Month: February 2017

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An SPE Volunteer and eMentor

 Interesting in becoming an SPE Mentor? Want to find out more? One of our Sections Mentors, Mark Brinsden, discusses below how the scheme has worked for him.

SPE International is an amazing organisation which many members fail to take full advantage of. We have our outstanding regional SPE chapters, providing great learning and networking opportunities, but SPE International also has many opportunities to become involved in our wider industry, outside your day to day work. I have the pleasure to volunteer to Chair the Energy Information Committee and to be an Associate Editor of SPE Drilling and Completions, as well as several other positions, however the most rewarding part I play in SPE is at the grass roots. I am an eMentor and I have been doing this now for two years and find that supporting the development of young professionals is truly rewarding. eMentoring is all about being a big brother/sister to a student, or early career engineer. Having someone out there that can lend an ear and provide wide ranging advice from experience is worth a lot to a young engineer and we get something back, by watching the successful development of that engineer, as they make their way in the world. The eMentoring period is for just a year and can be renewed, but most of my mentees just become informal friends and I continue to informally mentor them after the term has ended. You can accept up to 3 mentees per year. I usually invite them for lunch at work and a chat on a regular basis to keep in touch. I have also worked in support of dissertations as well.

All you need to do is go online to SPE.org and click on the Membership tab, then click on eMentoring at the right of the drop down and follow instructions from there. You will also note a volunteer tab. Please take a moment to click this as well and look at the other volunteer opportunities.

We are short of eMentors, especially in Scotland, so please think about sharing your expertise, support and friendship with a young SPE engineer today.

Mark S Brinsden SPE

mentoring-photo

by louise louise No Comments

SPE Aberdeen secures three global industry leaders for presentations

The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Aberdeen Section has secured three international oil and gas industry experts to give a series of presentations over the next three months.

Each year, as part of its mission to collect, disseminate and exchange technical knowledge, the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) appoints a group of professionals who have been nominated by their peers to share knowledge and expertise through visits to local SPE Sections around the world. These global industry experts are known as SPE Distinguished Lecturers.

Kicking off the Distinguished Lecturer series in Aberdeen in February is Johan van Dorp, Shell’s senior consultant in the NAM (Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij), a joint venture operated by Shell, who will present: ‘Does Heavy Oil Recovery Need Steam?’ Mr Van Dorp is also Shell’s group principal technical expert in Thermal EOR.

With over 40 years’ experience in the upstream petroleum industry, Steve Mackie of Santos Ltd follows in March by discussing ‘Dry Hole Analysis: What I Have Learnt About the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry from my Failures’.

Shell’s Subject Matter Expert (SME) for Operations Geochemistry, Daniel McKinney of Sarawak Shell Berhad, will then present: ‘Operational Geochemistry at Work: Integrate or Perish!’ in April. Mr McKinney was one of the founding members of Shell’s Fluid Evaluation and Sampling Technologies (FEAST) team.

Ian Phillips, SPE Aberdeen Chairman said: “Part of what makes our industry so great is the passion of those who share their successes, and failures, to teach others and continue the development of our sector. Knowledge sharing has always been at the heart of SPE Aberdeen’s monthly evening meetings, and to welcome three Distinguished Lecturers this year is a significant achievement for the Section and hugely encouraging for our industry.

“Mr van Dorp, Mr Mackie and Mr McKinney each hold a wealth of industry experience, and these presentations offer a rare opportunity for industry professionals in Aberdeen to hear from experts at the top of their field. We would urge anyone interested in attending to book early as we expect to see high demand.”

These presentations are part of a monthly programme of technical presentations organised by SPE Aberdeen and sponsored by Expro and Premier Oil. Advance booking is highly recommended. For more information and to book your place, please visit: http://www.spe-aberdeen.org/events/

by david david No Comments

Distinguished Lecturer Nominations – 2 nominations are required from SPE Aberdeen Section – do you know someone who would like to travel the world?

NOMINATE A DISTINGUISHED LECTURER – WE ARE LOOKING FOR TWO NOMINATIONS FROM THE ABERDEEN SECTION.

Nominee characteristics

Each lecturer chosen by the Distinguished Lecturer Committee is:

  • An expert in his or her field
  • An experienced and articulate public speaker who is comfortable speaking to different audiences in English
  • Willing to volunteer personal time to instruct and share knowledge with other SPE members
  • Willing to travel for an average of 20 presentations with tours lasting around four days or as long as two weeks
  • An experienced traveler—tours can be rigorous due to flight schedules, routing and transportation between sections
  • Represent the Society of Petroleum Engineers as an effective ambassador for the profession and Society.

TO NOMINATE

Note: The DL Committee does not accept self nominations.

  1. If possible, speak to the person you are nominating in advance so they can review the requirements of the program and be prepared to complete the nomination process.
    • Give the nominee sufficient notice to have all requirements completed by the deadline of 31 March. Have the nominee’s first and last name and email address ready before nomination.
  2. Complete the online nomination form.
  3. When the nomination form is complete, click the submit button at the bottom of the screen. You will receive an email confirming your submission. The nominee will receive an email requesting their participation in the program.
  4. Deadline to submit a nomination is 15 March.

Click here for guidelines on nominating.

IF YOU ARE NOMINATED

You will receive an email informing you of the nomination with instructions for the online form. Complete all steps by 31 March.

    1. Create a unique login. An account is established for each nominee.
    2. Include one topic per nominee. The committee will review one topic per nominee, do not submit more than one topic.
    3. Complete the online nomination information form and save a draft. This will start your folder and allow you to log back in to submit requirements. Upload all of the following required items.
      • A presentation that can be given in 30 minutes:
        • File types accepted: .pdf only
        • If desired a link to the nominee’s online presentation such as YouTube, etc. video may be included but is not required.
        • File name: 30 min preso-nominee last name.nominee first name (example: 30 min preso-Smith.Joe.pdf)
      • Two separate recommendations are required. Utilizing the online form, the nominee will request the two recommendations by entering the recommender’s email address.  Requests for recommendations will then be sent automatically to the recommender’s email that will allow them to upload a recommendation letter.  An email notification will be sent to the nominee letting them know the status of each recommendation request.  Reminders will also automatically be sent to the recommender.  It is strongly suggested for the nominee to email the recommender to ensure that the request is received as it may arrive in their spam folder.
          • Note: Only one of the forms (the two recommendations or original nominator) can be from the nominee’s company.
          • Required Abstract/bio master form:
                • Abstract must answer the question: What is the one idea you would like the members to take away from this lecturer?”
                • Biography and abstract must be on the same abstract/bio master form in 12-point font.  See sample.
                • Biography: no more than 100 words; abstract: no more than 250 words
                • File types accepted:  .doc or .docx
                • File name:  Abs-Bio-nominee last name.nominee first name (example:  Abs-Bio-Smith.Joe.doc)

You do not have to complete in one session and may save a draft during the process.

  1. After completing and uploading all items, click the “submit” button at the bottom of the screen. The nomination process cannot be completed unless all of the required items are received by the deadline 31 March.Only one of the three submissions (nominee form and two recommendation letters) can be from the nominee’s company.
by david david No Comments

Chairman’s Message: February 2017

Dear SPE Aberdeen members, colleagues and friends,

The theme of Offshore Europe in 2015 was ‘inspiring the next generation’; SPE Aberdeen fully embraced this and continues to do so. Any surplus from our events and activities is re-invested in a wide range of initiatives designed to inspire the next generation of industry professionals; this investment is supported by our volunteers’ time, expertise and enthusiasm.

Our section has invested almost £200,000 over the last five years to support initiatives promoting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) subjects. This includes about £80,000 in scholarships to support students studying oil and gas related qualifications in order to relieve the financial stresses faced by students and allow them to focus on their studies.

Our School and Career Guidance (SCG) committee plays a significant role in encouraging young people to study STEM subjects, which are fundamental to the energy industry’s future workforce. We have been long term supporters and sponsors of the Techfest annual “Festival of Science” and their “Maths in the Pipeline” programme. The SCG committee was also instrumental in tailoring Energy4me, SPE’s global energy schools programme (primary and secondary), to fit with the Scottish schools Curriculum for Excellence, developing the materials and training teachers to speak knowledgeably about our industry.

We also support “Inside Industry”, a career guidance website, which is targeted specifically towards the energy industry. It is the only tool of its kind focused on providing first class industry driven career information and advice and has been rolled out across more than 300 schools in Scotland.

It is currently award season globally, including here in Aberdeen. Next month we will be celebrating over thirty years of innovation and collaboration at the 31st Offshore Achievement Awards. This event is the biggest and longest established industry awards for the UK offshore energy sector, covering all aspects from supply to upstream operations and offshore renewables. Its success ensures we are able to continue inspiring the next generation. The finalists for this year’s awards have already been revealed and the winners will be announced at the black tie event on 23rd March. If you would like to join us at this event you can find booking details here.

Ian Phillips 

SPE Aberdeen Chairman