VLS welcomes new Chairman Harald Oosting

The Verification of Lubricant Specifications (UK) Ltd (VLS) is delighted to welcome new Chairman Harald Oosting, who succeeds Jacquie Berryman. 

Currently President and Chief Executive Officer of Olyslager, Harald has been involved in the lubricants industry for over 20 years. He has been a member of the VLS Board since 2018 and is also currently vice-president and director of the United Kingdom Lubricants Association (UKLA), a role he has held since 2017. 

With many years of lubricants industry experience, Harald’s previous roles include managing director and, before this, sales & marketing manager at Olyslager, account manager for motor factors at Shell and sales manager at Alcar Benelux.

Harald is a strong advocate for VLS and the work it does as an independent trade body to allow all lubricant companies to compete in an open and level playing field in a way that benefits the end user by assuring the performance claims made on lubricant products are valid and reliable.

In his time as chairman, Harald is keen to support the lubricants industry through the transition to alternative fuels, the implementation of Euro 7 and future ACEA changes, as well as maintain VLS’ track record in managing non-compliance. 

“VLS provides certainty and consistency in the treatment of lubricant performance claims of finished lubricants being placed on the open market in the United Kingdom. With my background in Olyslager, I can optimise the value that VLS brings to the lubricant sector in the UK through the use of reliable data to aid better decision-making in the handling of cases under investigation and support the move to a more rigorous process of investigation of companies making claims against market standards and OEM specifications.”

VLS Company Secretary David Wright adds: “It has been a pleasure to work with Jacquie Berryman, and we would like to thank her for her support for VLS. We look forward to working with Harald and continuing VLS’ work to ensure the continued confidence and trust of end users in the lubricant products they use.”

For more details on the work of VLS and cases currently under investigation, please visit www.ukla-vls.org.uk.

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