U.K. Off-Highway Equipment Lubricants Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product (Heavy Duty Engine Oil, Transmission Fluids, Hydraulic Fluids, Greases, Gear Oil), By End Use, By Equipment Type, And Segment Forecasts, 2019 - 2025

Industry Insights

The U.K. off-highway equipment lubricants market size was valued at USD 493.6 million in 2018 and is projected to expand at an estimated CAGR of 1.9% from 2019 to 2025. The industry is highly driven by heavy-duty engine oil, which held a 58.2% share in 2018. Increasing demand for heavy-duty engine oils, transmission fluids, and gear oils will drive the market.

The industry is expected to witness sluggish growth over the next six years due to a mature manufacturing industry. Nevertheless, growth in construction and agricultural equipment rental services, coupled with expanding agricultural and infrastructure industries, is anticipated to positively impact the consumption of lubricants in coming years.

In terms of off-highway lubricants application, majority of the lubricants find usage in construction, agriculture, and mining activities. Major construction machinery used in the U.K. include concrete equipment, earthmoving machinery, road building machinery, and material handling cranes.Earth moving equipment is anticipated to hold the dominant share throughout the forecast period with backhoe loaders and excavators representing majority of the demand.

Among various types of off-highway lubricants, heavy-duty engine oil is the largest product segment in the marketspace and is characterized by diesel engine setup aimed to provide high fuel efficiency and low-end torque. Evolving engine specifications among OEMs, on the backdrop of fuel efficiency and pollution norms surrounding diesel vehicles, are also expected to affect development of heavy-duty engine oils in the near future.

Growing penetration of the rental industry is expected to give rise to a significant shift in consumption patterns for off-highway machinery lubricants. Rental fleet operators are relatively regular when it comes to lubrication application intervals to maintain the fleet for a longer duration. Independent repair shops are also projected to increase over the forecast period. Growing stringent regulations for regular maintenance of machinery to reduce pollution is another factor driving the market demand.

Product Insights

Engine oil is used to reduce the friction between moving parts and thus, reduce the wear and tear of internal combustion engines. It helps cool the engine by carrying away the heat and shows high resistance to thermal fluctuations. Moreover, it neutralizes the acid formed from fuel combustion and lubricant oxidation and ensures smooth functioning and greater efficiency of the engine.

Heavy duty engine oil, transmission fluids, and gear oils will drive the U.K. off-highway equipment lubricants market. The U.K. has witnessed significant demand for heavy machinery and it is one of the prominent exporters of construction machinery across world. The demand for OEMs from the factory fill is projected to expand at a moderate growth rate.

Increasing investment in OEM plants, along with growing demand for heavy-duty construction machineries, is projected to spur industry growth over the foreseeable future. Furthermore, growing awareness among equipment handlers about climatic effects, coupled with constant exposure of machineries to dirt and dust, has significantly increased the consumption of lubricants to enhance machinery durability and performance

Equipment Type Insights

The U.K. is a major manufacturer and exporter of construction equipment, which mainly includes earth moving and material handling machinery. The country has a strong presence of numerous construction OEM companies, such as J C Bamford Excavators Ltd., Terex Trucks, Caterpillar, and Mecalac, which manufacture equipment to cater to domestic as well as international markets. Thus, consumption of lubricants for construction machinery has been greater in comparison to that in the agricultural and forestry segments.

There are very few agricultural and forestry equipment manufacturers in the region. To cater to domestic demand of such machinery, the country imports from numerous manufacturers across North America, Europe, and other parts of the world. John Deere, Fendt, Massey Furguson, Valtra, New Holland, Case IH, and Kubota are some of the few popular agricultural equipment brands in the U.K.

Construction machinery is observed to be the largest market for off-highway lubricants, fueled by multiple infrastructure developments projects in the pipeline. Heavy-duty machineries perform under severe environmental conditions, wherein conditions oscillate from cold to hot operating temperatures. Moreover, agricultural, mining, construction equipment are continuously subject to heavy operations during the project phase, which demands high-performance lubricants to keep the engine healthy and simultaneously aid in achieving maximum performance outputs. This keeps product demand at a high.

End-use Insights

End-users of off-highway equipment lubricants include U.K.-based as well as non-U.K.-based OEM companies that have their manufacturing or assembly facilities in the country. Other end-users include independent workshops, franchise workshops, and rental services. Rental services in the U.K. reported the highest consumption of lubricants in 2018. This trend is expected to continue owing to growing adoption of rental services in the agriculture and construction industries. The equipment rental segment is projected to create lucrative growth opportunities in the U.K. market.

There has also been an increase in the presence of independent repair shops across the country. Rising awareness regarding initial investment cost for lubrications has benefitted the market, which in later stages, could lead to significant savings and reduce operational and maintenance costs. Machinery owners or users highly prefer to get them serviced from independent or franchise workshops owing to relatively lower cost of their services.

On the other hand, some prefer to service their machinery at authorized dealers of respective companies in order to ensure high quality and authenticity of the work. Most rental service providers maintain their equipment on their own, generally in an in-house workshop facility with trained full-time mechanics. Growing trend of machinery hiring for a short time or on a seasonal basis is anticipated to boost the consumption of off-highway equipment lubricants by rental service providers.

U.K. Off-Highway Equipment Lubricants Market Share Insights

The market is a fairly consolidated with industry majors accounting for approximately 50-55% of the total market. Top players operating in the marketspace include British Petroleum, Shell, ExxonMobil, Total, Fuchs Lubricants, and Chevron. Other prominent manufacturers include Morris Lubricants, Rock Oil, Exol Lubricants, New Era Fuels, and The Witham Group.

New entrants in the U.K. market for lubricant manufacturing, such as New Era Fuels Limited and The Witham Group, are also gaining market share owing to their well-established supply chain while operating as authorized distributors of some of the leading manufacturing companies – Petronas Lubricants, Total, and Q8Oils.

Manufacturers are expanding their current capacities in order to meet increasing product demand from various end-use industries. Last year, Fuchs Lubricants (UK) plc upgraded its U.K.-based warehouse and raw material facilities to cater to the growing demand for off-highway equipment lubricants. The company also expanded its two grease manufacturing facilities located in South Africa and Chicago to meet the ascending domestic and export demand for the product across Africa and North America.

Report Scope

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue growth at country level and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2014 to 2025. For the purpose of this study, Grand View Research has segmented the U.K. off-highway equipment lubricants market report on the basis of product, equipment type, and end-use:

• Product Outlook (Volume, Kilotons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025)

  • Heavy Duty Engine Oil

  • Transmission Fluids

  • Hydraulic Fluids

  • Greases

  • Gear Oils

  • Others

• Equipment Type Outlook (Volume, Kilotons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025)

  • Construction Equipment by Type

    • Earthmoving Equipment

    • Material Handling And Cranes

    • Concrete Equipment

    • Road Building Equipment

  • Construction Equipment by End-Use

    • OEM

    • OEM Dealers

    • Independent Workshops

    • Franchise

    • Rentals

  • Agriculture & Forestry by End-Use

    • OEM

    • OEM Dealers

    • Independent Workshops

    • Franchise

    • Rentals

  • Mining Equipment by End-Use

    • OEM

    • OEM Dealers

    • Independent Workshops

    • Franchise

    • Rentals

• End-use Outlook (Volume, Kilotons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025)

  • OEM

  • OEM Dealers

  • Independent Workshops

  • Franchise

  • Rentals