YOUNG but growing oil field equipment specialist Titan Torque Services has its sights set on global expansion after proving its mettle in the UK.
The company assembles drilling equipment, which would otherwise be put together offshore as it is put down the well hole – taking a degree of risk and time out of offshore operations as well as being able to be more accurate due to use of specialist torque machines, said founder Keith Gaskin.
A sticking point of onshore assembly had been fear of damaging drill bits during transportation, but the firm spent two years creating a protection system to cover the drill bit and says it has now been well-used and proved.
The firm has also developed what is has called a push-pull unit, designed to put the running tool in place in a controlled and measured way.
“It saves a lot of rig time and makes it safer,” said Mr Gaskin.
“It is trying to remove things done offshore to onshore.
“Most of the major operators use us now. We now want to build up the amount of work we do and build up what we do overseas.”
The company has grown turnover from nothing when Mr Gaskin founded the firm in 2008, to £1.1million in the year ended April 2010, and then to £2.4million in the same period ended 2011.
It is now aiming at £3million for 2012.
Earlier this year, it won a six-figure sum contract with AGR Petroleum Services for work in the Falkland Islands and has set up a satellite site there as a result.
Last year, it doubled its Tullos Industrial Estate site to 10,000 sq ft and has just taken on another unit at the same site.
It assembles anything from two to 60ft long and it will be able to handle assemblies weighting up to 20 tonnes in its new workshop.
Now Mr Gaskin is looking at where to grow overseas, including the Falklands and Brazil.
Titan has also ordered new equipment it has helped design.
This will mean it can carry out assembly on decks offshore rather than in the derrick, for companies still wanting to complete assembly offshore.
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