An advanced model for well control training
Since the introduction of the blowout preventer a hundred years ago, the industry has strived to solidify its defense against well control events. From its earliest days, well control training was focused on the detection, management and prevention of well control incidents, with the objective of educating industry personnel about avoiding an uncontrolled release of hydrocarbons that may endanger life, the environment, and the company’s assets. This goal was to deliver competence assurance of well control knowledge, with an understanding of how to avoid incidents and prevent another Macondo / Deep Water Horizon-type incident.
While progress has been made through the years in well control training, to meet the needs of today’s well control challenges and workforce, it is time for the industry to take a new look at what we teach, how we teach it, and the tools we use to assure competence in the way people actually learn. With the oil industry’s “changing of the guard” and a new generation of oilfield workers entering the workforce, we are living in an age where people will need to be educated with today’s technology in today’s technically advancing oil field, Fig. 1.
We are dealing with a vastly different world today that requires a hybrid approach to well control instruction, which combines technology with dialogue and robust interaction between instructors and learners, where different points of view and perspectives are brought into the teaching. To that point, well control training providers must utilize other techniques of teaching that not only impart critical knowledge but also show the root cause of well control issues. Today, most importantly, we must provide students the solution for preventing issues before they happen. The old style of teaching—even ten years ago—is simply inadequate. How students access materials, utilize continuing education, and connect with educators is changing at well control training providers worldwide.
One such example is Well Control School (WCS), which delivers instructor-led, in-person, virtual instructor-led, and computer-based training solutions for well control courses that can be delivered on demand and are available worldwide. WCS was the first commercial well control provider to offer well control certification courses in the U.S. and has worked hand-in-hand with both the International Association of Drilling Contractors and International Well Control Forum (IWCF) to provide comprehensive training.
This year, WCS and IWCF are celebrating their 30th anniversary of providing well control training together throughout the world market. They have trained and certified more than 85,000 students globally and maintain a reputation as the leader in delivering competency-based well control training for onshore and offshore operations. They have a laser focus on the unique requirements of operators, drilling contractors, and well-servicing companies.
Dana Varisco, President of WCS, explains how they are taking well control education in a new direction. “WCS has always pushed the level and availability of education forward. Beginning with our System 21 e-learning in the early 2000s, we have utilized innovative technology, industry experts and believed in going beyond just a presentation slide. Now, with this new chapter beginning, we are embracing all the new facets of learning by interacting with our students in hybrid methods that bring real-world situations virtually to their own home with a live instructor with it."
Importance of elevating engagement. While technology, along with approaching the teaching model, is key, equally important to the experience is to create a human connection with students in all classrooms. This enables them to better understand real-world well control issues and allows the student to self-discover the solutions to many complex problems. One of the critical issues that the industry faces today is that companies may focus solely on the certificate and level of the course while missing the vital link of true understanding that the student needs for his/her position. That is where ensuring that the student has the best instructor, who can tailor to his/her needs is significant to an individual’s education, Fig. 2.
A dynamic instructor's value to the educational process cannot be overstated in today's world. Well control training providers invest extensive time and resources to get the right individuals, resulting in a key differentiator that elevates them from others, knowing how to engage and teach instead of just reading a slide to students. This requires hand-picking instructors that are top-tier, not because they are subject matter experts or have time in the industry, but because they can read a classroom, understand each student's needs, and reach each student in their own personal way.
One of the finite points that many well control training providers may overlook is continuing education for their instructors. These providers are teaching 50 +-year-old well control techniques that may be antiquated and are not allowing their instructors to learn and advance, to meet today’s technological changes. Many instructors today have been out of the field for over 10 years, and those who are fresh from the field are instructed to not deviate from 20-year-old teaching materials. This leads to uninspired educators and a stale, dull experience for students.
In many cases, well control instructors are learning more from students’ real-world incidents than from the training provider they work for. WCS addressed this issue head-on and is moving that process forward with “SME Fridays.” Designed for instructors, SME Fridays are where knowledge is taken and shared among the whole team. Instructors are hungry for the knowledge to improve their classes, and we're making it available to them, Fig. 3.
Assuring no student is left behind. Today, well control training providers are dealing with a different type of student than in previous years. From young adults leaving high school, who have spent the last few years in a virtual world, to an adult workforce that has adapted the "remote work " lifestyle, these new students are accustomed to online classes and often are uncomfortable in a classroom setting.
We must respect where the world is and not force them into something they are uncomfortable with. As a result, we will be better-equipped for this new generation with a hybrid in-person/virtual approach that can teach in the classroom and bring the subject matter experts to them virtually. That is how education must move forward and bring a different environment and experience to the students, Fig. 4.
Connecting the classroom to the field. Nothing is more impactful for students than seeing the curriculum brought to life. By bringing real-world experience and expertise into the class for well control scenarios—the potential repeat headaches, the near misses, the major blowouts—well control training providers today can utilize a range of teaching techniques to give that knowledge to students, show the root causes of incidents and provide a solution to prevent them from happening again. This also means teaching not just the fundamentals and mathematics, but regional and company-specific well control, along with areas such as managed pressure drilling, horizontal wells, and workovers, plus unique situations, such as well integrity problems. By doing so, well control training providers will help ensure a better-educated oil field.
One thing that differentiates WCS's classes is how we interact with our sister companies by bringing information from the field and utilizing it to educate our students. We are that missing puzzle piece between the field and any educational resource and the subject matter experts. "To build the most accurate well control content, we share real case studies and work with the WCS development team and instructors to create a unique and enlightening course," said Bhavesh Ranka, Operations Manager at Cudd Well Control.
Leveraging IOGP insights. The International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP) provides an incident statistics program report every year. In 2021, their statistics stated that globally, there was a 30% increase in incidents. Most of these can be attributed to human factors. The unique opportunity that students get at well control schools is the knowledge brought to the table with open discussions regarding real-life well control incidents. These discussions are eye-openers and solidify the importance of taking the well control courses seriously. In a way, it's a game-changer. As members of the IOGP— which puts out lessons learned documents that provide real-life scenarios that happened in the field— providing information like this to instructors, who can analyze it and incorporate it into their training, is a critical necessity for the future of well control classes.
The power of different points of view and perspectives. To provide a well-rounded education, the instructor must be resourceful in accessing a wide range of materials, internally or externally, such as bringing in SMEs. Often, these are competitors that provide another perspective, as opposed to a single teacher giving one point of view.
There is also a need to allow all instructors in the industry to conversate and learn from each other. This imperative idea gave birth to the "knowledge box" at WCS, Fig. 5. It is a virtual forum that enables well control instructors from various companies to share experiences and be a part of something bigger than their individual providers.
Each week, the Knowledge Box allows students to truly benefit from a new point of view from a different instructor than they usually have. It's a constructive mindset where everybody helps everybody. Furthermore, because learning about well control continues long after the student receives their certificate, the Knowledge Box allows a connection for the student virtually to an instructor whenever they need assistance.
Instructor is a future resource. The impact that instructors have on their students is invaluable. Even after receiving certification, instructors can be a vital source of well control information and support. As such, well control training providers should spend the time and resources on instructors to ensure they are the right person with the right level of expertise. Instructors willing to go beyond the course content and be a resource, as the student continues out in the field, will make a difference in our industry.
"Every WCS instructor maintains an open communication with former students we have taught in the past," said Tim Andrews, Lead Instructor of WCS. "They call us a year later, six months later, and say, Hey, I got this going on; what do you think? We work with them to get the correct information, so they can work out the situation, but we always pass it to our pressure control experts for validation and follow-up, so no critical piece is missed."
Path forward. While progress is being made in well control training, we, as an industry, must not rest but move forward with continual improvement. In any environment, our personnel will always be the primary "barrier" in well control and mitigation. As activity increases, an influx of inexperienced workers poses the biggest well control risk. A company can have the best equipment and rigs, but most of all, they must have well-trained individuals that possess the knowledge to maintain control of the well and manage potential incidents that can escalate rapidly.
Qualified and educated well control personnel are the essential component of a successful operation. As well control educators, the industry must learn how to engage the next generation. That means bringing in a wider range of knowledge resources, and leveraging in-person effectiveness with technological efficiency and unique teaching methods. This will keep our workforce excited about new educational opportunities with fresh and dynamic curriculum specifically tailored for the next generation of oilfield employees. WO
