Let’s Chat About DOT Pipeline Integrity Compliance?

May 31, 2011 By 2 Comments

Is your pipeline operation safe and in compliance with the DOT requirements? Are you DOT audit ready? If not, do you have your “audit” piggy bank ready and waiting to write that big check or worse be shut down? God forbid there should be an accident, of any type; do you have your cadre of lawyers lined up?

Pipeline operations present risks not only to the operators and the contractors who work on and around them daily – we’re used to it. It can also be a risk for your mom and dad, my kids, my and brothers, sisters. It can be risky for your wife’s friends, aunts, uncles, grandmas and granddads that live in the surrounding communities where pipeline systems are located.

Not to sound too dramatic, but their lives really are in our hands. “Our” being operators, contractors, safety professionals, OQ trainer/evaluators and each and every person up and down the line that plays a role in managing America’s pipeline system.

I don’t have to tell you that pipeline operations are subject to very stringent DOT rules and regulations not only to make sure safe operating procedures are in place, but also to make sure the systems are properly designed and are using the right equipment throughout the entire pipeline system. [Read more...]

Filed Under: DOT Guidelines, Oil and Gas

Like Water for Project Management

May 23, 2011 By 1 Comment

I absolutely love water. I always have, as far back as I can remember. The lake, the ocean, the creek,  a good ole swimming hole, a hot tub, a great waterpark (YES!), the tank (a term used for a huge container used to water livestock back home in Texas), and last but not least a bright blue swimming pool.

I am not really that particular about the season in which I am exposed.  Cold frozen water intrigues me just as much a cool inviting dip on a blistering summer’s day.  Heck, I was even a lifeguard for a number in years in my younger days. I learned a lot of lessons then that I can now actually apply to project management now.

I said all of that to say this – The last three weeks, as small  business owner, have been incredibly busy (good problem to have) and especially stressful (not always a good problem to have).

Facing a tough project time line at 6 AM on a Monday morning is like falling into cold water and suffering from cold water shock that causes serious psychological and physiological responses, which if not handled properly,  can put you in a world of hurt in a big hurry. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Management and Leadership, Small Business Strategies Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Momma’s Got Some Mad Management Skills!

May 9, 2011 By 3 Comments

As the mother of now grown children, I found myself reflecting, more so than most Mother’s Day weeks, on my babies. My mind kept wandering back to those tiny fingers so I decided on Mother’s Day; I would go through the hope chest for a trip down memory lane.

I began by touching decades old baby blankets, baby books, running my fingers over sweet Mother’s Day’s cards made from construction paper and crayons. There were old soccer trophy’s, ballet outfits, school play videos, awards for just about anything you can imagine, coins from England – deep breath – scripts from elementary school plays, lifeguard certifications, debate camp information sheets, high school AND college graduation announcements, gowns and caps, a sock (?), a Texas Department of Safety driving test study booklet, a baggie of very tiny teeth that the “tooth fairy” honored me with, and an old family calendar from 1992 – that just wore me out to flip through.

I had opened that old chest thinking “My, how my life had changed” and closed that chest  thinking “My life “really” has NOT changed that much!” [Read more...]

Filed Under: Management and Leadership Tagged With: , , , , ,

Hey, I Need To Get My Guys Operator Qualified!

May 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Who Uses AYUDA’s Operator Qualification (OQ) Services?
We traditionally receive four different types of calls for operator qualification.

Operators: For those operators who do not have in-house training and operator qualification programs (OQ) they choose AYUDA because we can conduct NCCER, Energyworldnet, MEA, Veriforce and OQSG in the same visit and we specialize in traveling to the locations they need us to conduct OQ for their employees. We are also flexible enough to assist in delivering their in-house programs as required by their OQ plans.

Traditional Pipeline Services, Maintenance and Construction Providers: Many pipeline services, maintenance and contractors are subject to having their employees undergo operator qualification if they are working on a DOT covered line. If they are used to the OQ tango, they generally call with a list of covered tasks they have either previously been OQ’ed in, OR they have been provided a list of job-specific covered tasks, along with the acceptable method (knowledge-based assessment, training and/or hands-on evaluation) and providers that they will accept. (NCCER, Energyworldnet, MEA, Veriforce and OQSG). [Read more...]

Filed Under: Oil and Gas Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Are Your Driver Qualification Files Up To Date?

April 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Editor’s Note: Today’s guest post is by G.P.Borak. Mr. Borak has 25+ years as a SME (Subject Matter Expert) training, and consulting  in issues related to Transportation, Transportation Compliance, CSA, DOT  and FMCSA.

Hey, don’t you just love regulations?  They are my favorite.  Okay, I’m being facetious, but they are an everyday fact-of-life for most businesses. Allow me to outline what is required of the drivers and safety personnel in an effort to assist you in understand the process and reasoning behind the regulations pertaining to the Driver Qualification Files, and record keeping.

In the interest of safety on our highways, every company involved in interstate transportation by definition of the Federal Department of Transportation is determined to be a motor carrier subject to all federal motor carrier safety regulations (FMCSRs) found in federal code 49 CFR Parts 382-399. Any company employing commercial drivers must abide by the parts of the regulations that apply to the employer, and each employer must instruct each commercial driver regarding their responsibilities under these federal safety regulations.

As a requirement under 49 CFR part 391, each employer is required to establish and maintain Driver Qualification Files on each commercial driver it employs, and to make those DQFs available to the DOT in the event of an audit or accident, or investigation by a state or federal agency. [Read more...]

Filed Under: DOT Guidelines, Guest Bloggers Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Online Training versus Face-to-Face Safety Training

April 18, 2011 By 2 Comments

In the last five years or so, in talking with friends employed by companies where accidents have happened, someone always says “Hindsight is 20-20.”  I understand how this saying can unfortunately be called to mind in the wake of an accident, emergency, or incident on a job site or pipeline location, but it still always makes me angry.

As a child, if you broke something or made a mess at my grandmother’s and we would say how sorry we were and that we didn’t “mean” to, that was always followed by a hug and the phrase “that’s why they’re called accidents and not on-purposes”.

Of course as children we were grateful for grandmother’s patience and understanding, but accidents in the construction and oil and gas industries can result in at best significant loss of property, and at its worst loss of life or limb.  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to” just does not cut it.  Fortunately, however, there’s no reason your employees need to rely on the knowledge gained after past mistakes and missteps to prevent such problems from recurring in the future. Rather, taking a proactive approach to safety training can help keep employees safe, preventing unfortunate accidents and incidents from ever occurring in the first place.

Safety training should always be a crucial part of every contractor and/or operator’s overall training program. These days’ employers have a large variety of options to select from in regards to safety training, including the choice between online safety training programs and face-to-face training. Although many employers are content with the traditional, face-to-face mode of safety training they’ve always been using, multiple studies have shown that in a head-to-head comparison online safety training offers multiple advantages. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Like Golf, You Can Improve Your Supervisory Handicap

April 11, 2011 By 2 Comments

Improving Your Supervisory Handicap

“Improve your short game.” That’s golf-speak for chopping strokes off your handicap. In supervisory-speak it’s related to cutting down the number of times you have to re-direct your employees. In a very large nutshell – learning to communicating effectively. It’s always the same—whether I’m addressing this issue individually with a supervisor or superintendent, or speaking to a group about effective people management. Much like golf, where improving your pitching, chipping, and putting, as well as your bunker play, communicating effectively to your employees has many aspects, all of which are important to your overall success

This can be easier said than done, especially on-the-job. After all you are trying to get the job done and who has time for all that psycho mumbo jumbo. Well, as the old saying goes “pay me now or pay me later”. As the supervisor or superintendent you can either take the time now to develop more effective communication skills to manage your employees or you can take the time along the way in arguing with your employees, constantly directing and redirecting, dealing with low-productivity and long punch lists.

So which is it? Are you willing to work on your short-game now?  [Read more...]

Filed Under: Management and Leadership Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Melinda’s Top Nine Training Goals

March 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I love, love, love football and I am pretty fond of analogies. So, in light or our discussion last week about using the “pilot” approach to getting a training program off the ground, I thought we might talk about some training goals.

Regenerate – As a small business owner who works a jillion hours a week, I feel slightly hypocritical talking about this topic but is very important for your employees – your team – your players. Down-time is a time to get everyone on your team healthy. Employees and management alike. In today’s construction and oil and gas industries we are pushed to do more with less and this includes pushing your employees to work more hours, longer days and/or weeks. However, it’s important for them to spend time with their family, friends and loved ones. Our seasons as construction and oil and gas industry players get very long, especially if we are dedicated and successful. Encourage your team to stop every once in awhile and focus on other things besides work. Nothing brought this point home more poignantly than having recently attending the funeral of a co-worker, who died too young.

Replenishing/Recruiting – Recruiting for some of us is so important to build the foundation of your team for the next season and years to come. It can be as easy as networking with prospective players, sending emails and keeping in touch to as rough as placing that dreaded “ad” in search of specific team players. Regardless of the approach you take make sure to ask them about things other than work. It is important that they feel that you value them as people as well as potential players. 

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Case for Construction or Oil and Gas Industry Pilot Training Programs

March 21, 2011 By 3 Comments

Do you wake up some mornings wondering how you are going to squeeze a dollar out of a dime with the “kids” you have working for you?  Did old Frank, Jack and Jesse all retire in the same year leaving you with a serious lack of experience and team leadership? Have you considered implementing a training program of “some kind” but have not thought it all the way through?

You might get overwhelmed at the thought of the logistics, the cash outlay and wonder what the Return on Investment (ROI) would be, even if you invest the resources. Apart from the possibility of lowering your insurance rates (see number 10), including training in your overall risk-management strategy and making your bid packages stand-out there are studies that suggest an organized employee training program produce significant Return on Investment (ROI) in other areas.

My grandfather, Orvin Lee Jumper Sr., owned his own dirt contracting (O.L. Jumper Dirt Contractors, Ranger, TX) firm in the 50’s and 60’s.  As the oldest grandchild, I often (willingly) found myself in his care while he worked on equipment or on a jobsite. I was also one of those kids who would get frustrated attempting complex tasks and I remember him saying on more than one occasion “Honey, how do you eat an elephant?” and I would giggle and we would say together, “One bite at a time.”  There is a lot of wisdom in that old joke, and it has served me well over the years.

In today’s world, AYUDA has applied that same “one bite at a time” philosophy to a project we have undertaken for the country of Mexico.  We have been tasked (as part of a larger team) to develop, implement and deliver a comprehensive oil and gas industry operator training and qualification program for their sole oil and gas industry producer, Petroleos Mexicanos or PEMEX. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Construction, Oil and Gas Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Fracing 101

March 14, 2011 By 1 Comment

Hydraulic Fracturing Defined
WIKI defines hydraulic fracturing or “frac jobs” (or “frac’ing” in the industry, or with the misspelling “fracking” being common in media reports) as a process that results in the creation of fractures in rocks. The fracturing is done from a wellbore drilled into reservoir rock formations to increase the rate and ultimate recovery of oil and natural gas.

Hydraulic fractures may be natural or man-made, and are extended by internal fluid pressure which opens the fracture and causes it to extend through the rock. Natural hydraulic fractures include volcanic dikes, sills, and fracturing by ice – as in frost weathering. Man-made fluid-driven fractures are formed at depth in a borehole and extend into targeted formations. The fracture width is typically maintained after the injection by introducing a proppant into the injected fluid. Proppant is a material, such as grains of sand, ceramic, or other particulates, that prevent the fractures from closing when the injection is stopped.

Environmental and Health/Safety Concerns
There is a fair amount of controversy that goes hand-in hand with the current manner in which fracing is being administered. Some of those concerns include not only environmental issues but basic safety and health concerns. These have emerged and are being debated at both the state and federal levels.  Some of those concerned about current fracing techniques register the following concerns:

1. Ground water contamination
2. Lower air quality
3. Gas and hydraulic fracturing chemicals reaching the surface
4. The mishandling of waste related to fracing [Read more...]

Filed Under: Oil and Gas Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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