I accepted a Field Engineer position with Liberty Oilfield Services on April 3rd and my life has been a whirlwind since then. As a services company, we provide hydraulic fracturing services for oilfield operators. New hire engineers go through a 5 week intensive onboarding which basically consists of being a frac hand for 5 weeks. As a result, I spent several days with the different aspects of operations at a few different locations. Some days were tougher than others. All days were 12 hour shifts plus at 1 to 1.5 hour commute in each directions to and from Mead, Windsor, and Ault.
With training complete, I will now be start to learn the role of field engineer which consists of monitoring operations, tracking materials usage, and providing the customer with a stage by stage, daily and post job well report for approval. This will occur over 2 week "hitches" which are essentially 14 straight days of field work at the same pace of 12 hour days, but in the relative comfort of the data van. Each hitch alternates days or nights and will be in remote locations. Most engineers get the hang of it in 2-3 hitches and will be the sole engineer on location at that point.
I am excited to get into the oilfield business, but it is a significant departure from computer hardware. Several skills will transfer including Excel, Program Management and Finance. However it will still be a steep learning curve. I still can't believe I own and am required to wear steel toe boots, a hard hat, and coveralls with my name stitched on them while on location. For now it is a grand adventure. I believe I have the skills, mental acuity, and physical stamina to be successful. Time will tell.
With training complete, I will now be start to learn the role of field engineer which consists of monitoring operations, tracking materials usage, and providing the customer with a stage by stage, daily and post job well report for approval. This will occur over 2 week "hitches" which are essentially 14 straight days of field work at the same pace of 12 hour days, but in the relative comfort of the data van. Each hitch alternates days or nights and will be in remote locations. Most engineers get the hang of it in 2-3 hitches and will be the sole engineer on location at that point.
I am excited to get into the oilfield business, but it is a significant departure from computer hardware. Several skills will transfer including Excel, Program Management and Finance. However it will still be a steep learning curve. I still can't believe I own and am required to wear steel toe boots, a hard hat, and coveralls with my name stitched on them while on location. For now it is a grand adventure. I believe I have the skills, mental acuity, and physical stamina to be successful. Time will tell.
1 comment:
That sounds like an exciting challenge! Good luck, Steve!
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