Fourth year apprentice Billy Gibb was named Apprentice of the Year in EnerMech’s fourth annual awards which recognises the contribution of the company’s trainee technicians and engineers.
The mechanical engineering group places a strong emphasis on training the next generation of mechanical engineers and the award is made to the young person who has led by example in his or her performance, approach and attitude to learning.
Billy Gibb joined EnerMech in 2012 and having gained cross departmental experience is now focussed on a career in the cranes and lifting sector. During his traineeship Billy, 20, spent eight months working on offshore platforms as part of a joint initiative with EnerMech client Centrica.
EnerMech’s European Director, Stuart Smith, said: “Billy has continually impressed during his three years at EnerMech and he is now part of our Cranes Flying Squad. This is a tremendous achievement for someone still in their apprenticeship and just shows what you can do if you put your mind to it and make the most of the opportunities within the business.”
Performance feedback from Billy’s supervisors and work colleagues was excellent, emphasising he was a team player. One typical comment was: “Nothing’s a problem for Billy, he is always looking ahead for the next task and solution, and he works well, is a smart thinker, and questions things at the right time.”
Third year apprentice Matthew Connell was selected by his peers as winner of the Apprentices’ Choice Award and was described as someone who is “always there to help out and who picks up everyone’s spirits.”
The Aberdeen headquartered company, which employs 2200 people across 35 International locations, last month extended its commitment to training by recruiting five new apprentices, which takes the total number to 33, with a further 10 graduates engaged on a graduate training scheme.
Stuart Smith added: “Our apprentices are an important factor in developing people with the high-end skills that our clients demand and expect. These young men and women make an important contribution to the overall growth of the company and we in turn offer a rewarding career with excellent opportunities for each of them to fulfil their potential.”
EnerMech is the first company to be accredited by the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) to deliver Mechanical Joint Integrity (MJI) training courses in Australia.
The ECITB Mechanical Joint Integrity courses provides initial training, backed by documented work experience and concludes with further practical and theoretical assessments, providing Australian industry with globally recognised MJI competency standards.
EnerMech’s ECITB approved Trainer/Assessors bring extensive theoretical knowledge and practical experience drawn from many years of involvement in the oil, gas and energy sectors.
The international mechanical engineering group also provides a range of Australian industry approved joint integrity awareness training modules that can be tailored to suit clients training requirements.
One major operator involved in the APLNG downstream project in Queensland has since enrolled its staff on the EnerMech MJI course, recognising the importance of field personnel being able to work to best practice standards.
EnerMech’s Joint Integrity Manager, Gary Sears, said: “Gaining ECITB accreditation reaffirms our commitment to providing high quality training for our own staff, external users and end-clients. Raising operating and safety standards is at the core of our business objectives and we are confident Australian clients who share the same values will be encouraged that we now have ECITB accreditation sitting alongside the key Australian energy industry approvals.”
Dr Tony Featherstone, ECITB International Operations and Commercial Director, added: “The ECITB is delighted to work with EnerMech and its customers in Australia. It is a partnership designed to help our industry improve safety, reduce emissions and improve the environment in a way that benefits all parties.”
EnerMech was one of a number of companies which welcomed in school pupils during a work experience initiative organised by OPITO.
Some 50 pupils from across the north east of Scotland had an insight to the world of oil and gas during the October school break.
The students met staff and were given a tour of EnerMech’s workshops at its Howes Road headquarters in Aberdeen, learning about the company’s work in the pipeline, umbilicals and valves sectors.
Other companies taking part included TOTAL E&P UK, Survivex, Aker Solutions and Schlumberger.
OPITO UK managing director John McDonald said: “The industry recognises it has to get better at telling its story and inspiring young people if it is to secure the pipeline of talent for the future. There is nothing more valuable than one-to-one hands on experience and this programme is designed to bring the next generation together with companies to ensure that that happens.”
Ingrid Stewart, EnerMech’s Corporate Development Director, added: “We take our role in introducing young people to the oil and gas industry seriously and this is just one of many initiatives we engage in throughout the year to encourage youngsters to consider a career in this exciting industry.”
EnerMech Live Online SBT management provides our clients with a fully visible database of each individual component that makes up SBT assemblies throughout the asset. A full itinerary of components is grouped by the assets own process/instrument tagging system. All information gathered during our inspections can be downloaded by the client to an Excel spreadsheet or PDF format.
Reports detailing condition and recommendations can be viewed easily by links available on our EM Live system.
The SBT database has been constructed with a view to providing our clients with information exceeding the requirements of the Energy Institute Guidelines for the management of SBT assemblies. The following allows our customers to access the information collated from a baseline inspection:
EnerMech are also committed to ensuring that SBT data is available and transferable to the client’s software applications where necessary. Our IT teams have experience in working with clients to understand their needs to this respect (i.e. Cataloguing, SAP, Maximo, ERP systems etc.) to help to ensure that their SBT inventory can been made available in the appropriate format.
EnerMech has made every effort to ensure that this system, although robust, is both scalable and adaptable to new technologies, innovations and specialist requirements.
EnerMech has invested ZAR 5.3 million (£250,000) to provide a door-to-door valves service for South Africa’s industrial services and energy industries.
The international mechanical engineering group has equipped two mobile PSV valves testing rigs capable of delivering valve certification and servicing to the doorstep of South African customers.
Staffed by eight PSV technicians working on rotation, the two units can operate within a 2000km radius of Cape Town and provide a rapid response service to valves clients in the gas, iron, steel and chemical industries.
The investment in the rigs has proved highly popular with client companies, which under South African law require safety valves to be recertified every one to three years. The smaller rig can service valves up to 4” while the larger unit is capable of 12” valve certification and has pressure gauge testing up to 40,000psi.
EnerMech Valves General Manager in Africa, Stephen David, explained: “Some clients prefer not to have their safety valves going off-site so we go to them. Our highly mobile response team prevents delays, improves process safety and we act as a ‘safety net’ for the client needing sourcing of new valves and spares.”
Smart logistical and route planning means clients can benefit from multiple visits on a typical round-trip. Through their regular visits, EnerMech technicians are able to predict when a valve could be expected to fail and can optimise the scheduling of a full maintenance programme to minimise client downtime.
Stephen David said there is a bright outlook for EnerMech’s Valves Division in South Africa. He added: “There are lots of exciting opportunities and quite a bit of this lies outside the traditional oil and gas sectors in which EnerMech operates. In addition to the mainstream heavy industries, we are working in sectors as diverse as brewing and pulp and paper, and I can see our wider offering, including recent introduction of Industrial Services in the region, being of widespread appeal with those varied businesses.”
UK-headquartered EnerMech has more than 100 staff based in Africa and operations in South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria and Angola. It has invested more than £4 million in establishing a local presence in each country and developing the infrastructure to deliver a fast response service for each of its seven business lines.
EnerMech staff have donated more than £10,000 to the ARCHIE Foundation at the Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital.
A 60ft abseil down the side of the hospital by nine employees raised more than £5000 which will be used for ongoing maintenance of an EnerMech sponsored room over a 10 year period.
Our Process, Pipeline & Umbilicals (PPU) staff had earlier made a £5000 donation which they received as a prize for their first class safety performance while executing a contract for Technip on the Golden Eagle platform, operated by Nexen Petroleum UK Ltd.
PPU Senior Project Manager, James Moore, said: “We were delighted to receive the award in recognition of our safety record on Nexen’s Golden Eagle platform and we agreed the High 10 For ARCHIE appeal was a fitting recipient of the money as many of our families are familiar with the great work done at the hospital."
EnerMech corporate development director, Ingrid Stewart, added: “The ARCHIE Foundation is synonymous with Aberdeen and has featured in the lives of most local families at some point. We were delighted to make these contributions which will make a real difference to the families who find themselves in the care of the Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital.”
Global energy services group EnerMech has announced their principal sponsorship of the upcoming APPEA event in Perth, Western Australia. The company will also be an exhibitor at the three-day event.
The Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) is a national regulatory body which represents Australia's oil and gas exploration and production industry.
Australia General Manager Ciarán Hallinan said: "By attending this event, we are supporting the APPEA in terms of aligning EnerMech's values and initiatives with theirs to improve health, safety and environment within the industry. Our attendance also highlights our commitment to this region and the safety of all those who work within it.
"We encourage everyone attending the event to come along and meet the EnerMech team at stand 35 for a chat about how our integrated service offering can work for you."
The company hopes that the event will also help to promote brand awareness in Western Australia and across the Australian continent, where they have bases in Perth, Sale, Brunswick, Campbellfield, Gladstone, Darwin, Brisbane and Chinchilla. The EnerMech stand will have support from a diverse group of knowledgeable staff members including business line managers and HSE representatives.
Visit the EnerMech team on stand 35 and follow their updates throughout the event on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
EnerMech is gearing up to exhibit at the biennial Offshore Europe conference and exhibition in Aberdeen for the fourth consecutive time. The event, which has been running for over 40 years, is a stalwart of the global energy industry.
Open from the 8th to 11th September, the theme of the event for 2015 is inspiring the next generation – something which EnerMech is keen to play its part in.
International Business Development Director John Wingfield said: "We see this event as a chance to put forward our innovative integrated services approach and prove to prospective and current clients that we can provide viable, cost effective solutions to counteract the current market challenges.
"However the event is about more than that, which is why we are also showcasing the talents of our apprentices on the Friday by taking part in the OPITO schools day. They will provide demonstrations to groups of young people at our stand and hopefully encourage them to consider joining a modern apprenticeship scheme.
"In order to future-proof the North Sea and international energy industries, we need to continue to invest in the people who will be a part of that future."
You can visit the EnerMech team on stand 2C81 and follow their updates throughout the event on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Global mechanical engineering group EnerMech has announced general manager Niall Conlon has been promoted to Director of its Australian operations, with Ciaran Hallinan taking over his role as general manager.
EnerMech provides seven integrated business lines to the oil, gas and power industries and expects revenues in Australia to grow by more than 40% in the current year, with turnover exceeding A$150 million.
The promotion is in recognition of Niall's contribution to the strong growth of Australian operations following EnerMech's 2013 acquisition of industrial services firm Vicon Services.
His replacement as general manager is Ciaran Hallinan, an energy, resources and infrastructure specialist with 20 years' experience, who joins EnerMech from WDS Limited where he was chief executive of the firm's Energy and Infrastructure division.
UK-headquartered EnerMech has operations in seven Australian cities stretching from Perth to Gladstone, Darwin and Melbourne and employs more than 500 staff, with numbers expected to grow to more than 700 in the next year.
The company has operations in 20 countries and is represented in all of the global oil and gas hubs where it provides a broad range of mechanical services, including cranes and lifting, valves, hydraulics, industrial services, process, pipeline and umbilicals (PPU), equipment rental and training services.
EnerMech chief executive officer, Doug Duguid, said: "Niall Conlon's appointment to Director acknowledges the significant contribution he has made in establishing EnerMech as a major player in executing complex oil and gas projects in Australia. His new role will focus on a strategy to promote further expansion by winning high value contract work for the delivery of smarter and safer integrated solutions.
"The appointment of Ciaran Hallinan as General Manager for Australia underlines the importance we place on this diverse and fast-growth market. He brings with him a wealth of experience in the upstream and downstream oil, gas, mining and minerals sectors and will support Niall in ensuring EnerMech is competing in all the major oil and gas project tenders which are in the pipeline."
EnerMech has been awarded a 12 month extension of a five year cranes and lifting contract by BP Exploration (Caspian Sea) Ltd.
The contract, which includes a further two one-year options, will see mechanical engineering group EnerMech continue to provide cranes operation and maintenance personnel, materials, equipment, engineering and mechanical handling services for up to another three years.
The contract covers all seven BP-operated platforms in the Caspian Sea and 16 offshore pedestal cranes operating in the Chirag, West Chirag, Central Azeri, West Azeri, East Azeri and deepwater Gunashli platforms, as well as the Shah Deniz gas development project.
The original five year contract was valued at approximately $50 million (£33 million) and the extended agreement will generate a further $10 million (£6.5 million) per annum for Aberdeen-based EnerMech.
As part of its well-established nationalisation policy, EnerMech has trained in excess of 40 Azerbaijani nationals in crane operations and employs more than 60 Azerbaijani personnel on the BP contract.
EnerMech Cranes & Lifting Director, John Morrison, said: "BP is a valued client and the award of this contract extension underlines our credentials in providing frontline cranes and lifting services on major international projects.
"Having a strong local infrastructure in place, allows us to provide a tailor-made integrated package of our seven business lines, which complement the core cranes and lifting services which BP require."
