Yakup Yavuz – Supply Chain Director, Rexoil
yakupyavuz@aktasgroup.com.tr
Engagement is key. It’s the same in social life – those who speak up, who express their wishes, concerns, and suggestions, are the ones who create value, produce, guide society, and deliver results. In contrast, managers and employees who remain silent, who fail to engage in two-way communication and withhold information, are unable to generate synergy, contribute to their teams, stay motivated, or add value to their environment. Total success emerges through dialogue, sharing, data collection, and analysis among all relevant stakeholders.
Sustainable Competitiveness
Competition and sustainable performance are among the key motivational drivers in the lubricants industry, as in every sector. In line with evolving technologies and fundamental needs, the ability to eliminate errors in industrial processes and to produce “exact replicas” is gaining increasing importance in both national and international markets.
This evolution affects not only software technologies but also automation systems, skilled labor, and machinery technologies. One particularly prominent development in recent times is artificial intelligence (AI).
I define AI as the delivery of experiential knowledge acquired through life by all living beings in nature via an information technology that is stripped of emotion, capable of making rational decisions based solely on analytical data, and able to produce outcomes. More technically, AI is a field of technology that enables computers to mimic human-like thinking processes. This field encompasses sub-disciplines such as deep learning, natural language processing, and machine learning.
In summary, humanity is now in a phase of utilizing the data accumulated in virtual environments and transforming it into value, and is eager to benefit from this process.
When evaluating the lubricants sector on a global scale, I have some concerns regarding the volume of analytical data available for AI to leverage across all core processes from order to delivery as well as support processes and process interrelations. However, over the past decade, the active use of ERP systems in the industry, combined with the expectations of the automotive, defense, and aerospace sectors, and the requirements of quality, safety, and environmental management systems, has led to significant progress in data accumulation.
This accumulated sectoral knowledge, in turn, facilitates the harmonious integration and productive collaboration of AI, digital transformation, and infrastructure automation.
Achieving Through Dialogue
Automation relieves the workforce from repetitive and time-consuming tasks by enabling these operations to be carried out via machines or software. This allows employees to focus on more creative and strategic responsibilities.
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) with digital transformation infrastructure accelerates processes in lubricant businesses while simultaneously enhancing efficiency. The convergence of automation and AI offers significant advantages in terms of cost reduction, time savings, and improved customer experience.
AI empowers businesses to make more accurate predictions, while automation ensures that operational workflows are executed swiftly and without error. These technologies also minimize human error, thereby improving quality and strengthening customer satisfaction.
All these core impacts represent some of the most valuable gains that digital transformation offers to businesses.
The future of the lubrIcants Industry Is beIng defIned through the shared language of artIfIcIal IntellIgence, dIgItal transformatIon, and automatIon. CompanIes that can effectIvely Integrate thIs trIo Into theIr data collectIon, analysIs, and decIsIon-makIng processes are securIng a lastIng competItIve advantage.
The Key to Success: Engaging Without Alienating
Those who can continuously engage the three core pillars – qualified workforce, digital infrastructure, and analytical data – without alienating them will lead the way. Businesses that foster synergy among these elements through a human-centric approach gain a significant edge on the path to sustainable success.
Analytical data derived from sectoral experience, combined with the rapid advancement and widespread adoption of software technologies, and infrastructure automation systems shaped by investor vision, generate positive impacts across multiple areas, from efficiency to product and service performance, employee satisfaction to occupational health and environmental safety.
Our growing ability to produce “exact replicas” strengthens the partnership between supplier, manufacturer, and customer. This evolution transforms into a sustainable win-win collaboration among stakeholders, enhancing the sector’s competitive power.
However, one of the most challenging aspects of this transformation is securing a qualified and loyal workforce, cultivating team spirit, and ensuring that teams operate in an integrated manner. Especially those teams that are aligned around a shared goal, believe in performance management systems, and drive brand success are capable of delivering sector-defining outcomes.
In this direction, we continue to develop projects that nurture team spirit and aim for human-centric success. And we remain firmly committed to doing so.
From ERP systems to productıon lınes, from supply chaıns to customer experıence, every stage ıs now fueled by algorıthms. Artıfıcıal ıntellıgence not only helps lubrıcant companıes prevent errors but also enhances theır abılıty to produce ‘exact replıcas’.
Need or Desire?
Finding answers to certain questions and evaluating them within that framework can lead us to more tangible outcomes:
- According to estimates, the world is currently spending $2.7 trillion on digitalization.
- The projected budget stands at $6.4 trillion.
Are these expenditures unnecessary? Why are such vast budgets being allocated?
The hierarchy of needs is one of the most fundamental elements in the development of humanity and civilization. In fact, everything begins here. This approach has opened and closed eras, shaped centuries. Continuous development has evolved over time, making it inevitable for desires to transform into needs.
In the energy sector: From the Age of Wood → to renewable energy (hydro, geothermal, solar, wind, PV projects)
In terms of power and force: From muscle and spark → to cyber power and robotic digital transformation
In communication: From messengers and decrees → to the internet and smartphones
In resources and finance: From metal coins → to virtual currency
This transformation has profoundly altered human living spaces and habits.
Digital transformation is a concept that defines the process of addressing societal and sectoral needs through the integration of digital technologies – leading to the evolution and reshaping of workflows and organizational culture. Centered around creativity and innovation, digital transformation emerged to deliver more efficient outcomes than traditional methods.
DIgItalIzatIon Is more than a software Investment; It’s a matter of culture. The lubrIcants Industry wIll achIeve sustaInable success to the extent that It can engage qualIfIed talent, robust dIgItal Infrastructure, and analytIcal data wIthout alIenatIng any of them.
A New Threshold in Digital Transformation: Artificial Intelligence and Automation
Digital transformation has become a central force in today’s business landscape. The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation technologies is fundamentally reshaping the operational dynamics of lubricant companies. This transformation extends beyond technology – it redefines corporate culture, workforce structures, and business processes.
As lubricant companies swiftly adapt to digitalization, they become more efficient, agile, and innovative through AI and automation. These technologies not only reshape how work is done but also unlock a broader universe of opportunities.
In manufacturing, digital transformation enables companies to gain a competitive advantage, enhance operational efficiency, and prepare for the future.
- Those who planned for this yesterday have already started winning; those who act today will succeed, but it may be too late for those who wait until tomorrow.
In production processes, digital transformation is not merely about acquiring an ERP system or software – it is a cultural shift. We view this process as a lever, a tool that facilitates competitiveness. We believe the project must be embraced across all levels, not just as an IT initiative, but as a company-wide culture of efficiency.
Ideas and outcomes that emerge from collective decisions and human-centric approaches consistently lead to success. When AI, digital transformation, and automation are designed in alignment with process needs, it becomes possible to achieve holistic value.
The success of such innovative projects in manufacturing depends on three core factors:
- Hardware
- Software
- Teamware (collaborative teamwork)
The third factor is often the most challenging and frequently overlooked, leading to unexpected outcomes. This is also the most commonly missing piece, both globally and within our country. When a company invests in a top-tier ERP system, it has only achieved about 30% of digitalization.
At this point, it becomes essential to understand the concept of Societal Digital Transformation. This refers to a process in which society reshapes its ways of interpreting, understanding, and working through the integration of digital technologies into everyday life.
The Preventive Power of Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have become powerful tools offering substantial benefits to businesses and organizations. Through machine learning and deep learning algorithms, large datasets can be analyzed to help lubricant companies make more informed decisions.
For instance, by analyzing customer habits and behaviors, personalized marketing strategies can be developed. AI can also optimize processes such as production and supply chain management. Potential bottlenecks can be identified in advance, workflows can be streamlined, and inventory management can be executed with greater accuracy.
These advancements reduce operational costs while enhancing efficiency. Today, companies in the lubricants sector can identify customer needs more quickly and accurately, offering faster solutions in response. This creates a critical competitive advantage.
Transformation and progress in industry will be driven by increasing the convergence of automation, digital transformation, and artificial intelligence.
