The global footprint of the pipeline industry continues to grow year by year. Oil and gas pipelining professionals are entering the industry across the globe as companies seek qualified professionals to support the safe transport of products to meet consumer demands.
Specific to Europe, there is a growing need for pipeline professionals to help navigate the challenging complexities of the European pipeline industry.
That’s why organizations such as Young Pipeline Professionals Europe (YPPE) play a critical role in educating and supporting the next generation of pipeliners. This way, as professionals grow in their careers, they can better identify solutions to global challenges in the pipeline industry.
For EnerSys CEO Russel Treat, the opportunity to participate in the organization’s YPPE Fest was the ideal setting to share lessons learned from a multi-decade career in oil & gas measurement, SCADA, control room management, and leak detection, transfer knowledge to the YPPE audience, and discuss the business aspect of the pipeline industry.
Russel Treat Shares Business Perspective on Pipelines
Many parts of Europe were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic that led to a physical disconnect for pipeline professionals. To help close the gap, YPPE introduced YPPE Fest to connect pipeline leaders to young pipeline professionals in the European region.
During Week 9 of YPPE Fest, Russel Treat was interviewed by YPPE Board member Richard Campbell about his career in pipelining. Topics covered included:
- How Russel started in the pipeline industry.
- Why he pursued the opportunity to start companies that serve the pipeline industry.
- The intangibles required to start and maintain a new company.
- The idea to launch the Pipeliners Podcast sharing knowledge with the industry.
During the discussion, Russel was able to share an important business lesson on responding to changing customer needs to provide more relevant solutions. Specifically, helping pipeline companies operate safely, efficiently, and in compliance with the latest industry regulations.
Pivoting the Business to Provide Needed Support
EnerSys Corporation originally started as a measurement consultancy company. Then, in 2012, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) introduced the Control Room Management Rule (CRM Rule) regulating the transport of gas and hazardous liquid pipelines.
When the CRM Rule was introduced, EnerSys saw an emerging need to support pipeline operators in a different way.
Because of Russel’s previous industry experience in software development and providing software solutions to oil and gas companies, EnerSys pivoted from being a services company to being a software company focusing on the pipeline control room.
Through his shift, EnerSys has developed more solutions to support pipeline safety and regulatory compliance through our POEMS (Pipeline Operations Excellence Management System) software suite.
Now, in 2020, as the industry focuses on how to achieve zero incidents, EnerSys made the business decision to align our software and services with the tenets of Pipeline Safety Management Systems (Pipeline SMS).
This latest pivot will allow our company to continue providing customers with necessary tools and support to positively affect their pipeline culture, continuously improve processes, and achieve compliance naturally as pipeline operators strive for zero incidents.
– We invite you to watch the full interview with Russel Treat discussing the business of the pipeline industry and more lessons learned through decades of experience in the pipeline industry via the EnerSys YouTube channel.
– We also invite you to find out more about Young Pipeline Professionals Europe (YPPE) at YPPEeurope.org.