<p>I was wondering if anybody has any knowledge of a similar position with a similar company? Salary, work environment, etc </p>
<p>I know one person who accepted a job in the field with Schlumberger. The pay was pretty good but he absolutely hated it. I haven’t talked to him in a while but from the sounds of it he was going to be looking for a new job when he had the chance. If you’re not opposed to those kinds of working conditions you can definitely make some good money. Personally, I’d avoid it like the plague.</p>
<p>Interesting… He hated it that much huh?? Do you have a number for the salary he made by any chance? Do you know what it was about the job he disliked so much? Thanks for the info…</p>
<p>Some contractors told me that there are some jobs overseas field engineering jobs that can pay well over $100,000 or $200,000 per year depending on the company, the work, and the location. I don’t know anything official or how true this is. </p>
<p>I did a preliminary online interview with a company in the oil industry. They were offering $60,000 for the first year in field engineering and after that I could make up to $100,000. If I was single I might have taken the offer but with a wife and baby at home I decided to stick with my current job, which at the time time was paying $60,000 per year.</p>
<p>I have worked with a lot of contractors who do field work. They like the money but the lifestyle is rough and not very conducive to having a family.</p>
<p>What Justin said. I know quite a few people who have worked there. There is a reason it’s harder to work for an operator. Generally, people work as “field engineers” because they couldn’t work for an operator and then try to work for an operator.</p>
<p>Mr Payne,</p>
<p>Are those 100k to 200k salaries realistic? If so, what kind of work and what areas do you have to work in to earn that kind of money? The contractors that I was talking to work with gas and steam turbines. They have not done much overseas work for many years but they have more knowledge about the opportunities than I do. My wife told me that if I made enough money to buy a new house and if she did not have to work, she would be okay with me going overseas. I’d be afraid she would spend all of the money.</p>
<p>Mr Payne
Could you explain the difference between a field engineer and an operator?</p>
<p>Operator = Person who runs the field.</p>
<p>Field engineers are typically those that work for service companies (Schlumberger/Hali/Baker Hughes etc)–they are contracted out by the operators for services like frac jobs, well-tests, floods and etc. </p>
<p>Think of the operator as a guy who owns a condo and the field engineers are the contractors you hire to install things, such as new cabinets or fixtures. </p>
<p>Field engineers typically have rough hours and are constantly on call by the operator, especially if a tool breaks.</p>
<p>As Mr. Payne said, typically you want to work as the operator since to be honest, the service companies and their field engineers answer to you.</p>
<p>If you are interested in the “field” engineering standpoint, I’d suggest that you look into Drilling and Completions for an operator.</p>
<p>In my case, I am an engineer for a power plant. During boiler/turbine outages we hire contractors to do some of the work. The field engineers from these companies would report to me since I am the project manager for the “operator.” Some of the contractors don’t want to work for operators because they enjoy working as many different places and they don’t have to worry about project budgets like I do since the customer/operator is paying the contractor for whatever work is done (if on a T&M basis. firm price jobs require more budget management by the contractor). Some of the field engineers are self-employed. They got their experience through OEM’s before going out on their own. These particular guys hate working for other people (i.e. plant managers).</p>
<p>
More precisely, the company would operates the field.</p>
<p>This would be the traditional Independent oil companies or National oil companies (ie: Exxon, Shell, Chevron, Petrobras, Pemex, etc).</p>
<p>In order to make 150K+ one most likely is fairly well trained, working offshore, working 24 hours a day. They have a minimal salary and make the vast majority of their money on a day rate or % cut of the job cost that they are working.</p>
<p>Baker/Schlumberger/Halliburton are much quicker to lay people off if business changes than normal operators. It can be good, but I generally think working for an operators is what most people perceive as the most desirable position.</p>
<p>If I became a field engineer, I would work on turbines. I work for an operator and I am in charge of steam turbine overhauls. I have gotten a few calls from recruiters looking for turbine field engineers but all of them are looking for experienced field engineers. It would take a significant salary and benefits offer for me to go into the field.</p>
<p>I’m not a novice on turbines, but my general thoughts are that working with an OEM field engineering position first would probably be the way to go if you wanted to make big money doing a setup/installation/troubleshooting sort of Field Engineering gig. The problem is just one of credibility. I don’t know what sort of company you would work for…Solar Turbines, RR, GE, Pratt & Whitney.</p>
<p>I am most familiar with companies like GE, Siemens, Alstom, etc. All of the turbines in my company (electric utility) are GE and Westinghouse units. We work with both OEM and non-OEM companies for repairs. OEM companies are so much more expensive. I don’t see how they can even compete with non-OEM repair companies unless they have a service contract in place. For example, there was a particular part that an OEM was charging $25,000 for. I went directly to a machine shop that makes parts for this OEM and got the same part for $5,000.</p>