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If the oil and gas industry succumbed to fads and themes, the most current would be gaining efficiency to increase profitability. While that notion may have previously seemed elementary and potentially unachievable, many, like Mark Workman of RMI Supply, believe in the mantra and live it every day, with rewards surfacing as increases in market share and consistent business growth. Workman’s barrage of efficiency improvement chemicals has given oil and gas companies the ability to save time and money downhole.

RMI offers the oil and gas industry a vast array of chemical solutions. Still, its liquid PHPA and Xanthan, along with friction reducer, have served the industry well in realizing an uptick in profitability through their improvements. While some only offer solutions to specific areas, RMI’s chemical selection serves the drilling and completion areas of the oil and gas industry, allowing the company to offer enhancement at multiple levels.

Liquid Xanthan is used primarily in completions and serves as a medium for carrying sand and other milled plug cuttings from each zone of a hydraulic fracturing project. Cleaning the hole and zone before the fracture eases restriction and increases efficiency. Energy savings induce an increase in profitability.

Workman points to the critical ability of the products he distributes for companies to leverage the savings gained through their use. RMI stocks and distributes large quantities of liquid PHPA, which is utilized as a functional additive in water-based drilling fluids.

“Liquid PHPA is used in the drilling process and encapsulates the solids during drilling operations,” says Workman. “The PHPA mud system stabilizes shale formations and influences cuttings and wellbore stability.”

According to Workman, the drilling sector of the oil and gas industry enjoys success from additional RMI products. During drilling and stimulation processes, large volumes of water pumped at high rates result in increased friction pressures from turbulent fluid flow. By injecting friction reducers into the process, the wellbore can be stabilized without negatively impacting the effect levied by other additives. The success of friction reducers has been credited with saving large sums of money in additional costs while also reducing non-productive downtime when wellbore issues must be rectified.

RMI’s friction-reducing agents additionally provide benefits to the completions arena. While new technology is being considered, the traditional hydraulic fracturing methodology involves a slickwater application that sees tremendous success using friction reducers. These chemicals assist the hydraulic fracturing fluid pumped down a wellbore and reduce the interference with well piping. Friction reducers enable pumps to increase their efficiency and avoid downtime for repair. Still, they additionally increase the viscosity of the hydraulic fracturing fluid, keeping proppant suspended and evenly distributed throughout for best use.

With such an important role these chemicals play in drilling and completions operations, suppliers must possess the capability to not only provide enough product when needed but also promptly combat idle time that only depletes profits. The industry’s supply chain has not fully recovered from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has remained vulnerable to global tensions that regularly impact it. As a result, long lead times and even shortages plague progress.

To combat the challenges associated with procuring and supplying chemicals, Workman understands the critical balance necessary in stocking products and providing them to customers as needed. He has guided RMI in maintaining a strategic supply chain blueprint, having a direct line to order chemicals, blending and stocking adequate inventory, and ensuring the ability to deliver products promptly.

Workman believes a vital relationship exists between stock and supply, but careful care must be given to avoid overextension. RMI avoids financial stifling by carefully calculating how much product can be procured, blended, stored, and delivered. Workman credits this as the directive to maintain the ability to buy products continuously and supply them as needed. Other companies suffer from financial hardship because of overextension and, in the end, cannot continually purchase and supply. By perfecting each pillar of its strategy, RMI can supply critical chemicals to the oil and gas industry with quick turnarounds. Surpassing long lead times, RMI assists its customers in reducing downtime and maximizing profitability with its chemical solutions.

“We see weakness in lead times and product quality in the oilfield,” says Workman. “We certainly are trying to exceed the specs to offer high-performing products with lead times of a few hours or the next day, in most cases in truckload volumes, as compared to some manufacturers with four to five weeks’ lead times.”

Author Profile

Nick Vaccaro

Freelance Writer and Photographer

Nick Vaccaro is a freelance writer and photographer. In addition to providing technical writing services, he is an HSE consultant in the oil and gas industry with twelve years of experience. Vaccaro also contributes to SHALE Oil and Gas Business Magazine, American Oil and Gas Investor, Oil and Gas Investor, Energies Magazine and Louisiana Sportsman Magazine. He has a BA in photojournalism from Loyola University and resides in the New Orleans area. Vaccaro can be reached at 985-966-0957 or nav@vaccarogroupllc.com.