Aberdeen Drilling School expands Middle Eastern portfolio with acquisition, new senior appointments
(WO) – Aberdeen Drilling School (ADS), the global training and consultancy company, has acquired IAS International (IAS) to enhance its training and competency management portfolio for the Middle East market. To propel growth in the region, ADS has also appointed two senior directors, Graeme Eglintine and Petru Cioban.
Driven by increasing demand for workforce development to meet the needs of the booming drilling market, ADS will now offer a broader portfolio of products and services including new hire assessments, role-specific progression programs, and rig reactivation support. The company aims to double its MENA customer base by 2024 and will increase its headcount in the region by 150% over the next 18 months to service growth.
Eglintine as Regional Director will focus on leading competency services and training programs in the Middle East, supported by Cioban as Operations Director. Based at new offices in Dubai, Eglintine and Cioban bring over 50 years of drilling experience from previous roles at IAS and have extensive knowledge in development and workforce planning – further enhancing ADS’s international offering.
Jason Grant, Managing Director of ADS said, “Our clients have long highlighted the gap that exists between compliance and competency. Graeme and Petru live and breathe this field, and their passion and dedication to improving individual and collective competence align perfectly with our core values. Today marks the next step of the ADS journey and we’re excited to see the positive impact these appointments will have across drilling, well services and lifting operations in the region.”
Graeme Eglintine, Regional Director, ADS, MENA comments, “With rig counts on the rise across the Middle East, the demand for highly trained, competent personnel at all levels is growing in tandem. I am thrilled to join ADS as it shares my philosophy, passion and commitment to creating and maintaining a safe and technically aware workforce in our high-risk industry.”
To date, the company has developed and delivered well control training in over 50 countries since its inception in 1982. ADS employs 50 people globally and as part of the RelyOn Nutec group, reaches more than 10,000 businesses across 30+ training centers in 20+ countries.
