Every Bolt Matters to Ensure Energy Security and Efficiency

Q: How do your products promote energy security and energy efficiency?

A: The components that we make are designed to ensure operational reliability in some of the most critical environments within the energy industry. For oil and gas, our products are used to put complex pieces of equipment together, whether that be on land or up to 6km underwater. Therefore, the functionality of our product is of the utmost importance, considering a minor leak can lead to devastating consequences. We also have a range of products for wind power, which includes everything from anchoring wind turbines to securing the various aspects of the tower itself, right up to where the blades connect to the turbine. These components must be very well made to ensure they are both strong, durable, and compliant with regulation. We achieve this by ensuring we understand and follow the applicable specifications through a rigorous process. Our products are designed to maintain the designed life cycle and meet all operational expectations. 

Q: How do your offshore products assuage ESG and HSE concerns and make deepwater exploration and production more viable?

A: Quite simply, we make fasteners to hold components of different equipment together. When the Deepwater Horizon tragedy happened, it forced the oil and gas industry to review and implement best practices to prevent this from reoccurring. This initiative has been applied to various equipment, processes and products. For the Fastener product line, we came together as an industry, and with the guidance of the American Petroleum Institute (API), we created a new specification for the products. These products are now more standardized and integrated. There are three clearly-defined levels of criticality: bolting specification level (BSL) 1, 2 and 3. BSL 3 is used for the most critical bolting specification: API 20E.

BSL 3 is used for deepwater, offshore drilling, and other subsea applications. Bolting made to this specification IS the most critical, and therefore requires extensive testing and product control before placing into the field. With this new mindset and greater attention paid to standardizing the requirements, hopefully, we will be able to have more reliable solutions for exploration and production. 

Q: What is your involvement with the American Petroleum Institute (API) and its rating system? 

A: By virtue of our product line, we are heavily involved with API. API is an industry organization that certifies a company’s quality management system and product manufacturing capabilities. Now, our entire company is certified with APIQ1, API20E for carbon steel bolting, API20F for CRA bolts and API6A for gaskets. For API20E and 20F, we played a key role since we helped to write the specification, being the only Mexican company and one of five manufacturers globally with voting privilege. This voting group also includes various OEMs and end users like IOCs. We also participate in all the task groups that carry out R&D for parameters related to the product line. 

Q: How is the company adapting its products to the growing renewable energy industry? 

A: We have been active in the wind equipment sector for over 10 years and our greatest success has come from projects in Mexico and the wider Latin American region. Currently, we have the reputation globally to start promoting our products in the US, Asia and other new markets. Today, we are preparing to expand to the US market, which is the closest to Mexico. However, the market landscape can be a challenge in terms of increased global competition compared to Latin America’s supply chain. We are pursuing this goal through local construction companies or global contracts with larger renewable energy companies. 

Wind power is a comparatively newer industry, so we do not see the same level of criticality when it comes to the application just yet. Many wind farms are just now turning 10 years old and there is even less data available for offshore wind farms. That being said, AUGE brings expertise on how bolting performs under these conditions of wear and tear, operational time and for offshore how it reacts when exposed to saltwater conditions. We also offer product testing, which includes mechanical, chemical and corrosion testing, among many other tests that can be translated to any industry application.

Q: How are your fasteners and products evolving in terms of materials? 

A: To understand the application of a product, we needed to increase the level of engineers and experts within our own company. AUGE did this by increasing the number of chemists, engineers and even Ph.Ds. We did not need to design new products. Instead, we wanted to be able to translate the client’s requirements to the production side of our operation. As a result, we are now using more exotic metals and carrying out more critical audits of all our processes.

Process stabilization that minimizes risk is imperative in this industry. We have also introduced some proprietary coatings and plating, which help guarantee the operational life of our products. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. AUGE manufactures products considering the type of environment it is destined for, the type of metal used and the application specified. When these three variables come into play kilometers under the ocean’s surface, each variable must be analyzed individually to assess the long-term usage and performance of a product.

Q: As you approach your 60th year of operations, what are your goals for the future and what is your message for the wider energy industry? 

A: AUGE’s goal for the future is to continue promoting Mexican manufacturing. We want to showcase our abilities, demonstrate that we are on par with any country in the world in terms of our expertise, quality, and service. We want to continue with this mission for the next 60 years leaving a legacy for future AUGE members. Globally, the world is looking again to Mexico, not just as a manufacturer and best-cost country but one that can meet the demands of the global energy industry and its high-standard regulations. Over the next few years, we expect to see a boom in subsea and offshore drilling to make up for the global deficit that we have in oil and gas. It is important that we are prepared for these trends over the next 10 years. 

There will be an even growing demand for energy and our main goal is to stay at the forefront of the energy industry, bringing solutions to our stakeholders and partners. 

AUGE Industrial is a market-leading manufacturer and distributor of fastening and sealing systems for the energy industry