Servicing the Deadliest Catch Fleet

Ballard Oil, Luber-finer filters supporting marine industry for decades

Albion, IL – May 2, 2011 – From his base of operations in Seattle, WA, Warren Aakervik takes a sense of pride in the performance of the Deadliest Catch vessels involved on The Discovery Channel’s series that chronicles the lives of Alaskan King Crabbing boats. You see, as the owner of Ballard Oil, Aakervik provides diesel fuel, lubricants and Luber-finer® filters to the captains of many of those boats.

“We’ve been here for 73 years and our primary business is to service and respond to the needs of the maritime fishing industry,” says Aakervik. “Almost all of the Deadliest Catch boats have been in here at some time. Every one of those boats, regardless of which one they are, has taken Luber-finer® filters on board.”

The relationship that Ballard Oil has with the Luber-finer® brand of filters has played a key role in Ballard’s success and goes back to its founding in 1937. Over the years, Ballard Oil has tried other filters, but always returns to the brand it knows, and trusts, best. Ballard Oil currently features Luber-finer® filters and filter assemblies for heavy- duty marine, commercial and industrial applications.

“Over the entire history of the company, we’ve sold Luber-finer® filters, and we’ve used them as our preferred full line since 1997,” says Aakervik. “We have never had a failure with a Luber-finer® filter, and the guys really depend on them. In all the years we’ve been dealing with Luber-finer® and the thousands of filters we’ve gone through, I don’t think we’ve had a warranty claim or a filter that wasn’t of the best quality; we haven’t had any complaints.”

And make no mistake, these filters get pushed to the limit when forced to perform under the harsh conditions and unique circumstances in which these fishing boats operate. Take the critical need to keep a boat’s fuel supply clean and water-free, for example. The main obstacle to keeping a boat running smoothly and reliably is the saltwater and spray that can get into the fuel system, and Luber- finer filters play a key role in this crucial operation.

For a short video on Ballard Oil, go to www.youtube.com/LuberFinerFilters. For a full Case Study on Ballard Oil, go to www.luberfiner.com/documents/email-downloads/LF_BallardOil_CaseStudy_pgs011811.pdf.

For more information on Luber-finer®, please visit the new website at: www.luberfiner.com.

Champion Laboratories, Inc., is a quality and technology leader and one of the world’s largest manufacturers of filters and filtration products and related services to the automotive, retail, on-highway and off-highway fleet, heavy-duty and petroleum dispensing industries. Champion Laboratories, Inc., has been a trusted name in filters since 1955, providing high-efficiency performance in the most demanding work environments. For more information on the company or its products, please visit www.champlabs.com.

Warren Aakervik, Ballard Oil

posted by Averi Goodman