malcolm smart

Established an online only business selling microcontrollers, sensors and accessories, primarily catering to the educational and hobbyist market. Customers include many schools and universities, but also large companies such as the BBC, Dyson, Facebook, Google and Caterpillar. In many of our products we became the main UK seller in our marketplace, and around 20% od our sales are international.

Lead MWD Supervisor on the Olowi project offshore Gabon, from initial startup through to final well completion 4 years later. This was a challenging contract, with near horizontal wells drilled to tight tolerances and a high level MWD service. Baker Hughes MWD did not have any presence in Gabon prior to this, and the high service quality led to other contracts and a significant market share in Gabon. Prior to Gabon, I spent one year working in the Campos basin offshore Brazil, working exclusively for Petrobras. This was enjoyable but challenging, as the working language was Portuguese.

Lead MWD Supervisor on the Kashagan field development project in the Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan. This is estimated to be the the 5th largest oilfield ever developed and was complicated by harsh winters and very shallow water. The project required difficult extended reach wells, with extremely high formation H2S and high pressures, as well as some wells required specialized drilling techniques due to massive down-hole fractures. This contract was extended without re-tendering due to excellent service quality. During an extended completion break, I was asked to work on a high profile exploration well offshore Turkey. This was a complicated project with the nearest previous well over 400 km distant and with special environmental constraints.

Member of the Engineering team fast tracking the development of the next generation wireline NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) tool. My main responsibility was characterizing and practical testing, but increasingly required involvement in ruggedizing and noise elimination. The tool was delivered on time and is highly regarded in the industry

Transitioned to Directional Driller position mostly on offshore and onshore projects in Gabon, as well as a fascinating 4-month period drilling horizontal wells in shale/tight sand formations in the Permian basin in West Texas.

Started in Bangladesh, where operations were starting up for Cairn Energy and Occidental. Late 1999 moved to Angola for Angola and West Africa Remote operations

Initially joining a company with just 2 contracts in the UK offshore sector, this was a period of rapid expansion, growing to over 40 active contracts, and which contributed a very significant portion of worldwide revenue. Although partly due to the expansion of all operations in the North Sea, this was largely driven by an increase in market share. I started working as Lead Engineer after 2 years, and played a significant part in improving and standardizing the processes and procedures of the job, and was chosen to introduce several new technology services into the North Sea.

Lead Directional driller on a highly successful deep-water drilling campaign offshore Angola, where the contract was renewed due to performance despite not being the lowest bidder. Wells were consistently drilled on plan and below budget. Technical aspects of the campaign included conductor jetting, under-reaming, whip-stock and open-hole kick-offs, and utilized both conventional motors and Rotary Steerable assemblies. During this period the majority of work was in Angola, but I spent shorter periods on similar projects offshore Mozambique and Cote D’Ivoire, as well as onshore geothermal work in Kenya.