Meet Ronald

• Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
• University: Louisiana State University – Baton Rouge, Louisiana
• Studied: Mechanical Engineering
• Joined Shell: May 2000

Several reasons; I was born and reared in New Orleans, and my Dad always talked about Shell – it was the biggest building in town (One Shell Square). When I graduated from LSU, I started working for another company and a different industry, but felt that the petrochemical industry was a better fit.

Initially, I wanted to stay in Houston, but I found out about an opportunity in New Orleans that turned out to be Shell (Motiva). There was still that brand name appeal, so I was immediately interested, came down and interviewed and here I am.

As a project engineer, my primary responsibility is to successfully manage engineered capital projects on time and within +/- 10% of the estimated cost.

My associated duties to accomplish this are: to define the required technical resources required (engineering, operations, reliability and/or environmental) and create a project team, fully develop the scope of the project, ensure retention one drawings are updated according to the impending changes/modifications, perform necessary technical assurance for design and equipment integrity, consult with on-site construction contractors for associated construction labor and material costs, develop a +/- 10% total installed cost estimate for the project, manage construction to ensure accuracy and safety, and to ultimately manage the project according to the Management of Change (MOC) Project Process.

It’s really both a financial and technical role. For example, a recent project I managed was a water draw system for 14 gasoline tanks where the existing piping was underground and had degraded over time. We needed to be aware of environmental issues and design and install about 3000 ft. of aboveground piping so leaks can easily be identified and fixed without any environmental impact.

The existing underground piping – approx. 4000 ft. – was filled with a cement epoxy to ensure the piping did not serve as a future distribution network for potential leaks in the future. Our design was required to meet Shell specifications, applicable codes and standard and meet the existing performance requirements of the system. In addition to managing that project, I was responsible for creating and maintaining the budget to get the work done, choosing and working with various contractors and other experts from within Shell.

I like the fact that I get the best of both worlds in terms of technical exposure and working with people. I love to work with people, in fact the construction phase of any project is my favorite where I see everything on paper become a reality.

I want to continue in project engineering/management to fully develop skills to manage larger multi-million dollar projects. There is a possibility for me to go into a pressure or rotating equipment role to round off my experience. Since I enjoy working with people so much, I would be interested in a public affairs role – working with the community and with employees in a public or internal affairs aspect using my technical knowledge to assist me.