A History of Schlumberger

Introduction

Schlumberger is one of the world’s largest oil and gas industry. Where Schlumberger employs roughly 123,000 people in their company which representing over 140 nationalities and also working in more than 85 countries. It has its principal offices in Houston, Paris and Hague. Furthermore, Schlumberger provide the widest range of products in the industry and also the service from exploration through production. Hence, Schlumberger not just an innovation company but also invent, design, engineer, and apply technologies which help customers to find and produce oil and gas more efficient and safe.

Schlumberger was founded in 1926 by the French brothers called Conrad and Marcel Schlumberger as the Electric prospecting company. They recorded the first-ever electrical resistivity well log also called borehole log which enable the recording of geologic formations penetrated by the borehole, in Merkwiller-Pechelbronn of France in 1927.

In 1929, the company starts to grow quickly and logged its first well in the California, United States. Also they logged their first electrical logging in Japan in 1936. Schlumberger invested heavily in research industries, and it inaugurating the Schlumberger Research Center in Ridgefield, United States.

In 1956, Schlumberger Limited was incorporated to hold the shares of multiple companies as a holding company for all Schlumberger businesses. Later on, Schlumberger continued to expand over years. In 1960, they formed Dowell Schlumberger consists of half of Schlumberger and half of Dow Chemical which expert in pumping services for oil industry.

In 1962, the Schlumberger Limited appeared in the list on the New York Stock Exchange, the largest stock exchange in the world. Meanwhile, Schlumberger purchased an electronic instruments manufacturer, Daystorm in South Boston, Virginia which was sold to Sperry & Hutchinson in 1971. In 1964, Schlumberger also purchased 50% of Forex and then created the Neptune Drilling Company by merging Forex with 50% of Languedocienne. The first computerized reservoir analysis program SARABAND, was introduced n the year of 1970. The remaining half of Forex was purchased by the following year, the name Neptune was changed to Forex Neptune Drilling Company. In 1979, Fairchild Camera and Instrument also joined the Schlumberger Limited included Fairchild Semiconductor.

In 1981, Schlumberger also established its first international data links with e-mail. In 1983, Cambridge Research Center in Cambridge, England was inaugurated by Schlumberger and later on it was renamed as Schlumberger Gould Research Center after Andrew Gould, the former CEO of Schlumberger.

In 1984, the SEDCO drilling company and 50% of Dowell of North America were purchased. Then Anadrill drilling segment was created by combining Dowell and The Analysts’ drilling segments. In 1985, Forex Neptune was merged with SEDCO to form the Sedco Forex Drilling Company and Schlumberger acquired Merlin and half of GECO at the meanwhile.

In 1987, Schlumberger successfully complete their purchase on Neptune from North America, Bosco and Cori from Itali, and Allmess from Germany. Meanwhile, Fairchild Semiconductor under Schlumberger was acquired by National Semiconductor for 122 million dollars. In 1991, Schlumberger also purchased PRAKLA-SEISMOS and first created the use of geosteering to drill a borehole well more effectively.

In 1992, Schlumberger purchased the software company GeoQuest System. In the 1990s Schlumberger also bought out the petroleum division, AEG meter and the ECLIPSE reservoir study team Intera Tehnologies Corporation. Furthermore, Oilphase and Camco International were also acquired by Schlumberger. Then a joint venture was formed between Schlumberger and Cable & Wireless created Omnes, they will handle all Schlumberger’s internal IT business.

In 2000, WesternGeco was created by merging Geco-Prakla division and Western Geophysical which Schlumberger held a stake of 70% and remaining for its competitor Baker Hughes. In the same year, Sedco Forex was left and merged with Transocean Drilling company.

In 2001, Schlumberger spend 5.2 billion dollars to acquire the IT consultancy company Sema plc. In 2004, Schlumberger Business Consulting act as the company’s management consultancy arm was launched. In 2005, Waterloo Hydrogeologic was acquired by Schlumberger which was followed by a few other groundwater industry related companies, for example Westbay Instruments and Van Essen Instruments. Schlumberger also relocated its corporate offices from New York to Houston.

In 2006, Schlumberger complete purchased the remaining 30% of WesternGeco from its competitor Baked Hughes for 2.4 billion dollars. In the same year, the Schlumberger-Doll Research Center was moved to a newly built facility in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The facility united few other research centers run by the company in Cambridge, England; Moscow, Russia; Stavanger, Norway; and Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

In 2010, Schlumberger announced the acquisition of Smith International in an all stock deal priced at 11.3 billion dollars. This is the highest purchase in Schlumberger history. Schlumberger also announced planning to acquire the French-based company Geoservices which specialized in energy services, at the cost of 1.1 billion dollars with debt included.

Schlumberger becomes the world leading oilfield company because of it can perform complete service in its field, including reservoir scouting, characterization, high technology drilling system, own production group and so on. Schlumberger owns a lots of daughter company which specialized in different field, and providing solutions. It also invested heavily in different research companies who improve high performance drilling equipments which can endure high pressure and temperature during drilling process.

Sun Zi’s Art of War Theory

Moral influence refers to measures and policies that align the people with the sovereign so as to be in complete agreement and harmony with each other.

Weather refers to the contrasting changes of night and day, the coldness of winter and the heat of summer, and seasonal changes.

Terrain means by distance, whether the ground is traversed with ease or difficulty, whether it is open or constricted and the chances of life or death (of an army).

Generalship refer as the general’s qualities wisdom, trustworthiness, benevolence, courage and discipline.

Doctrine & law Refer to organization and control, management systems and procedures, and the command and control structure for the deployment of resources

SWOT Analysis

Strength

Schlumberger is the world’s largest leading oilfield services providers and one the global market leader in it industry which brings many benefits to it company. Generally, Schlumberger possess good company names, economies of scale, higher margins, revenues and other substantial benefits. Schlumberger not just the top 1 biggest oilfield services company, but also company that worldwide recognize in the oilfield industry. For example, Schlumberger ranked in the top 50 of the Engineering category of “ The 2012 World’s Most Attractive Employers” that reflects all the students and professionals will try to seek job opportunities with the company.

Besides that, Schlumberger also a company that consist excellent technology that strengthen the company’s name. Hence, it has technology innovation with 125 research and engineering facilities worldwide. It place strong importance on the developing innovation technology that increase the quality of product. In example, Schlumberger firmly holds their professionalism through years of experience in it field which to fulfil the customer needs and satisfaction by using its strong technologies. In addition, it creates more stable business and more likely to obtain other businesses as opportunities comes.

Furthermore, Schlumberger has strong research capabilities which they always invested significant time and money on research and engineering as a long-term strategy to support and to expand their technology leadership. Schlumberger increase their services, products, tools, and equipment to maximize and extend production for the life of the reservoir. Schlumberger supplies various products and services including seismic, drilling services, well testing, well completions, subsea production, well production, and well intervention. Based from world energy news, Schlumberger generated 10.67 billion dollars in oil field services revenue with year to year increasing of eight percent. With these kind of technologies that Schlumberger can kind provide, it able to highly strength their company income and also it can evolve to superior technology in days to come.

In a nut shell, the deep knowledge of exploration and production that gained through more than 80 years of experience by Schlumberger enable it to have much higher company standard in oil and gas industry. With the company’s history, it consist a strong brand equity with worldwide recognition. Thus, the deep knowledge that gain the company but as the company obtain a great profits and revenues that have empower the company to achieve one the world’s leading oilfield company.

Weakness

Schlumberger is a company with many strength as in the oilfield industry. But doesn’t mean it don’t have any weaknesses in its field. Schlumberger have daughter companies over 140 nationalities, which give it a wide range of production and exploration. But with so many daughter companies, there is lots of possibility an error can occur in certain company. It is hard to tracking down the progress in each of the daughter company. For example, in certain daughter company may consist of drilling failure. This may cause inconvenience not just to the customer but also the company itself.

On the other hand, there also legal issues involve with Schlumberger with the accusation of fracking price. According to the Bloomberg news, where the company were sued over claims Schlumberger and other oilfield industry which Halliburton and Baker Hughes collaborated to raise prices and crush oilfield service competitors in the booming U.S. market for hydraulic fracturing services. Therefore, with this kind of legal issue involve with the company will affected on the company’s good name and may worsen some relationship with certain company collaboration.

Schlumberger may also contain another weakness that is not active in social media besides facebook and twitter. The company doesn’t use much of the social media to evolve their company’s name. For example, the company doesn’t promote much of commercialize video on it new innovative technologies or production to fascinate viewer or even new customers. Therefore, without increase the participation of social media will influence the good name of the company.

Schlumberger announce for the full year result of oil field services in year 2013, land revenue decline 2% in the North America Area. Where land businesses experience some weakness in drilling, stimulation and wireline services. The cause of the weakness can be related to the company’s innovation technology has reach its limit. Hence, this kind of inconvenience the company facing would lead to decline revenues. The company able to increased service concentration, improve efficiency, market share gains, and new advanced technology.

Opportunities

Schlumberger consist plenty opportunities based from the company global market leader in the oil field industry. The company can acquire higher percentage of oil discovery. The company technologies additional innovative workflows, advance software, and technical experts to help the company clients to enhance characteristics of uncertain exploration. Thus the company deep understanding of the geology of their prospective areas which the company exploration crew can extract the maximum value from their exploration asset.

Moreover, Schlumberger also have acquisitions by buying out their competitor which the company could offer a higher level of project management and integrated solution for oil and gas companies. While others individual suppliers involved with exploration and production add excessive cost that increase complexities. As an alternative, Schlumberger decided to work on that by broadening its technical capacity and also approach greater integration capabilities.

Schlumberger also have better exposed to expand in international markets rather than their competitor. For example, Schlumberger exposure to Gulf of Mexico proved to be important, aiding the 3 percent revenue growth in North America. While Schlumberger also has been awarded an 18 moth multiple services contract by Oil India for designing, drilling, and completing six horizontal wells. Where Schlumberger consist of high probability making a bigger foray into other countries in the near future.

Besides that, Schlumberger contain the peak of increasing oil supply which will happen in the future. This enable increasing the demand for oil extracting companies and outlying technologies that can discover oil in difficult locations. Manufacture of oil from coal and natural gas is potential benefits of peak in oil supplies which Schlumberger gained. In future, the importance of oil will increase and the demand for these sources will be more expensive.

Threat

Schlumberger have one of the best technology in the oil field services industry. Thus, the company maintain the service industry’s longest commitment to technology and innovation. But there are many challenges ahead towards the company that highly competition with other oil field services companies, with great technology in the company that some customers will need to consider on the budget. Because great quality also comes with a high price. Therefore, other competitor may provide much average technology cheaper budget that can already satisfy the technologies needed of several customers. Hence, that will enable the competitor to attract some the Schlumberger’s previous customer to dealt further businesses with competitor.

Schlumberger will not only deal with other oil field services companies of the budget on technologies but also the products and services of the company. Where Schlumberger’s competitor Halliburton supplies oil and gas companies equipment and service that helps extract unprocessed oil and gas from the ground. Hence, they may offer the same products and services which also allow easier attract of new customer. Plus they will analyse and came up with new innovation technology to deal with Schlumberger.

Furthermore, Schlumberger also concern about economic slowdown occur on it company. For example, the SchlumbergerSema revenue of 870 million USD for the quarter decreased 3 percent consecutively as a result of a 17 percent decrease in Cards revenue following lower demand in Europe. This economic slowdown can cause weak oil and gas demand and also will influence the pricing reduction in the company worldwide rig. In addition, it will also effect on the company’s production and exploration spending. In order to overcome economic slowdown, one of the method is by expand the company areas and attract new customer to sustain the company’s business which able to use various type of business commercialization strategies.

Apart from that, the energy producers rising costs for raw materials such as steel had help Schlumberger contributed to 120 percent growth in production and exploration spending between year 2004 and 2007.Schlumberger also concern regarding the high energy prices have prompted governments worldwide to increase taxes and change investment terms to producer’s profits to gain a bigger share. Which can cause underinvestment and simply exacerbate the problems for the company.

Conclusion

Today Schlumberger is the world’s largest oilfield services provider, with employees representing over 140 nationalities. The company rapidly developed international origins and a worldwide presence, becoming the leading provider of subsurface surveys.

Schlumberger is faithful to its legacy of technological innovation. After initially leading the industry with its subsurface survey methods, the company now offer a wide portfolio of leading technologies to meet the needs of our customers in the oil and gas industry. Schlumberger has grown both organically and through outside acquisitions. Along with new technologies and opportunities. Certainly, Knowledge, technological innovation and a truly global workforce remain the symbols of Schlumberger today.

Based from the whole process, Schlumberger is the global market leader in oil and gas industry that consist a strong business strategies plan. The company is accurate in grasping the opportunities with their leading innovative technologies. Hence expand the company’s exploration and production and improve their revenue in the global market. Besides that, the company also amplifying their company by using the history of the company and the excellent name in their industry to maintain their leadership in global market.

In fact, Schlumberger committed to providing services and products that enhance their customer’s performance. Schlumberger delivers excellence to their customers which the company treat all their customers in a consistent and transparent way. With their extensive experience in developing and deploying innovative technology solutions, its enable to maintain the satisfaction of the customer and also shareholders. Furthermore, Schlumberger also enable to maintain a greater oil service between their competitor with the company understand and support the direction ahead. In other hand, the company strongly apply service focus, continuous improvement, and self- development.

Lastly, Schlumberger consist of a strong integrity which the company recognize the boundaries and have the courage to act responsibly and sincerely. Decision making is one the company integrity, the company observe the right time and also the risk before move forward to a certain exploration and production. The high responsibility also holds firmly by the company to able to gained greater trust from collaboration group and customers.