1. Reference for Doug McDowell
By Steve Peterson
Engineering Leader
Valero Benicia Refinery
I have worked with Doug for the last ten years and found him to be a limitless sales resource, creative
strategist, and networked individual.
In our most recent interaction, our refinery went through the process of choosing a standard PLC control
platform. By the time I got involved, the Valero team had all but decided to use a GE competitor. Doug and
his team had coordinated technical demonstrations for our staff, but this was not enough to win them over.
Something creative and extraordinary would have to happen for GE to win this business.
Doug reached out to his extensive network of contacts to pull in the support of our VP of Corporate IT in
Houston. He changed the dialogue from a simple hardware comparison to a proposal for a global
partnership that would include support, services, software, and hardware. Once the local Valero team heard
from Houston, and saw the global momentum building, they decided to make GE their standard platform.
In addition, the local team has started to reevaluate their HMI software position, and adopted an industrial
PC from GE. Several pilot installations have been installed with a GE software solution, and they are going
well.
What has been critical to the success of this endeavor is Doug’s ability to listen to our needs, and promise
to deliver only what he could secure. He discussed the total value of his offering with all the parties to
make Valero comfortable with their decision, and has followed through to make the partnership a success. I
was not surprised that this relationship went smoothly because I have had similar experiences with Doug
while working at a Systems Integrator and handling a large semiconductor OEM.
For validation of these statements, please contact me.
Steve Peterson
Valero
707 745-7437