Titan Directional Drilling Situation Audit

Project Two - Situation Audit

Caleb Richmond

University of Maryland University College

Project Two - Situation Audit

Titan Directional Drilling, LLC is an oilfield service company based in the greater Houston, Texas area. The company provides support activities for oil and gas operations and well drilling.

Key Organizational Facts

Founded: 2014

Total Employees: 48

Website: www.titandd.com

Legal Form/Tax Status: Limited Liability Company, files as a partnership

Offices/Facilities:

1. Main Office - 20302 Park Row, Suite 1200, Katy , Texas
2. MWD Facility  - 13843 Hwy 105 West, Suite 214, Conroe, Texas

Executive Leadership:

• Ken Fusilier, Founder/CEO
• Aaron Carney, Operations Manager
• Joe Covington, MWD Manager
• Manuel Salinas, HSE Manager
• Lane Rosenblad, Well Design Manager

Industry Code(s):

NAICS - 213111, 213112

SIC - 1381, 1382

General Purpose

Titan offers a full a range of drilling services including horizontal directional drilling,

Conventional drilling, short radius, whip-stock orientation, drilling optimization, straight-hole well drilling, well planning, and well pad design with ellipse of uncertainty.

The MWD fleet of tools encompasses the most current technology that meets various flow range and extended battery life requirements, with a survey accuracy to within 0.1 degree. Titan fields multiple types of tool configurations that have good reputations throughout the industry, notably:

• Rime Pulsers
• Benchtree Electronics and Surface Systems
• CBG Gamma Probes
• Vertex Downhole Technology
• EVO Dual Telemetry Technology

The drilling motor line is primarily National Oilwell Varco (NOV) technology. NOV is widely regarded as a leader in mud motors; robust, reliable, and efficient. Titan offers an array of NOV motors in various diameters and lengths. The power section performance curves on Titan motors routinely rank very high for speed, pressure, and torque. Key specifications of the motor fleet are:

• Size range from 3 3/8-inch to 9 5/8-inch
• Full range of power sections including Even-Wall Technology used in the Eagleford
• Fixed and adjustable bend available

Mission, Vision, Values, and Goals

Titan Directional Drilling’s stated mission is to “provide quality service by way of adequately maintained equipment set up specifically for the job at hand. Experienced personnel both on the rig and at the support level will provide will provide a solid directional drilling service to the customer. Our focus is sticking to our core efforts so as to be able to deliver this specialized service to a small group of clientele. Our goal is to maintain the size of the company; therefore, adequately delivering our mission of specialized service, but as a result of past experience in the industry, maintaining a strong relationship with major vendors. This allows us access to the latest technology available allowing us to utilize our gained expertise and technology to a concentrated group of client’s work groups.”

From its inception, the mission of Titan has been to field a team of subject-matter experts and innovative technology to deliver high quality goods and services. Leaders at the company have done a good job getting the word out to the staff. Everyone working at Titan understands and believes in the mission. There is a high degree of loyalty among employee and client alike. While Titan as an entity is only three years old, 90% of the employees have been with Ken Fusilier for more than a decade. Mr. Fusilier has faithfully serviced and maintained a strong client base for just as long. The strength of these relationships attests to the serious pursuit of the organizational mission.

Titan’s vision to offer boutique services very much aligns with the company’s mission. The focus is on quality over quantity. Its intent is to provide specialized service to a select group, and that is exactly what it is accomplishing. Core values stand on a foundation of safety and integrity. People are the heart of the company, with leaders commonly saying that the most important tool in the tool kit is the individual worker. The client is viewed as a valued partner at Titan; the working relationships are very strong, almost organic. Leaders are committed to performance excellence, and safety is never sacrificed. The investment in health and safety is evidenced by the compliance credentials that Titan holds, and the sophistication of its in-house HSE program. Titan’s people are safety-trained and motivated to eliminate workplace injuries. In 2016, Titan enjoyed a zero-recordable incident record in 67,763 total hours worked.

The organizational goal is to maintain the company’s size to allow it to deliver specialized, high-quality services. This is in agreement with mission, vision, and values, which is essential. By choosing to remain a small company, a breakdown in any one of these cultural elements could create conflict with other areas. There must be synergy, and everyone must be on the same page. For the most part, Titan Directional Drilling has done a good job articulating its message. The mission statement is not written particularly well, but the people at the organization understand what is expected of them. The company has a good reputation in the industry, the respect of its competitors, a proven track record, and strong relationships with its customers.  Not unremarkable in what is usually a very cut-throat business.

Organizational Strategy and Objectives

Competition in the oil and gas industry is traditionally very hawkish. The oilfield has been mired in a prolonged downturn, shedding 350,000 jobs over the past two years. Many companies have closed their doors. Low oil prices are expected to persist for several years, challenging Titan with delivering near flawless services, or risk losing scarce work permanently. To be successful, the company relies on its access to high-end technology, and the experience of its people. It is a seasoned staff; with an average 25-years of individual experience among the management team, 20-years among the directional drillers, and 12-years among the MWD operators. NOV is the preferred steering-tool vendor for Titan, supplying 98% of the company’s mud motor fleet. Known for being robust and reliable, NOV’s reputation is unmatched in the oil and gas industry. Titan has a selection of state-of-the-art MWD systems to satisfy project requirements in the harshest downhole drilling environments. Notably: