For the most part, oil and gas professionals are not concerned about artificial intelligence (AI).
That’s according to Joshua May, CEO and technical recruiting consultant at HireStrong LLC, an affiliate of Sanford Rose Associates, who told Rigzone that “it’s a tool, just like email or phone.”
“AI will help make some jobs easier, some jobs easier, etc., but it can’t perform the real engineering tasks needed around the world,” May said.
“There are too many variables and we will always need engineers and technically competent people to execute the work and know-how to solve a problem. AI is just a tool to make other people’s lives a little easier,” he added.
Gladney B. Darroh, founder and president of Houston-based Piper-Morgan Search, said the “vibe” he’s creating in the industry is that most professionals “are excited about the possibilities of AI” .
“They really believe it has great potential to enhance the oil and gas industry’s efforts to be more environmentally friendly in their existing businesses and, in the long term, their ability to transition from fossil fuels to green energy because of the creativity and efficiency of AI,” he told Rigzone. .
“At the end of the day, oil and gas professionals are just as human as professionals in any other industry when a major unknown is introduced, such as artificial intelligence; some fear it; others will accept it,” he added.
“Most professionals are positive about AI and believe that new technologies, new companies and new jobs will be created as a result of this quantum leap in technology. Personally, I agree with them,” continued Darroh .
Continuous concern
Neil Bradshaw, Petroplan’s head of permanent recruitment for EMEA, told Rigzone that “workers experience an ongoing concern around AI”, adding that “it is well known that technological evolution since the 1980s has has displaced workers faster than it has created jobs.”
“However, workers can take comfort from the fact that there are few oil and gas companies that have been able to implement technologies at the required scale, and recent research has shown that 70 percent of digitization projects they haven’t passed the pilot phase,” Bradshaw. said
“Technologies don’t always generate clear value, and if management can’t see improvements, they are reluctant to commit to broad deployment. In addition, new technologies require the development of new skills and a change in long-term work practices, which requires people,” he added.
“Subsequently, value emerges as a combination of the technology and the people who manage it,” Bradshaw continued.
AI should be embraced
Speaking to Rigzone, Brian Binke, managing director of the Birmingham group, another subsidiary of Sanford Rose Associates, said AI “should be embraced not just by oil and gas professionals, but by most professionals of work because it can help optimize work flow, improve worker safety, and predict issues and problems in advance.”
“I think the biggest misconception people have about AI is that it’s going to replace humans, but that’s not the case at all: AI is used to get rid of mundane, mundane tasks so that employees can focus on other parts of their job.” Binke told Rigzone.
“I don’t think AI will replace humans in the oil and gas industry for a long time,” he added.
Binke noted that he is seeing customers investing in technology that can analyze things like local underground conditions and weather, which he noted requires continuous monitoring to ensure reliable and safe operations.
“AI is also used in the oil and gas industry to inspect pipelines using drones equipped with thermal imaging, which helps detect any leaks,” he said.
“There are also technologies that help predict any risk and execute scenario plans for well monitoring,” Binke added.
To contact the author, please send an email andreas.exarcheas@rigzone.com
