Partnership with NAIT helps industry keep ahead of evolving technological challenges
The timeframes businesses face to respond and adapt to changes in the workplace and economy are only going to get shorter, says the CEO of Edmonton-based McCoy Global.
For Jim Rakievich (Heavy Duty Mechanic ’82), that means institutions like NAIT will be important partners for businesses like McCoy, as they constantly reinvent themselves and embrace new technology. One such initiative was McCoy’s response to the oil and gas industry’s desire to collect data in real time, explains Rakievich.
The company provides the equipment and technology to support the global oil and gas wellbore integrity– an application that monitors and controls the casing make-up in an oil or gas well – and the collection of critical data. Unmonitored pressure and vibration can damage tubulars, wells and machinery, causing unscheduled downtime—and that means financial losses. Detecting problems early saves the industry money.
“Our hope is that we’ll add analytics, to capture where the industry is going next.”
Today, McCoy Global is highly regarded for doing just that: providing services through sensors, control and monitoring systems, and customized engineering on land and in the sea.
McCoy now does business around the world
Over the last 16 years or so, with Rakievich at the helm, the company restructured, sold its spring and axle business, lowered overhead costs and raised new capital. It also acquired several new companies, including the second largest global supplier of tools used to make up or break out threaded components used for drilling in the oil and gas sector.
More recently, McCoy bought a Texas company that specializes in sensors, systems and services for heavy industry applications. And, it is moving aggressively into new markets around the world.
“Canada is now only about 5% of our business,” he says. The company also has operations and people in the United States, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates with revenue in more than 50 countries annually.
For many oil and gas companies, the economic downturn has been challenging and McCoy Global is no exception. There were major restructuring and rationalization efforts, explains Rakievich, but the company still managed to keep an eye on the future.
McCoy’s support for polytechnic education and applied research
Since 2003, McCoy Global has donated more than $670,000 to NAIT, including scholarships and bursaries for students in machinist and heavy equipment programs, applied research and the Centre for Steel Technologies at NAIT’s Souch Campus in south Edmonton.
Rakievich, who in 2016 was recognized with an honorary Bachelor of Technology degree, says that McCoy will continue to explore how its relationship with NAIT can help them meet constantly evolving technological challenges.
His advice for NAIT to help companies like McCoy address future challenges? “Stay close to industry and keep moving technology forward.”
Published on May 1, 2018
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Partnership with NAIT helps industry meet evolving technological challenges.
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