Oil change operations are part and parcel of proper vehicle maintenance routines. Whether you are a DIY-guru, someone who’s an expert at fixing his own vehicle, or a professional automotive specialist, this essential task should take as little time as possible. And this is where fast lube jacks enter the picture.
A fast jack is designed to streamline oil change operations. This blog explains how that is done, but before that, we’ll take a brief look at these jacks and how they have shaken up the global auto maintenance sector.
What Exactly Are Fast Lube Jacks?
You already know what traditional jacks look like and how they function. Unlike these ancient machines which require considerable physical effort and are designed for manual operation, fast lube jacks are crafted to provide superior user experience. Perfect for quick and efficient lifting, the fast jacks use advanced hydraulic systems for elevating small passenger cars, coupes, and similar vehicles.
For heavier vehicles, a traditional jack is often a better option. But given the portability aspect of fast jacks, they are handy alternatives to bridge jacks. If you own and operate an automotive service station, fast lube jacks can save you a good deal of time besides helping you make anything around $24,000 or more every year only on tire rotation services.
How Do These Jacks Work?
No, we won’t go very deep inside the mechanics of these lifting systems since that would be totally unrelated to what we are discussing here. Rather, we’ll quickly go over what’s inside a jack & try to answer a question many clients ask: why use hydraulic jacks?
Inside fast lube jacks, you’ll find the following parts:
> Hydraulic Fluid: This is a dense & highly pressurized mineral fluid.
> Piston and Cylinder: A piston is fitted inside a cylinder, and it moves within it. Once the hydraulic fluid rushes inside the cylinder upon pumping, it pushes up the piston. The result? The vehicle is lifted.
> Pump Mechanism: This mechanism keeps the hydraulic fluid pressurized. A pump mechanism can either be manual, like a hand or a foot pump, or powered, which can be either electrically or pneumatically done.
The main reason most experts use hydraulic jacks is because of the superior lifting power provided without the extra physical effort that traditional jacks are known for.
Now you know why they are so popular! High-end and heavy-duty models like Stan Design Inc.’s Scorpion pit jacks are widely used across Canada and North America by professionally trained service personnel and people who love to tinker around with their vehicles.
Top 2 Advantages of Fast Lube Jacks
- Faster and more efficient: The first major plus point fast jacks possesses is the lightning-fast speed in their operations, besides making the entire process more efficient. Traditional jacks must be positioned in a certain manner before operating them. In a fast-moving workshop where oil changes and other (sometimes more complicated) jobs must flow smoothly and without interruptions, hydraulically powered fast lube jacks are necessary.
- Safer to use: One great advantage fast jacks have over other types is that they are very safe to work with. Keep in mind that an auto station has several pieces of heavy machinery working simultaneously. Fast lube jacks are designed with in-built safety features like overload valves and sturdy locking mechanisms to prevent accidents like sudden detachment of a vehicle while they are suspended at a height.
We have already touched upon how the hydraulic mechanism ensures complete peace of mind while the jack is in operation. Ease of use also comes with time savings and reduces physical fatigue substantially. Productivity levels in workshops often dip when traditional jacks are being used; that does not happen in these circumstances.
Streamlining Oil Change Operations
Now, we reach the meat of the matter. Fast lube jacks make the process faster and more efficient on several levels.
A. Faster (and Safer) Vehicle Lifting:
With the speed of a fast jack, lifting vehicles is easy and takes very little time. This is a major game-changer. When traditional jacks were the only options available, the first step – that of lifting the vehicle – was more cumbersome and needed precise placement paired with a high degree of physical effort.
Not anymore! Fast lube jacks allow you to begin oil change processes almost instantly, slashing time spent per vehicle.
B. Much-improved Workflow
Streamlined workflow is vital in a busy automotive shop. Fast jacks help achieve that since it makes faster vehicle lifting possible, leaving auto technicians to hop over from one task to another without wasting too much time per car. This lack of delay means your station can handle more vehicle volumes and almost zero deviation from a pre-defined timeframe.
To further refine the process, consider purchasing the Optimus a Pit Cover for vehicle lifting, recently launched by Stan Design, one of the leading jack manufacturers in North America. With a lifting capacity of 12,000 lbs., a powered platform, dual controls with built-in safety railing, besides being custom designed for your pit, the all-new product is on a par with the very best pit covers money can buy.
C. Technician Productivity Levels Peak
Not working with traditional jacks and using more modern kits like Scorpion pit jacks (another bestselling product from rom Stan Design Inc.) means that technicians are not physically fatigued. Naturally, productivity levels peak and your station witnesses a surge in revenue. Using better equipment also helps your technicians work on other tasks which would not have been possible otherwise.
The hidden benefit here is improved workplace safety. Reduced physical strain means technicians are more attentive and less fatigued, pacing their work throughout the day without any risk of injury.
D. Superior Resource Management Across the Board
Efficient use of resources is key to a successful business; there’s no reason automotive shops should be any different. With fast lube jacks and other pieces of modern equipment, savings can be made under various business aspects. Better utilization of the workforce means enhanced revenue potential. More vehicles being handled simultaneously means optimal utilization of available space, plus available time as well.
Fatigue-free and healthy technicians add up to huge savings on healthcare expenses; the latter are escalating every year.
Ultimately, downtime is largely minimized.
E. Enhanced Professional Appeal with Better Client Retention
How a service station looks and how professionally it operates are little details customers remember. If they’ve had a positive experience in the past, they will revisit your outlet. Fast lube jacks look more modern and a lot snappier than traditional jacks. Using them improves the overall aesthetics of your workspace.
It is widely known that a well-kept shop with efficient tools can impress customers and build a reputation for quality and speed.
And naturally, happy customers will keep coming back and might even recommend the business to others, driving business growth. Nothing can beat word-of-mouth publicity!
Conclusion
Before we conclude, let’s take a practical example to showcase how fast lube jacks streamline oil change operations and other services. Assume your automotive service center can handle 50 vehicles a day.
Using traditional jacks, each oil change will take up to 30 minutes, a big chunk of which is spent lifting and lowering the vehicle. Time is of the essence here, and you might not meet that 50 vehicle mark each day.
