C O M P A N Y O V E R V I E W
A Global Perspective ensures success for SPECIALIST SERVICES Written by: Nye Longman Produced by: Heykel Ouni
20 man SBM accommodation unit 3
SPECIALIST SERVICES
MWD units for Oceaneering
The supplier to the oil and gas industry has cemented its place in the Middle East through a careful, multifaceted strategy
4
S
pecialist Services was founded in 1982 to supply the Middle Eastern oil and gas industries with modular buildings and equipment packaging solutions. Since then it has grown to a truly international level, with operations in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Aberdeen, Singapore and Perth, and has a greatly increased portfolio of specialist products and services. CEO Ian Rogers has been with the firm for over 5 years and has extensive experience working in its key operational territories. Alongside the offshore building solutions that helped Specialist Services make its name, the company also provides drilling, testing and production products, service and maintenance, spare parts, and modular buildings for hire. Understandably, the company
E X P L O R AT I O N
provides services to organisations in oil-rich countries, particularly Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The strategic acquisition of Aberdeenbased Labtech Services Limited three years ago endowed Specialist Services with a subsidiary that not only had long-standing experience supplying modular buildings to the oil and gas sector, but one that has a Western hub capable of servicing the UK, much of Europe, and Scandinavia. From its acquisition of Labtech, to starting from scratch in Singapore, Specialist Services has built a solid network that now covers Europe, the Middle and Far East. Rogers summed up his company’s deceptively simple strategy: “If we are going to meet and exceed the expectations of our
New 33ft accommodation module for hire
Early production facility for FODE
w w w. s p e c s e r v e . c o m
5
SPECIALIST SERVICES clients we need to be present in those markets, and we have a geographic strategy such that we can deliver on our client’s requirements.”
Ian Rogers, CEO
Safety in numbers Ensuring the wellbeing of its staff is not simply an HR issue for Specialist Services; it can actually be a matter of life or death due to the nature of the oil and gas industry. In addition to its compliance with the ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001:2007 initiatives, the company has its own unique methods for ensuring employee safety. Rogers said: “I regularly visit our workers’ accommodation to check food quality, cleanliness, whether people have hot water, and generally that people are being well looked after. We know from experience that if an employee is well fed and well rested they are much less likely to have an accident.” Rogers said that very soon the company will have gone 500,000 man hours without the occurrence of a lost-time incident on an EPC project for Petrofac/Zadco in Abu Dhabi, which goes to show that management’s personal involvement in safety measures is
“From its acquisition of Labtech, to starting from scratch in Singapore, Specialist Services has built a solid network that now covers Europe, the Middle and Far East” – Ian Rogers, CEO 6
E X P L O R AT I O N
Power skids for SIEMENS
certainly paying off. Furthermore, the Dubai Municipality for Health and Safety recognised the company’s approach to safety in 2014, awarding it with role model status specifically for its management of occupational health and safety. Rogers received an award on behalf of the company for their participation in a Health, Safety and Environment Week hosted by Yokogawa Middle East and Africa. Aside from making sure its workers are safe and well catered for, Specialist Services makes sure that employees who champion safety are trumpeted throughout the business. Furthermore it provides long term loyalty packages, in addition to awarding competency-based bonus payments to its employees to ensure a motivated team.
500k The number of man hours without lost-time incident on the Petrofac/ Zadco project
w w w. s p e c s e r v e . c o m
7
Specialists in Combined Pressurisation, Fire & Gas Control Systems (CPFG) Supply, Manufacture & Installation of ATEX and IECEx Control Systems
PDC Systems Limited
PDC Systems Limited
PDC Systems Limited
PDC Systems Limited
PDC Systems Limited
E X P L O R AT I O N
Crude oil custody transfer metering system for Emerson
Investing in the future Specialist Services has made major changes to its operational capabilities, leveraging new developments in software to improve efficiency across multiple levels of the business. Recently the company rolled out Microsoft Dynamics AX across the whole company in order to provide a single, centralised port of call for resource planning, Rogers said: “We are finding that’s enabled us to scale up the organisation and get away from multiple excel spreadsheets that other businesses use.” The company is also in the process of deploying a competency-based HR management
“We’ve got a significant number of engineers so we can design and engineer solutions for our clients; we aren’t just a fabricator” – Ian Rogers, CEO
w w w. s p e c s e r v e . c o m
9
SPECIALIST SERVICES
Specialist Services’ service and maintenance Team
MWD units for Oceaneering
10
software system, Rogers commented: “We use competencies for performance enhancement, learning development, to drive recruitment and selection, and for strategic HR planning. This will help us develop our employees, as well as manage employee resources.” Specialist Services has a willingness to use new technology which does not stop at a single operation within the business – it is a company willing to roll out the best solutions to cover as much as the company as possible. This attitude has also influenced the company’s approach to its products, specifically with the creation of its new G4 modular buildings that are currently the only modules that comply with the four major certifications, in accordance with oil industry standards, European law, North
E X P L O R AT I O N
American regulations, and global directives. This innovation allows a Specialist Services client to manage its offshore pressurised building fleet at a truly international level, without having to make any modifications or navigate through layers of red tape. Rogers was keen to highlight the successes of his team, he said: “We’ve got a significant number of engineers so we can design and engineer solutions for our clients, so we aren’t just a fabricator.” Spending money is not a taboo subject for Ian Rogers; investing in the operational capacity of his company is a source of much pride. He said: “We’ve invested very heavily in yard facilities, particularly in the Middle East; we now have six yards in Dubai and Abu Dhabi combined. We are building greater numbers of office, workshop and accommodation units and are investing in geographic expansion to support our clients. The Modular Hire fleet will have around $5 million invested in this calendar year.” Specialist Services survived the 2008-9 financial crisis and came out fighting, which is how Ian Rogers predicts the company will weather the current oil price slump, he even admitted, “Our EPC yards, they are so busy it’s hard to find how we can do more work.” It is therefore becoming clear that dedication to employee wellbeing and having the courage to invest across the board is proving to be an equation for a sustained, successful performance for Specialist Services.
Company Information INDUSTRY
Oil and Gas HEADQUARTERS
Dubai FOUNDED
1982 EMPLOYEES
1250 REVENUE
Undisclosed PRODUCTS/ SERVICES
Exploration Services, Modular Buildings, International Carrying, EPC containers, Health and Safety
w w w. s p e c s e r v e . c o m
11
SPECIALIST SERVICES Address 7th Floor Tameem House, Tecom, Al Barsha, Dubai United Arab Emirates Tel. +971 4 4579500 / Fax. +971 4 4579501 sales@specserve.com / www.specserve.com