This is a poster displaying my goals and experiences from my internship with Alliance Petroleum Corporation.

1. Field Technician Internship
Alliance Petroleum Corporation
Charles Drennen
Marietta College, Petroleum Engineering Student
Charles Drennen
ced003@Marietta.edu
Contact
1. Photo: “Alliance Petroleum Corporation Overview,” http://www.alliancepetroleum.com/operations/
2. Photo: “Swabbing Rig,” http://www.moncla.com/inventory/swab-units-3
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References
Through the Great Lakes Internship program, I worked at Alliance Petroleum
Corporation as a Field Technician Intern in their Buckhannon, WV office.
• Alliance Petroleum has developed and produced oil and gas wells since
1985.
• The company has 83 full time employees.
• Headquarters in Canton, OH.
• Field offices in Marietta, OH, Buckhannon, WV, and Indiana, PA
• Operates 3765 wells in the Appalachian Basin
Introduction
• Visited numerous gas wells and compressors with well tenders
• Placed soap sticks in wells and flowed wells into the tank battery
• Read and changed circular pressure charts
• Operated leak detection tools on pipeline walks
• Worked on a swabbing rig
• Filled out paperwork for government compliance with pipeline walks
• Checked Miss Utility inquiries against APC wells and pipelines
• Observed production changes after fieldwork (soap, swabbing)
• Measured tank battery fluid levels
Field Technician Experience
To apply knowledge and skills related to the concepts, principles, and
methodologies of Petroleum Engineering and a liberal arts education.
• Used Fluid Mechanics knowledge to understand orifice plates for
pressure reading in wells.
• Liberal arts education enabled me to communicate effectively through
conversation and written reports.
• Diverse student body prepared me to connect with coworkers from
vastly different backgrounds.
To analyze how the company has adapted to cater to the downturn in the
energy market.
• APC temporarily suspended drilling to lower operating costs.
• Limited hours for office and field employees.
• Investment of in-house swabbing rig cuts cost of swabbing a well in half.
Also, swabbing increases production of gas wells and produces oil to the
tank battery.
To explore subsets of petroleum engineering (drilling, production,
completions, reservoir) and examine which would be a good fit for me
based on my skills and inclinations.
• My experience with APC exposed me to production engineering.
• Looking forward to experiencing drilling and reservoir as well.
To build my self-confidence in professional settings.
• Working with foremen and well tenders allowed me to practice
interacting with others in a professional setting.
• All employees were approachable. This made it much easier to discuss
what I saw in the field with these individuals and facilitated an increase
in my self-confidence as a result.
• Well tenders and foreman joked around and helped me feel like one of
the team.
Objectives ReviewA swabbing rig is a type of truck used to remove liquids from natural gas wells
to improve production. My tasks on the rig included disassembling the
wellhead and fitting the swabbing rig onto the well. I also closed a valve
showing fluid has reached the surface level, and watched out for flags on the
cable, indicating that the swabbing tools are close to the wellhead.
My supervisor and I ran into a challenge with the rig when a well tender tried
to lift too much fluid to the surface at once, causing the truck to strain and
knocking over the support jacks. From then on, the cable would not spool
correctly on the truck. After disassembling part of the motor and manually
engaging the clutch for the winch, we realized the issue stemmed from the
cable sliding off of its guide at the top of pipe stack, which preventing it from
spooling smoothly.
Swabbing Rig
This pipeline system needs to be inspected regularly for leaks, pipeline
markers, and possible environmental hazards to the pipe.
My role included using leak detection tools known as “sniffers” to check for
gas leaks. I also checked where pipeline markers were removed and also
assessed potential hazards to the pipeline such as road washouts. I recorded
this information from the walks on paperwork necessary for government
inspections.
We achieved walking the pipeline and filing all the paperwork. From this
experience, I learned how pipelines must be inspected per regulations, and
how they are built and varied with respect to roads and businesses.
Carbide Pipeline Walks
Swabbing Rig
APC Wellhead: Gas well head
with separator leading to the
tank battery, and methanol tank
to help prevent freezing in the
winter.