Antifriction Components, which supplies critical moving parts for industry, has signed a UK distribution deal with a leading industrial lubrication management brand.
The Bristol headquartered firm will initially stock Whitmore’s OilSafe grease equipment and oil equipment ranges. This is the first time the Texas-headquartered specialist lubricants manufacturer has had a distributor holding stock in the UK.
The OilSafe range is recognised for offering a colour-coded fluid management system to enable the standardised delivery of lubricants from bulk storage to the point of application. OilSafe’s unique ‘Visual Lubrication System’ of products combine to help identify, protect and reduce machinery downtime.
Founded in Bristol in 1976, Antifriction operates 16 depots across the UK and Northern Ireland, including six added as the result of the firm’s incorporation of BRT Industrial in September 2020.
The deal made Antifriction the UK’s largest specialist distributor of its type, employing nearly 130 staff. It supplies over 250,000 lines such as bearings, belt and chain drives, seals, motors and fluid power products for process and general heavy industrial applications. Its lubricant clients include large UK utility companies.
Sean Harsent, Managing Director (EMEA), from Whitmore says:
“Whitmore Europe is very pleased to be partnering with Antifriction to further develop sales of our OilSafe products in the UK, we look forward to a successful ongoing development of our business together.”
Craig Littler, Sales Director at Antifriction, says:
“The OilSafe products complements our lubrication management services. It gives the customer complete peace of mind that they have the correct lubricant delivered to the right application in the optimum condition. This extends machine life and reducing costs and environmental impact.”
Andrew Fleming, Antifriction’s Managing Director, adds:
“We’ve developed unrivalled access to the highest quality stock for our loyal client base. This deal will be the first time the OilSafe range has been stocked by a UK distributor, which is a great compliment to the team and recognises the investments we’ve made over the years in improving our stock and delivery facilities.
“Lubricants are the bedrock of any maintenance strategy that enables manufacturing and engineering to keep running smoothly. We’re sure Whitmore’s products will prove popular with our clients across the many heavy industries we serve across the country.”
Antifriction’s HQ and UK Distribution Centre is in Bristol, and the firm is currently expanding and upgrading the Avonmouth depot serving engineering and manufacturing firms across the south west.
Antifriction’s depots are located in London, Swansea, Cwmbran, Dudley, Bolton, Ellesmere Port, Belfast, Stockton-on-Tees and Grangemouth. The recent BRT incorporation added industrial supplies depots in Inverness, Doncaster, Grimsby, Wisbech, Wickford and Fareham.