June 10, 2020 Vol. LXXV, No. 23 a weekly Saudi Aramco publication for employees Abqaiq: cohabitation of nature, people and industry decades of friendly respect in industrial heartland see pages 8 and 9
A little grebe paddles on a charming 3 km2 sanctuary of wetlands west of Abqaiq Plants. The sanctuary also includes sand dunes and a planted tree belt that shelters a variety of species of microbes, plants, insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish, and mammals. Saudi Aramco’s operational areas include vast tracts of land and sea areas with important habitats and species. (Photo: Hasan M. Almubarak/MPD)
Do Your Part by Wearing a Mask in Public Controlling COVID- is in our hands, and we should do whatever it takes to stop its transmission. maintain physical distancing of meters at all times June 10, 2020 the arabian sun 2 company news Talent Exchange Program increases mobility process
The Staffing Services Department of supporting the development needs (SSD) recently launched the Talent Ex- of employees or to fulfill the business’ change Program, which is a compli- needs. mentary addition to existing Job Post- The nomination could either be for a ing and Job Swapping Internal Mobility permanent or a temporary assignment, programs. providing an alternative to line organi- The Talent Exchange Program has zations from raising E8000s outside of been designed following input from the corporate programs. SSD works in leaders and HR Staff across the busi- collaboration with line organizations to ness, providing a corporate platform identify the right opportunity for each that includes chief position holders in employee that has been nominated. the mobility process. This is a significant enhancement to the varied Internal Mobility programs enabling opportunities on offer, as it ensures that Aramco is In comparison to the Job Posting Pro- able to build a corporate talent pool, gram, which is an employee-driven mo- which is essential to adequately meet bility program, the Talent Exchange Pro- the needs of the business in a systemat- gram allows for chief position holders ic and effective manner, providing more to drive mobility within their teams by transparency and speed to Internal Mo- fostering career conversations with their bility opportunities being fulfilled. In efforts to promote Internal Mobility programs and recent changes to the internal staffing policies, employees and subsequently nominat- the Staffing Services Department hosted a number of awareness booths in Dhahran, Riyadh, Jiddah, ing them for job opportunities across and Yanbu’ in the first quarter of 2020. Employees who did not have the opportunity to visit a booth the business. This could be as a result can find more details in the “Opportunities” section of theMyCareer website. company’s Sea Water Injection Department earns international safety award Aramco and its Sea Water Injection lected Aramco after evaluating many Department (SWID) have been awarded safety categories such as Risk Manage- the International Safety Award. ment, Contractor Safety, ERP, Contin- The award, which is organized by uous Improvement, and other related the British Safety Council, is one of the areas. most prestigious International Awards The award is a direct result of SWID’s in the safety scheme and features an- well-established Safety Management nual participants from more than 50 System, as well as the department’s countries. excellent safety performance in 2019, The awarding committee had se- with no recordable incidents. moving from physical space to cyberspace shifting training to the digital, continuity achieved Never in our history have our training fa- employees who have completed them. cilities faced this level of disruption. The main benefits of e-Learning is that it Thousands of employees have had their is cost-effective, self-paced, available 24/7, training disrupted by the COVID-19 pan- and can be taken anywhere at any time. demic. Due to physical distancing restric- Also, the progress of participants can be tions, a number of our training facilities tracked easily, and the learning material is were required to close. stored online for future reference. Regardless, Saudi Aramco remains com- mitted to delivering critical education to webinars expand knowledge our employees, and the closure hasn’t Webinars are one of the best ways to ex- stopped employees from learning. pand knowledge by learning directly from In Drilling and Workover (D&WO), man- subject matter experts, and they also help agement has made training a priority, experts connect with participants to estab- even if it can’t happen in person. This has lish and promote learning connections. meant the need to develop and deploy a Because webinars are conducted live variety of distance learning solutions. and in real-time, it makes it easier for par- The D&WO Training Division (D&WOTD) ticipants to interact with instructors. Addi- responded by developing a number of we- tionally, they also offer interactive features binars and e-Learning courses that are ac- that participants can use to ask questions cessible from the field, office, and home of the instructor. locations. So far, more than 400 employ- Also, some hosts grant their audiences ees have attended training webinars, and access to a replay of their webinar if they 6,500 e-Learning sessions have been com- weren’t able to attend the live session. pleted. For D&WOTD, the hard work and rapid In this instance, the challenge proved to development of distance learning prod- be an opportunity to grow in terms of new ucts is invaluable, not only now (as it helps ways of training and development. maintain operational continuity), but also in the future as it works to build and sus- e-Learning oped a number of courses using the Artic- six e-Learning courses and e-Learning tests tain high quality virtual learning channels D&WOTD, which has the in-house capa- ulate Storyline rapid authoring tool. Since have been deployed. And they’ve proved in the workplace, helping ensure employ- bility to produce e-Learning courses, devel- the closeout of D&WO training facilities, to be popular, judging by the number of ees never stop learning. the arabian sun June 10, 2020 company news 3 we are all in this together be a strong link in the safety chain
by Nabeel A. Al-Jama’ our personal lives, the new behaviors Recent government decisions to loosen Just as Aramco has we have learned must become lifelong curfew restrictions are a welcome sign habits. for all of us in the ongoing fight against always been strong in For instance, as we begin a safe re- the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. turn to the workplace, we will reunite While the preceding months have of- its efforts to ensure with many people whom we have not fered no shortage of uncertainty, one seen for weeks or months. It will be im- thing that has been clear beyond a doubt safety across the portant to adopt new methods to show is the fact that in these unprecedented our affection. Noncontact greetings times, we are all in this together. organization, we must such as a hand to the chest will help Yet our collective well-being requires prevent the spread of the virus. individual actions and initiative to stop apply that same rigor And while it is normal in many cul- the spread of the disease. There is a say- tures to embrace, staying two meters ing that a chain is only as strong as its apart and avoiding in-person meetings weakest link. To secure a safe future for to the fight against COVID-. As show our colleagues that we want to all of us, it is imperative that we each protect them against the spread of in- take personal responsibility for our ac- many of us begin to return to work, fection as much as our families and tions. friends outside. If each of us takes this responsibility se- or readjust our personal lives, the Never before have we had to adhere riously, wears a mask, washes our hands, to medical guidance that extends into and avoids large public gatherings, then new behaviors we have learned must every aspect of the lives of ourselves, there will be no weak link. These behav- our family, and our friends. Vigilance iors help every one of us to protect our become lifelong habits. is essential. The safety of our families, people and our community. This lifestyle friends and colleagues is in our own allows our hardworking health care per- hands. Each of us must change our be- sonnel to meet this formidable challenge haviors to protect one another. with the energy and resources required. strong in our efforts to ensure safety many parts of our “normal” lives that But I take confidence from that. Be- across the organization, we must ap- we must leave behind — for our own cause this reliance on one another a return to business ply that same rigor to the fight against safety and for the health of our friends, shows how we are truly all in this to- and new behaviors COVID-19. Subsequently, to return to families, and colleagues. As many of gether, and it can build an unbreakable Just as Aramco has always been “business as usual,” there are, in fact, us begin to return to work, or readjust chain to fight this deadly disease.
Aramco’s Sami Alnuaim emphasizes resilience, focus during Society of Petroleum Engineers live broadcast by Susan V. Gonzalez ceur of Nomadia Energy Consulting. Ma- More than 1,500 energy professionals ria Angela Capello, chairwoman of the logged on to a live broadcast “SPE Talks SPE Business, Management and Leader- Leadership” available via the profession- ship Committee, and also of Kuwait Oil al social network LinkedIn to learn how Company, served as moderator. organizations are navigating challenging Panelists took questions from members times in the face of the COVID-19 pan- with interest in the future of SPE con- demic and a low oil price environment. ferences. Alnuaim and Blasingame said Sami Alnuaim, manager of Saudi Aram- there were multiple scenarios being con- co’s Petroleum Engineering Application sidered on how to best deploy technical Services Department and the Society of content, working collaboratively with Petroleum Engineer’s (SPE) outgoing 2019 other societies to determine the future president, joined three other panelists of SPE conferences that will be conduct- emphasizing resilience and focus on core ed virtually and be interactive. business priorities and operational safety. Alnuaim added that SPE will deliv- “We need to work together balancing er several major conferences virtually short- and long-term action plans,” said during 2020, starting this month. SPE Alnuaim. “The strategic nature of the en- will take advantage of its new 2019 re- ergy industry demands this of us.” leased app to reach more of its global He recognized the energy industry’s members, tapping into Fourth Industrial strong community involvement and sup- Revolution tools such as machine learn- port for social programs during the pan- ing and artificial intelligence to deliver demic. “This is the spirit of our industry,” specific technical knowledge based on a Sami Alnuaim listens to SPE members and academic staff from the University of Houston in Texas he added. during a “We Are Houston’s Energy University” luncheon held in 2019. member’s profile and historical behavior. “The right knowledge will reach our setting response, relevant members through the SPE smartphone responsibilities ing in digitalization for more online vir- elist Tom Blasingame commented that app 24/7,” he added. Visit spe.org for Alnuaim agreed with panelists that now tual learning to deploy content; creating the industry’s best innovations come the latest webinars and global events. is a time for leadership, clear messag- a job portal dedicated to helping those during downturns and that the best ing, and empathy and flexibility with the in job transition featuring virtual job leaders emerge in crises. workforce. To viewers, many of them SPE fairs; creating “SPE Connect” for tech- “People are having to adapt and be members, he outlined priorities by the nical section communities, discussions, progressive,” he said. “In the near time, society to be responsive and relevant to blogs, and libraries; and developing an we look to prepare people for a different membership. SPE mobile app. future and transformation of their work Alnuaim articulated the society’s top lives.” business priorities for its 150,000 strong imagining a more Joining Alnuaim and Blasingame were global membership, including: tapping virtual future Eve Sprunt, 2006 SPE president, and into technology to reduce costs; invest- Incoming 2021 SPE president and pan- 2022 SPE president-elect Kamel Ben Na- June 10, 2020 the arabian sun 4 company news Aramco student’s rock failure prediction work opens door to international recognition by Jim Cook ing mathematical formulations and auto- provides me with the courage to keep pur- Hussain Albahrani can see the mirac- mating repetitive tasks into a code means suing new creative ideas no matter how ulous in the mundane. That talent won that geomechanics modeling is the perfect unconventional they may seem,” he said. him the Society of Professional Engineers’ area of research for me.” Ashraf M. Al-Tahini, EXPEC ARC man- (SPE) Gulf Coast North America Regional Albahrani said the model developed for ager, said he looks forward to applying Award-Ph.D. Division for a project that his project improves the accuracy of rock Albahrani’s work to Saudi Aramco’s oper- provides a model for predicting rock fail- failure prediction by 95%, and this claim ations. ure while drilling is ongoing. is backed up by verifiable and reproduc- “His research addresses an important Albahrani, a graduate student sponsored ible lab and modeling data. He said that challenge for the industry and is very well by Aramco to attend Texas A&M Univer- providing a faster, more accurate predictor aligned with the drilling automation digital sity, submitted a project entitled “An Au- of rock failure will help minimize nonpro- transformation concept,” Al-Tahini said. The model developed for tomated Drilling Geomechanics Simulator ductive time events and reduce operations “We look forward to integrating his valu- Using a Machine Learning Assisted Finite costs. able research as part of DigitalARC platform the project improves the Element Model” to the competition. Be- Albahrani spent about two years on the — EXPEC ARC’s digital transformation ini- accuracy of rock failure cause Albahrani won the Gulf Coast North project, and plans to publish his results. tiative for providing advanced IR 4.0-based America Regional Award, he gets to com- He is also now hard at work pursing oth- solutions to upstream challenges.” prediction by 95%, pete against 13 other regional winners at er avenues within the oil and gas industry Albahrani hopes that his achievement SPE’s Annual Technical Conference and Ex- to apply the model he created. Albahraini will inspire other students to challenge providing a faster, more hibition (ATCE) 2020. said he wished to dedicate his project to themselves and pursue the ideas they’re accurate predictor of his parents, who taught him the value of passionate about. Improving rock failure hard work, and thanked his management “Don’t pay attention to the fear in your- rock failure that will prediction by 95% and his adviser, professor Nobuo Morita. self — the fear of learning new things help minimize The mathematics and mechanics Albah- showing the world what and not being good at them in the begin- rani delved into for his project may seem ning,” he said. “The fear of pursuing out- nonproductive time dry subjects to some, but for Albahrani Aramco can provide the world of-the-box ideas that may seem strange to they were an endless source of fascination. Albahrani said he saw the competition others. And definitely the fear of failing. events and reduce “While my background is in petroleum as an opportunity to challenge himself and “If you try something new and you fail, engineering, I always had an interest and show the world the quality research that that is progress; you now have one less operations costs. curiosity about mechanics,” Albahrani Aramco and Saudi Arabia can provide the thing to worry about, and you can move — Hussain Albahrani said. “This is combined with the fact that I world. on to trying new things until you find your get an immense amount of joy implement- “I’m very grateful for this win because it next passion,” Albahrani added. College Preparatory Program makes the grade Aramco reaches milestone agreement with top U.S. engineering college The Colorado School of Mines, a leading school graduates. The majority to apply for credit for transferred Technical Programs Department at Aramco U.S. university for engineering, has signed of CDPNEs attend the CPP, a courses and provide a strong Americas. “We hope that this will be the an agreement with Aramco accepting 10-month college prep pro- validation as to the quality start of many such agreements with U.S. coursework credit from College Degree Pro- gram in Dhahran, before and outcomes of the CPP universities.” gram Non-Employee (CDPNE) students who being placed in highly program.” Aramco Americas provides support for graduate from the company’s College Prepa- competitive universities The Colorado School students in the CDPNE program with a team ratory Program (CPP). worldwide. of Mines is the 19th of advisers assigned to help students achieve Aramco’s education support teams in the “This agreement is university to recognize their academic goals. Close work with Saudi U.S. and Saudi Arabia see this as a first in an acknowledgment learning outcomes Aramco’s PLD made this milestone possible what they hope to be a series of U.S. col- of the quality of the from the CPP, and the with the documentation and support mate- leges and universities recognizing credit for academic courses taken first in North America. rials needed to pass acceptance criteria for its coursework. Currently, there are 700 Ar- by our students prior to “We continue to build coursework credit established by the school. amco-sponsored undergraduate students attending colleges and uni- relationships with top-ti- Saudi Aramco’s CDPNE program has been enrolled in colleges and universities through- versities abroad,” said Mazin er universities around the in place since 1986, and U.S. higher educa- out the U.S. M. Horsler, administrator of Sau- world and are excited to tion institutions are among the 30 top-tier di Aramco’s Professional Learning Division have a top engineering school such as the universities worldwide that company-spon- testament to CPP quality (PLD). “Such agreements enhance CPP stu- Colorado School of Mines recognize our sored students apply to. It is one of the pri- The CDPNE program is a highly selec- dents’ prospects of being placed at highly program in this way,” said Mishari N. Al mary sources for entry-level professionals for tive scholarship program for Saudi high competitive universities, enable students Utaibi, administrator of the Academic and the company.
Riyadh — At Saudi Aramco, the future is spect areas considered life threatening to now when it comes to automation and the humans during emergencies, such as gas robots in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. leaks. This will allow human operators to The Riyadh Refinery recently got a first- easily manage and control critical plant pa- refinery: hand look at this as it hosted a workshop rameters. with its partner, Yokogawa, highlighting As part of the demonstration, a gas leak how technology can address a wide swath was simulated, which triggered an audible working of challenges and applications. Titled “In- alarm by the robot and a danger alarm in dustrial Automation to Industrial Auton- the remote controlled computer. omy,” the one-day workshop cast an eye “Our operation, engineering, and main- toward toward technologies enhanced by artificial tenance teams enjoy working with these intelligence, big data analytics, energy op- systems,” said Riyadh Refinery manager Ab- timization, etc. dulrahman A. Al-Fadhel, who added he was industrial One of the highlights of the event was glad the refinery was chosen to demon- a demonstration of an autonomous robot strate the robotic innovation. “It will defi- autonomy platform that is designed for high-level in- nitely serve the safety and efficiency of the dustrial operations. With multiple cameras industry.” and a payload configured with a hydrocar- bon sensor, the robot used 4G technology A robot maneuvers through the Riyadh Refinery to stream video showing its surrounding as part of a recent demonstration during the environment and share data from its sensor one-day “Industrial Automation to Industrial Autonomy.” The demonstration showed how a readings. robot can carry out simple routine tasks and The demonstration showed how a robot inspect areas considered life threatening to can carry out simple routine tasks and in- humans during emergencies, such as gas leaks. the arabian sun June 10, 2020 company news 5
Downstream Development Academy helping our leaders protect our people, our company, and themselves COVID-19 continues to influence us on a demands COVID-19 has created for lead- interest and energy. global scale. Each one of us is now chal- ership by providing them with a range of “Employee mental well-being is of- lenged to meet job and family demands at needed resources to lead their teams ten a forgotten element in a crisis the same time, remaining composed and at this unique time. YOUR that organizations may ignore in control. Regardless of our position in “This is the time that our in the business world,” said the company, we all feel the challenge that employees and front-line TEAM MEETINGS YOU Rayyan S. Al-Tayeb of the COVID-19 is bringing supervisors need us the make remote team your mindset DR&NGLF HR Division, who to our work environ- most,” said DR&NGLF HR meetings and leadership pointed to DDA’s thought ment and family life. Division head Yahya Q. exceptional 1 provoking series of we- In these uncertain Daghriri. “Let us put binars, which focus on times, Saudi Aram- our effort into sup- such issues as an im- co has drawn upon porting them during 5 portant step by the its long history of this difficult time.” leading company. protecting the safety Through its “Leading 2 Another unique part of our people, our Remote Team Series” YOUR TEAM remote teams of DDA’s efforts is the communities, and comprising five differ- create series YOUR confidential one-on-one our operations. Or- ent webinars, DDA is structure to PEOPLE coaching to front-line ganizations that have Yahya Q. Daghriri working to equip front- increase their mindset leaders and some em- encouraged a spirit line supervisors and unit connection 4 and ployees on how to deal of innovation have found new ways to take heads with tools to lead well-being with the stress and anxiety on the new challenges that the pandemic worried and anxious em- 3 related to the COVID-19 has presented, from business continuity to ployees during this time, or outbreak. This helps our adapting our work processes to allow for in a similar crisis. Recognizing YOUR leaders and the employees remote work and physical distancing and the benefits of good mental ONE-ON-ONEs discuss their specific issues in a safe workspaces. health for the employee and com- remote connections that friendly and confidential environ- In Domestic Refining and NGL Fraction- pany, it has also provided tools on makes a difference ment with DDA leadership coach ation (DR&NGLF), our teams are pioneering how to look after the mental and psy- Ayoub. new methods to prepare front-line leaders chological well-being of our people. Additionally, in support of business conti- and employees to cope with uncertain and This is the time when sharing ideas and nuity, the DDA also redesigned some of the challenging times during the pandemic. challenges, lending expertise, and network- face-to-face courses to be delivered virtual- “Our priority is to keep our people safe ing with peers in real-time are needed the vided us with the tools needed to manage ly using Skype for Business. as well as Saudi Aramco business. It’s an most. Accordingly, the series’ resources are these situations. He’s shared with us useful Although virtual training participants can opportunity now to improve our business interactive, helping lead and engage par- tips on how to protect ourselves and em- be prone to distraction, a three-part “Virtu- model to be more robust, and to prepare ticipants. ployees from the stress anxiety associated al Accountability Model” created by Korn our leaders for the future,” said Hamad Qa- Feedback has been strongly positive. with the COVID-19 pandemic.” Ferry focusing on verbal, visual, and kin- htani, RT Cluster Shared Services manager. “I’ve learned ways to sustain business con- esthetic accountability has been employed tinuity even during disruption,” said Mo- helping employees cope successfully. a new set of skills for leaders hammad F. Toom, a supervisor in the Indus- with stress and anxiety “We understand that the virtual environ- To align our efforts with corporate effort trial Training Unit. The DDA also developed the Saudi Aram- ment is not suitable for hands-on training, of coping with COVID-19 outbreak, the Hassan A. Zemei, a supervisor at the Yan- co Care Series for employees, which fea- and that is why we chose virtual training for Downstream Development Academy (DDA) bu’ Refinery, said the DDA has provided tures webinars on several topics to provide no hands-on training to maintain business has developed a new set of skills for front- the right tools to manage unfamiliar situ- employees with skills to cope with worries, continuity,” said Ayoub. “New technologies line leaders and employees to cope with ations. “All of a sudden, we are experienc- stress, and anxiety, work from home while will emerge in the field of training, and our the new work environment while building ing things we never have before with a lot remaining connected, motivated, and pro- eyes are wide open to spot training tech- a more agile business model. Its goal is to of confusion and frustration,” said Zemei. ductive. It also delivers webinars on what nologies that will suit us to make sure we support front-line leaders in meeting the “The DDA and Abdelbasit Ayoub have pro- they need to do when they feel sad, lack run our business in similar circumstances.” June 10, 2020 the arabian sun 6 company news
not everything brought to the dinner was welcome