YMM Wildfires & Automation
July 19, 2016
Thankfully the Fort McMurray wildfires are finally at bay and the rebuilding has begun. The hearts of our ISA Edmonton Section Members go out to all YYM citizens.
Not only were the people of the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo drastically affected by the devastation, virtually every industry and business in the area has been impacted (including outside businesses that service the area).
When it comes to the automation industry, what are the effects of the fires?
The ISA Edmonton Section reached out to Vanko, an ISA Edmonton Section Sponsor and a reputable supplier of process and analytical instrumentation to the Fort McMurray market, to find out how they’ve been impacted.
Vanko team members, Chris Kozak (Manager Technical Services), Tim Jones (Sales Manager), Allan Lyster (Technical Representative Fort McMurray) & Jason Van Ouwerkerk (Service/Training Manager Fort McMurray) share their thoughts below…
Al, you spend a lot of time in Fort McMurray for work. What was your personal experience with the fires?
I was speaking to a couple of my Fort McMurray customers just before noon on the day of the evacuation and everyone thought the fire was under control. It’s amazing how quickly the fire spread and became out of control. While seeing the pictures and videos that were posted on-line, I was very worried for my friends and colleagues who live in Fort McMurray. I was incredibly relieved once the news surfaced that everyone had safely evacuated the area. I can only imagine what it would have been like for people trying to evacuate with their families not knowing if they would be able to make it out and how long they would be away from their homes.
Al & Jason, what have been the immediate impacts on your job in Fort McMurray?
Al – The immediate impact for myself is that I haven’t been to Fort McMurray since April 14th and I’m usually there for a week every few weeks. Also, I typically receive multiple phone calls and dozens of e-mails every day from the Fort McMurray facilities; during the facility evacuations it was completely silent.
Jason – From the service side a number of the jobs we had previously booked in have been either cancelled or postponed. Logistically organizing jobs right now is a lot more difficult as hotels and camps are at capacity with displaced residents. We have had to be more proactive in trying to obtain work, as customers are less likely to call on us. Any jobs or projects that have been deemed non-critical are just not happening right now.
How do you feel the fires have affected the automation and instrumentation industry as a whole?
Al – With the oil prices at a low for quite some time now, the automation and instrumentation industry had already been significantly affected with very tight operating budgets. I don’t think the fires will have much more of an effect on the automation and instrumentation industry as a whole.
Jason – I think that sales teams dedicated to the FM area are being forced to look for other avenues for business. This can be tough in the present, but hopefully it will end up creating some sales diversity for them in the future, as they will find new customers that they may not have if they were busy in Fort Mac. Much of the sales from FM is repeat work based on your product and relationships, so over time the business should come back.
In your opinion, how have the fires affected the oil sands facilities in Fort McMurray the most?
Chris – The most immediate impact we have seen is that there are higher expectations being put on the facilities’ internal staff to rectify any problems. Budgets are obviously very tight right now and this is increasing the need for their own employees to manage the problems as quickly as possible. We are more than happy to support their efforts with telephone technical support to assist them with immediate problem solving.
Tim – We haven’t experienced any demands from our customer base expressing concerns from a support standpoint, however the fears of the fires slowing the feedstock from producers having to do mandatory shutdown was very real. At this point it is still unknown if any of the producers have seen long-term damage of wells from extended shut down (although most signs indicate that long-term well damage has not been identified). The obvious effect from the fires is the loss in short-term production, which has impacted the producers even further from a financial perspective in addition to the lower prices of oil. The combination of these elements may have further impact on personnel reduction within various oil & gas companies, which in turn puts more demands on companies like Vanko that have strong service backgrounds.
Al - Other than having some of their feed disrupted during the plant evacuation period I don’t know if the refineries have really been affected by the fires.
In the short-term, how do you feel the way companies in our industry do business in Fort McMurray will change?
Chris – Companies need to have already established mutually beneficial long-term relationships between each other, so they can work together on immediate problems. The operators are concerned with major fundamental issues at this point, and don’t have time for a “get to know you” phase. Companies will need to be able to offer immediate solutions in a timely manner, fully backed with local and knowledgeable service.
Al – In the short-term providing additional phone and tele-conference support in place of a normal site visit as traffic in and out of facilities is being limited to key operational personal.
Jason – Prior to the fire companies had already begun to change their strategies as far as hiring contractors like Vanko. Much of the work that they would have previously hired us for is now being attempted internally. I think this is because 1) they are not spending additional funds on contractors, and 2) employees who have witnessed lay-offs are trying to keep busy and show their worth? Some of our customers have also requested reduced rates for our services as well. Again the economy is forcing companies to analyze every aspect of what they are doing and where they should be spending their money.
Tim – I don’t think the fires will change the way companies do business in the short-term, but the companies that have strong technical and service backgrounds are being called on more from a support role. With the shortage of workers both from the fires and the economic recession, commissioning/troubleshooting/project support has become more critical.
> For the latest information on the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo Wildfire Recovery, click here.
About Vanko
Vanko is a full service provider for the instrumentation and analytical products that we represent in Western Canada. Service is not an after thought, but rather the backbone to our success and to our customer’s success when utilizing our products. We offer a team of factory-trained technicians that are available for 24 hour commissioning, training and phone support. Our model is somewhat different in that most of our technical sales representatives have spent years in our field service department. The benefit for us and the customer is that you know you are dealing with someone that has years of plant experience, can recommend products that are fit for the application, and that can support the products after the sales cycle.
Photo Credits:
Fire Image - https://horsenetwork.com/2016/05/horse-rescue-efforts-hold-fires-continue-rage-fort-mcmurray/
Suncor Facility Image - http://www.oilandgasproductnews.com/article/23428/oil-sands-operations-remain-in-flux-as-fort-mcmurray-fire-fight-continues
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