The year was 1960-John F. Kennedy had just been elected president; Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" made theater audiences wriggle in their seats; Muhammad Ali was called at the time For Cassius Clay, when he won his first professional game, he had just created his own legend; Edward Forgeron founded Analysts, Inc., which was the first commercial company to provide spectrochemical analysis of elements in lubricants laboratory.

Fast forward to today, as Edward's son Michael Forgeron continues to thrive and the family business continues to thrive. Michael Forgeron has served as President and CEO and has served the company for 41 years. Edward retired in 1988 and is still the chairman of AI's board of directors, but the business is still family-oriented. Patrick (15 years old, support and training), Eric (12 years old, laboratory manager) and Cary Forgeron (6 years old) , National Sales Manager).

The company has multiple laboratories in the United States, Mexico, and Japan, and its services cover multiple industries, including production machinery, manufacturing equipment, power generation, ships, heavy construction, mining, trucking, public transportation, and the aircraft industry.

To commemorate the anniversary of AI, we interviewed Edward, Michael, and Cary to help understand the company's first 50 years.

How and when was Analysts, Inc. established, and why? Edward-"I work for Baird Atomics, an instrument manufacturer, and sell and service spectrometers, including atomic emission, atomic absorption, and infrared. Baird Atomics' sales include railroad and military instruments for petroleum analysis, as well as mining, steel, and forging plants Instruments used for metallurgical purposes."

Michael-"In 1958, Edward sold laboratory equipment to Pacific Mountain Express (PIE), a large trucking company headquartered in Northern California. PIE's idea of ​​building an internal laboratory was very advanced, but it was impossible at the time. Ongoing. However, Edward has seen the potential benefits of establishing a commercial test laboratory, which includes spectroscopic analysis, where customers can submit samples to experts who will test and evaluate the results. In 1960, he and PIE established Analysts, Inc. , The latter sold back laboratory equipment as the first customer."

Edward Forgeron (right) founded Analysts Inc. in 1960, and his son Michael (left) continues to use this surname as the current president of the company.

How did family members begin to conduct oil analysis? Michael-"When I was young, I was always interested in my dad’s work and wanted to know what he did and why. I sometimes went with him to our first laboratory in Oakland, California, where He will explain testing and how it affects the customer’s business. I really never thought that I would join the industry. I officially joined the analyst in 1969 and it has been my passion and work ever since."

Cary – "Don't tell Michael, but I was never really interested in working for an analyst. For me, it started as a part-time job and I completed two degree programs. I was with a client who was experiencing a power outage Going out together, I saw an open turbo system. It was absolutely fascinating and I was fascinated. Seven years later, I am still excited about understanding how these devices work."

Who are your first customers? Edward and Michael-"In addition to PIE, our early customers include the U.S. Navy, International Harvesters, various steel mills, mining operations, and natural gas pipeline companies."

When and where did the second laboratory start, and why did you choose that location? Edward and Michael-"In 1967, Analysts was awarded a petroleum analysis testing service contract with the U.S. Navy's Atlantic Fleet. Analysts were already involved in testing of ships in the Pacific Ocean. The new contract laid the foundation for our second laboratory in Linden, New Jersey And ability."

Do you have any memories of how and why the field of petroleum analysis started? Edward and Michael-"In the 1940s, railways were experiencing costly failures of locomotive engines and were trying to determine a root cause analysis method. Slowly, by looking at the waste oil from the malfunctioning engine, they were able to piece together problems and failures s reason.

"The military began to be interested in this work in the 1950s, first with aircraft engines, and then all the various equipment they used. This eventually allowed transmission to regular monitoring samples and the development of preventive and predictive maintenance plans."

From the creation of artificial intelligence to today, are there any major events? Michael-"Our business development has been very stable over the years. Over time, changes and improvements usually become part of the landscape. Of course, the contract with the U.S. Navy gives the company and the industry great credibility. The iron spectrum we introduced Analysis, LEM smoke analysis and QSA varnish potential analysis have brought huge benefits to the business. The establishment of international business in Japan and Mexico is also an important and proud moment in our history.

"Of course, we think that celebrating the 50th anniversary of our business is commemorative. We are very aware of the mortality rate of the business, and we are very proud of maintaining family ownership and sharing the past 50 years with so many dedicated colleagues."

What are the key factors driving the development and success of your laboratory? Michael-"Analysts is the first commercial laboratory to use spectroscopic analysis to determine wear metals. This allows us to provide more information about the sampled unit and specifically identify wear parts. In the early 1960s, the US Navy Pacific Fleet Minesweeper There were major problems with the opposed-piston engine design of the device used in the Vietnam War. These failures caused many problems when the Vietnam War broke out. Using Analysts' testing and analysis services, the backlog of approximately 15 months of delivery and replacement of the crankshaft was almost eliminated.

"The success of this program has undoubtedly established the value of a complete test program with expert diagnostic capabilities. Using the success of the Pacific Fleet Program, combined with the company's initial and ongoing mission, to provide customers with the highest level of diagnostic expertise and services, we continue to promote Our development and success.

"A large part of our success must also be attributed to our employees. We have more than 35 STLE-certified technicians, chemists, data analysts, laboratory managers, and field support personnel who have passed the ICML and STLE CLS And OMA I and II certification. This is a huge professional knowledge base from which our customers can directly benefit."

Where do you think the petroleum analysis industry will go? Cary-"Ultimately, the online/on-board sensors will work as expected. When this happens, more continuous monitoring of devices will be driven by these sensors, which should identify the problematic units.

"Laboratory testing will still be a major factor, especially for units that have been found to be abnormal. Testing will be more precise and high-end, and will specifically target warnings identified on site.

"This may cause a certain degree of restructuring in the industry, because a large amount of capital investment is required to equip the laboratory with appropriate instruments."

What will the petroleum analysis laboratory look like in the next 25 years? Michael-"We see automation. Almost all stages of the sample/testing process will be mainly automated. New technologies, along the route of RFID tags, will replace the sample label barcodes and forms used today. Instruments will continue to evolve and will The development of new processes allows the laboratory to identify many new areas of lubricant condition and unit wear."

Can you recall any major success stories in which your laboratory rescued machines from catastrophic failures? Cary-"We have a lot of case studies on customer success stories. An example of nuclear power industry and safety-related equipment involves the motor drive of multi-stage water pumps. Customers find problems as early as possible and take corrective measures in time, which saves US$3,600,000 in costs."

What do you think is the greatest technological achievement or advancement in petroleum analysis? Michael-"As in many other industries, computing power has led to greater progress in petroleum analysis. Computers and software have greatly improved the speed, accuracy and precision of the instrument. They allow us to easily mine data sets to obtain manual A large amount of information that cannot be developed, and helps analysts’ engineers and our customers to easily manage large amounts of industrial or rolling equipment."

Currently, there are more than 150 commercial oil analysis laboratories and thousands of field laboratories in North America. Does this industry need so much competition? Cary-"Competition is not a bad thing. By definition, it forces different entities to improve their work to achieve maximum success, which will only bring a stronger industry for all of us."

In your opinion, is the United States a world leader in petroleum analysis? Michael-"There are many excellent laboratories in the world. Analysts are proud to visit many of these laboratories, cooperate and cooperate closely with them. However, the US market is absolutely leading the world. Our user training and oil The overall level of understanding of product analysis is higher than any country or region we have worked in or visited. User participation in a complete oil product analysis plan is higher than any other region in the world."

What are the current threats facing the petroleum analysis industry? Cary-"Some factions really want to promote the commercialization of the industry. We believe that these efforts are not related to the true value and benefits of oil analysis. What should be considered is not the cost you pay for the samples, but the investment you get The return obtained. Increased productivity, extended asset life cycles, appropriate lubricant selection and service levels all directly contribute to the bottom line of the organization.

"It is important to realize that not all petroleum analyses are the same. Device users must decide what their goals are when starting or modifying sampling procedures. Based on these goals and an honest dialogue with the laboratory, appropriate sampling can be applied , Testing and diagnosis.

"Oil analysis is a technical business consisting of three main parts: proper sampling, quality testing, and expert diagnosis. Similar to a three-legged stool, all three components must work simultaneously to be most effective. In our world, 'One size is not for everyone.'"

Are there any humorous stories about what might have happened in one of your labs in the past 50 years? Cary-"Over the years, we have indeed received quite a few'interesting' test requests. There is no doubt that there are some weird inquiries every year. Most of them have nothing to do with lubricants-blood, urine and pregnancy tests seem to be the most Common. Every once in a while, one of the sample information forms is used to receive unsolicited samples. In a few cases, urine samples enter as engine coolant or hydraulic oil. Happily, these'specimen' Was immediately identified and properly handled."

Do you have any suggestions for those who are considering entering the field of petroleum analysis? Michael-"If you like science, like to be in touch with various industries every day, if you are not afraid to work hard, enjoy the satisfaction of challenging responsibilities and helping customers save money, then petroleum analysis is an area worthy of serious consideration."

What other important laboratory techniques need to be invented to help the industry? Michael-"We don't know that the industry lacks any technology. Internally, we have our R&D work, and externally, we are fortunate to have many suppliers who are committed to continuously improving the existing technologies that we use every day."

How does artificial intelligence become an innovator in the field of petroleum analysis? Cary-"The analyst's innovation started on the first day because we were the first laboratory to provide wear metal analysis. Two years later, we introduced infrared testing of natural gas engine oil. In the late 1960s, Analysts won" The first of the three patents of the "bellows" sampling device. The company is the first company to provide ferrograph analysis. Through our own research and development, we have developed patents for automatic viscometer and LEM fuel smoke analyzer and QSA test Program and varnish potential report."