination with LubeTronic and is impressive from more than just an eco-friendly perspective,” said JOST, adding that it will offer its organic grease at the same price as its commonly used grease.
Lars Brorsen, Chairman of the Executive Board of the JOST, is excited by the new biodegradable, high-performance lubricant.
“As our corporate group expands with sites around the world, so does our responsibility for the environment.” he said. “Our products play an important part in reducing the ecological footprint left in the areas we specialise in and by the commercial vehicle industry in general. The development of the fully biodegradable organic grease means that JOST has taken an important step in the right direction.”
(Main image: LubeTronic; bottom image: JOST's green grease.)