The days when service rigs were seen as the simple workhorses of the oil and gas industry are well and truly over, claims Concord Well Services (CWS) founder Gordon Vivian.

Speaking to the Oil and Gas Inquirer, he says that when he established the company in 1979, the rigs were relied on to carry out important jobs but were always thought of as "dumb iron".

However, with upstream operations taking the oil and gas industry into ever more inimical and remote territory, service rigs are now relied upon to complete tasks such as steam-assisted gravity drainage and extract shallow crude using slant rigs.

So too, to operate the rigs these days, service personnel must undergo comprehensive computer literacy training. This was something that CWS quickly adapted to.

"When we first deployed the concept of having a laptop on a service rig into our ranks, we received a great deal of paranoia. That attitude was 'show me it works'," he said.

However, after training, the rig managers were demonstrating the benefits within a month.

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