With fears that the ‘big crew change’ may be nearer than expected, and the popularity of other career paths, such as IT and telecommunications, the global oil and gas industry is at risk of encountering a severe shortfall in the amount of fully trained, skilled members of staff.
“There is a learning curve for both graduates and experienced staff, with as much as seven to ten years training to get to the same proficiency level as the people in the industry now. If we don’t do something now we will have an extreme difficulty in the future,” said Donald Strathdee, a specialist headhunter for senior level management in the oil and gas industry.
Now, companies working within the oil, gas and petrochemicals sector worldwide, are aiming to develop, and enhance staff knowledge and skills, as well as attract more people to work within petroleum-engineering.
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In order for the oil and gas sector to progress it is important that staff are trained upon entering any corporation. Today, an increasing number of companies have introduced training academies where employees have the opportunity to gain expertise, needed to make them proficient workers.
According to Ivan Lawson, Middle East and Asia Pacific region manager for global learning and development of Baker Hughes, set to open a new training facility in Jebel Ali in the near future, “education to develop employee skills is a wise investment in a company’s future.”
“Effective training supports new technology introduction and the understanding of business processes and customer needs, while also helping employees advance their career,” he added.
Academies
Many companies seek to offer management, development and training solutions to their staff. Schlumberger, an oil field service provider, has training centres located all over the world, offering both theory and practical learning; external courses and classroom based programmes, as well as hands on exercises.
A training centre, located in Abu Dhabi was built on land donated by the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) when the two entered a joint initiative in 2003. The centre is used to train a mixture of both new starters/graduates and experienced staff.
To begin with, new starters are given a five-day introductory course covering the basics of the oilfield services, before beginning an intensive 89-day course introducing the company and how it operates.
Designed to accommodate all segments of the oil and gas industry, Schlumberger also purchased a dummy, tailor-made rig used to replicate the real-life working atmosphere. Minus the noise and hazardous environment, trainees are given the opportunity to gain experience by working on the dummy rig.
“Everybody who visits the centre sees the rig as the most important part. If you send people off shore you need training permits and there is the issue of bed space. Having a rig on land, where no permits are needed and which is close to Abu Dhabi makes it easier for people to come to this rig and see what is happening, than going on a live rig,” said Ali Hariki, Schlumberger, training centre manager, who was first assigned to the project in 2004.
“On top of the rig, we have drilled two wells for phase one, plus we’ll finish another five wells that are 500m in depth. This allows people to learn to use the tools and run equipment inside the hole. In a live situation, this can be dangerous for someone who may not know what they are doing. These wells are cased and cemented, so there is no problem if you drop a tool or make a mistake, the controlled environment means they can make mistakes here that they cannot make in real life,” he added.
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Back to basics
Having recently opened a new academy in Sharjah, Petrofac Training also operates at existing sites and facilities located across five regions: Europe; The Americas; Middle East and Africa; Russia, Central and Southern Asia; and Asia Pacific, addressing the needs of the industry and their staff by incorporating theory and practical forms of instruction.
“The oil and gas industry is cyclic and there is a skills gap which we are addressing. Hence, our goal is to support the continuation of the current ‘high’ and provide skilled professionals available on a long-term basis. We are very keen to provide opportunities for professional people in the Middle East to be part of what is a ‘home-grown’ industry and support the future economic development of the region,” said Peter Martin, head of organisational development, Petrofac.
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Starting from the very basic skills required in shaping the ideal candidate, Petrofac aids its trainees in both their personal and professional development, helping them to become fully capable and able to adapt to any given situation.
“All graduates start their career path at Petrofac by gaining two years of engineering experience. The company has structured the scheme so time is divided between classroom and office based training, and on-site project work. Additionally, the business operates a mentoring scheme whereby all the graduates are assigned a mentor, outside of their business stream who works closely with them to maintain direction and professional development during the two-year induction period,” said Martin.
Improving the industry
Completion of training for the oil, gas and petrochemical sector, not only assists the individual trainee in becoming a knowledgeable, competent worker, but every person that enters this field means further progression for the future of the industry as a whole.
“In my opinion, for companies to have a competitive advantage in this increasingly challenging industry, it is essential that they invest in their staff and make sure that they are fully trained. A competent workforce will help to ensure safe working practices but will also generally result in higher employee satisfaction. This in turn of course will result in higher customer satisfaction. Companies who invest in their staff will reap the benefits and will notice the effect on their bottom line,” said Walther Thain, vice president, sales and marketing, Petrofac Training.
In addition, “well-trained workers are able to work safely and efficiently in meeting the customer’s objectives. Skilled employees serve as a catalyst for increased productivity, reduced risk and lower cost in downstream operations,” said Lawson.
The outlook
It is certain that many companies are dedicated to the improvement of the oil, gas and petrochemical sector, with an increasing number of training facilities opening and already operating all over the world.
Although there are concerns that the number of skilled, fully trained staff may be declining, companies such as Schlumberger, Petrofac and Baker Hughes are beginning to realise the importance of attracting and introducing new recruits to the oil and gas industry at an earlier stage, and then train them accordingly.
According to Donald Strathdee, for the future of the sector to survive and prosper, as a starting point companies should concentrate on working closely with universities to attract and encourage undergraduates to the industry. Only a handful of universities are recognised to specialise in the oil and gas field, so an increase in numbers will benefit the industry indefinitely.
“Qualified, innovative people are needed to sustain the growth of our industry. Education programs are essential for developing a qualified workforce and the innovative leaders who will build the future,” Lawson concluded.
