How Graco Oilfield Services is adapting with purpose and investing for the future 

Established in 1978, Graco Oilfield Services (Graco) earned a strong reputation for its core supply specialism of fishing tools used in the retrieval of well equipment. Owned and operated by the Rambo family for more than 45 years, the company remains a leading specialist provider of fishing services and rental tools. 

“The business has grown based on the trust and experience of tradesmen, who have stayed true to our core principles throughout continuous growth,” opens Justin Butler, Vice President of Operations. “We focus primarily on fishing and rental services, and we can provide services for any intervention operation from downhole fishing tools to tubing and pumps. We’ve standardized our operations based on the intervention of wellbores that have impediments within them. We have specialized tools and services to remove obstructions, as well as a large fleet of surface pumping equipment, pressure controls, and tubular rental services. 

“We’re currently experiencing some level of growth or stable activity across all our product lines. However, we’re controlling growth by reinvesting in our surface assets. We have spent a significant effort in repairing and refurbishing equipment at our Snyder Fabrication Facility in Texas, as well as our Monahans Mechanical Excellence Facility. We’ve also allocated a substantial amount of investment towards our pressure control and tubular services product lines to meet the growing requirements of our customers. With the consolidation of several exploration and production companies, we have spent a lot of time, effort, and capital on making sure our equipment meets or exceeds the latest version of the American Petroleum Institute’s (API) requirements. 

“While we’re currently focused on investing in our equipment and operational quality, we never turn a blind eye to opportunities within an emerging basin,” he states. “It’s no surprise that the Permian Basin gets a lot of focus with us having eight operating locations and two repair or refabrication facilities, but we’re also seeing significant growth in our Rockies and Southeast US operations.” 

With ever-evolving market demands, Graco has incorporated some new technology, automation, and digital solutions. “Our main focus is on improving our service performance and quality control,” Justin says. “We recently implemented our Graco FE Iron Initiative to focus and highlight our quality assurance and quality control. This initiative focuses on the tracking, recording, and recognition of processes we utilize from cradle to grave of each individual task for our operations. Once we have the appropriate data, we will look to incorporate AI to forecast failures to work to eliminate them in real time.” 

Another key focus for the company is employee engagement and retention. “Like many service providers to the industry, on the job training is the best avenue for new employees, and we are fortunate to have a service offering that allows employees to enter a training program to gain experience through multiple facets of the business,” Justin explains. “We strive to promote internally and train employees to progress through the ranks within the organization. We have set benchmarks for employees to progress not only monetarily but also through position progression, so we can grow a talented individual from an entry level position to a much higher role, for instance. This often results in increased loyalty from our employees, as they appreciate the time and money we invest in their training and development.

“When it comes to employees, one of our top priorities is safety, and it should be for any successful business in our industry. At Graco, we place ownership of safety on each of our locations’ managers, as this provides a level of ownership of our safety programs with the managers that personally know each of the team members in their reporting structure. Safety is a day-to-day discussion within all our locations and is embedded in our culture, rather than a randomly timed directive from a corporate office.” 

As our conversation closes, Justin turns his attention to what separates Graco from its competitors, as well as what the future holds for the company. “Graco has focused on the traditional principle that ‘the working man can do better,’” Justin says. “At all levels of the organization, we have built a plethora of experience to tackle any challenge presented to us, and we continue to evolve as an organization that meets our customers’ needs, expectations, and often changing requirements. Our internal goal is to retain experienced personnel, as well as build on the experience of successive generations of individuals and equipment. 

“Although the future is a scary thought, especially considering geopolitical situations, we feel confident that we have the equipment and personnel required to persevere in the industry, but this won’t be without its challenges. Continued mergers and acquisition (M&A) activity will keep us busy, and we will likely see some competition come and go. 

“M&A within the exploration and production side of the industry poses a culture change, as we will continue to see more majors and super majors participating in basins that were predominantly dominated by independents,” Justin concludes. “With this, there will be elevated requirements, which is a great opportunity for Graco to elevate our specifications to meet the needs of both today and tomorrow.”  

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