O.J. joined Watson Millican & Co. in September 2009 as an Associate Consultant.  He has over 40 years of technical expert and business management experience in refining operations and process plant technologies and design.

O.J. has consulted on diverse areas such as refinery operations and performance, market studies and commercial evaluations, resolution of feedstock supply and transportation disputes, and investigation of industrial accidents.

Education

• B.S. Chemical Engineering – University of Idaho – 1978

Example Engagements

• Refinery Operating Management Contract – Negotiated and delivered the agreed services for a three-party agreement involving a national oil company, a process licensor and a refinery services company.  Deliverables included a core operating and management staff for the commissioning and operation of a grassroots refinery.  The contract ran for five years, during which time the contracted staff was gradually phased out in favor of permanent employees.  The contract required preparing for and participation in quarterly site meetings to review and manage progress towards the refinery’s performance and management objectives.
• Grassroots Refinery and Petrochemical Plant Project – Assisted with a global market study to confirm the viability of the project.  Study included collection and analysis of public domain data on current market supply and demand as well as announced projects for new refinery production and new petrochemical plant feedstock demand.
• Refinery Performance Solutions – Participated in the development of the business plan and implementation for a new business unit for a licensor to deliver services to major refinery client companies, including Shell, BP and Mobil.  The implementation included forming an alliance with a major consulting company that provided synergies with the unit.  The new business unit met both first and second year performance targets.
• Process Technology Commercialization – Assisted with a market study to evaluate the viability of a gas-to-liquids project to be built on a Floating Production, Storage and Offloading vessel (FPSO) to be sited off the west coast of Africa.  Study included analysis of public domain data on supply and demand and future quality specifications for diesel in the Atlantic basin.
• Litigation Support in Terminal Explosion – Acted under instruction from a major London law firm to participate in an investigation of the events that led to the largest peace time explosion in Europe.  Working on behalf of a group of claimants comprised of major oil companies, the investigation proved negligence on the part of the terminal operator.
• Lenders Engineer – Conducted an analysis of a new refinery and petrochemical project seeking $1,000,000,000 in project finance.  Analysis included evaluation of feedstock supply and product off-take agreements, evaluation of management team and schedules, staffing resources, evaluation of process technology, flow schemes, project schedules, port facilities, review of environmental impact and process license and guarantee agreements.
• Contract Dispute Resolution – Participated in the resolution of a dispute under instruction from a major London law firm for their client, a large European refiner.  At issue was a product off-take agreement with a trading company covering feedstock supply.  The trading company claimed a breach of contract and damages.
• Refinery Performance and Operating Practices – Participated in a number of projects for major international refinery clients to analyze performance gaps and implement performance improvement solutions.  Identified the key objectives expected and then provided solutions for achieving the new target performance levels.
• Pipeline Dispute Resolution – Participated in the resolution of a dispute under instruction from a London law firm for their client who was a crude oil producer.  The dispute involved the management of a Quality Bank for a major pipeline transporting the crude to market.
• Performance Improvement Teams – Worked with a major UK international oil company to set up “virtual” performance improvement teams within its worldwide operating units.  These teams included both technical and business experts from within the refiner’s corporate organization, as well as outside experts such as UOP.  Role involved re-designing the IT infrastructure, team methodologies and collaborative tools to rapidly act on new problems and opportunities.

Associate Consultant

ojschneider@WatsonMillican.com

(972) 578-7980

700 Central Expressway South

Suite 425

Allen, TX 75013