President's message

Letter from the President

One year can seem so short when fulfilling the role of IPLOCA President, especially when the development of a strategic plan is added to a full and rich programme of activities and initiatives.

I would like to thank my fellow board members, the membership and friends of IPLOCA for their active participation during this past year, their ongoing support and in particular their input to the future shape of our association. You will hear more about our strategic plan at the upcoming convention.

Particular thanks go to the generous sponsors of our 53 rd Annual Convention, who have enabled us

to create an exceptional programme in Bangkok, Thailand, a country where oil and gas are amongst the most important resources.

We have an excellent line-up of speakers for the Open General Meetings. During these business sessions the recipients of the 2019 IPLOCA Scholarships will be announced – see page 18 to view their profiles. Presentations will also be made to the winners of the IPLOCA Awards for Health & Safety sponsored by Chevron, Corporate Social Responsibility sponsored by Total and New Technologies sponsored by BP. Details on the high quality submissions received for these awards are provided on page 22.

For the second year, we will be holding poster sessions and business-to-business meetings, which complement the great networking opportunities that the convention offers for members and guests. Election meetings for each geographical region and for Associate Members will be held on Thursday afternoon to fill vacant seats on the 2019-2020 Board of Directors.

The 2018 HSE Statistics Report is attached to this newsletter. You will note that we have not yet achieved our 2020 targets; we therefore encourage you to read this annual report and motivate your company to take appropriate action to stimulate positive changes for the future.

I am delighted that the 2018/2019 Board has granted honorary membership to two lifelong pipeliners, both previous IPLOCA Presidents: Jean Claude Van de Wiele and Andy Lukas. Their profiles can be found on page 8.

After the convention, the HSE & CSR Committee is organising a HSE Workshop on 22 October in Geneva, focusing on enhancing the environment and sustainability, which will be immediately followed by the Novel Construction Initiative sessions on 23 and 24 October. All members are encouraged to attend both these important events that will also be covered via webinar.

I am very much looking forward to seeing many of you in Bangkok.

With regards,

John Tikkanen IPLOCA President 2018-2019