Local Expertise for an International Industry

While it is generally accepted that the arrival of new companies to the Mexican oil and gas industry will introduce new ways of doing things, Mexican businesses will have a pivotal role in helping these entrants to succeed, says Juan Tapia, Director General of Construcciones Industriales Tapia. “One of the key objectives of the Energy Reform is to bring partners from all over the world to improve Mexico’s oil and gas industry. In that sense, national companies must commit to helping these new companies strengthen their presence by providing them with local knowledge and expertise.”

Pointing to the quality of the existing local content, Tapia says training and adaptability is crucial. “At Construcciones Industriales Tapia we are committed to investing in key projects for us and our partners to develop the Mexican industry,” he says. “We achieve this by training our staff according to the needs of each project we participate in. We like to shape our people so they are ready to tackle the needs of the future.”

The company’s strategy is to recruit potential employees while they are still studying and then train them to the standards expected by Construcciones Industriales Tapia, a 100-percent Mexican engineering, procurement and construction business. This pipeline of human talent positions the company uniquely in the market, and Tapia believes that this formula is one of its key success factors. “By forging our own human capital, we end up with experts who are committed to the company and to the Mexican industry,” he says

Tapia suggests, however, that some companies do not share this view. “Sometimes in Mexico not everyone works toward achieving the same objective, which is critical for any project to realize better results,” he says. “This is also seen in some branches of the government, especially in terms of creating synergies between the private and the public sectors.”

According to Tapia, private companies must deal with different federal agencies, such as CRE, CNH and ASEA, and at the local level and this is a big opportunity area for the government to facilitate investment in the country. “Companies know very well the potential of Mexico in terms of resources but they still lack the knowledge regarding how to operate here,” he says. “Processes that must be developed and presented to and approved by different regulatory agencies at different levels should be streamlined to foster investment.”

Despite the new playing field, Tapia says the diversification of products and services has served the company well. Construcciones Industriales Tapia has a 60ha facility located in Tula, one of the biggest in the country and employing almost 3,500 people. “Everything in the location is owned by Construcciones Industriales Tapia,” he says. “We can meet any manufacturing request, from metal structure, piping and storage tanks to equipment for offshore platforms.”

Tapia adds that the extent of the company’s expertise stretches across several projects, each one having been delivered on time and on budget, regardless of difficulty, he says. “We are not interested in easy projects because those can be performed by anyone in the market.”

Among the most important projects in which Construcciones Industriales Tapia has taken part is the reconfiguration of the Lazaro Cárdenas refinery located in Minatitlan. The company worked on a full reconfiguration together with several technology and engineering firms. “This project is the biggest of the 35 different projects we have worked on in the country,” says Tapia.

Construcciones Industriales Tapia is now looking at the possibility of installing a general services yard in Veracruz. Tapia also has other projects in the pipeline, as he looks toward renewable energies and strengthening the manufacturing industry in the country.

The opportunities in the industry are significant in all industrial areas, Tapia says, and national companies must work hard to ensure the success of the country. “If Mexican companies do not fully support international companies as they enter the country, no one will, and ultimately the country will be affected,” he warns. “At Tapia Construcciones we are ready to work together with whoever understands and supports our vision.”