Petrofac to raise skill levels in global drilling industry

London – Petrofac has secured a contract with the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) to enhance IADC’s existing system of competence for the global oil & gas drilling industry.

In addition to general drilling-rig positions, the new project will identify ‘knowledge, skills and abilities’ markers (KSAs) for specialised occupations, such as subsea engineers, as well as create formal evaluation process guidelines based on the KSA position requirements.

Programmes such as this have become increasingly important as a result of new US government regulations that require companies to define and evaluate the competence of their workforce. They are also used to evaluate and develop new entrants into the drilling industry.

IADC developed the original KSAs and released them initially in 2000. Those first KSAs represented the basic skills and knowledge necessary for competence for 12 rig positions.

The IADC Training Committee also developed a general KSA focused on health, safety and environmental issues.

The KSAs will help to clarify job roles and responsibilities and identify development opportunities to close any KSA gaps that may arise from the evaluation process.

The resulting increase in competence levels should minimise the risks from human error, helping to achieve safer, more efficient and environmentally sound drilling operations globally.

Under the contract, Petrofac’s training services business (PTS) will initially identify KSAs and evaluate guidelines for safety-critical positions with well-control responsibilities. The programme will then address the remaining non-safety-critical positions.

“This project will leverage our capability and industry knowledge in developing, delivering and implementing competence programmes for the oil & gas industry,” said Tony Littler, regional director, PTS Americas.

“The revamped KSAs will provide the industry with a benchmark for globally consistent drilling position requirements, as well as recommend means for effectively evaluating personnel,” said Stephen Colville, IADC president and CEO. “It will also help personnel identify areas where further training and development are needed and point them to resources to help close those gaps.”