Although its history in oil and gas supply dates back 150 years, since 1993, DistributionNOW (DNOW) has been an industry-leading distributor of pipe, valves, fittings and flanges (PVF); valve actuation; pumps; maintenance, repair and operations; and mill, tool and safety supplies and services to the downstream refining and chemical manufacturing industry. BIC Magazine recently spoke with Jim Conerly, Southern region sales manager, downstream and industrial, about how DNOW serves its customers during turnarounds and addresses concerns.
BIC: What does DNOW offer the industry?
CONERLY: Not only can we provide all the PVF, pumps, MRO consumables, safety products and services, but DNOW also provides, under a single supplier contract, many products coupled with a delivery model optimized to fit our customers' operations and scale to fit any number of operating locations. We truly become a trusted partner of our customers' supply chain function.
BIC: What differentiates your offering from others?
CONERLY: DNOW's key differentiator is our knowledgeable, dedicated people and flexible operating models that allow us to configure supply chain solutions, coupled with the distribution of energy and industrial products, to service our customers' needs. Our commitment to our customers and quality of service is at the forefront of who we are. Providing excellent customer service is our promise, and we are committed to understanding our customers' needs and exceeding their expectations.
We have been delivering an enhanced support model successfully for over 15 years, utilizing a single on-site issuing, inventory management and reporting system for capital material, consumables, rental safety equipment, breathing air and manpower.
BIC: Can you tell a recent success story with a customer issue?
CONERLY: In fall 2018, one of our major Gulf Coast refinery customers performed its largest-scale maintenance turnaround in 10 years. DNOW designed and implemented a multiple-week, 24/7 program that provided labor coverage for issuing and maintaining rental safety equipment, breathing air, PPE and consumables to plant employees and contractors. During our pre-turnaround meetings with the customer, DNOW designed and presented a detailed plan to reduce estimated manpower by 50 percent. All safety service functions performed above expectation, and this support model will be used on future turnarounds.
BIC: How does DNOW offer more than just safety and turnaround service?
CONERLY: In addition to supporting our customers' turnarounds, DNOW provides on-site safety service stores and equipment centers. These on-site stores service the customer's day-to-day needs and are stocked with an agreed-upon list of products. Our on-site service locations may be manned with DNOW personnel, unmanned, or may utilize industrial vending technology to provide service and a mechanism for inventory issue, replenishment and inventory management.
BIC: What are DNOW's customers most concerned about?
CONERLY: Customers today are concerned about the safety of their employees and contractors working within the facility above everything else. We are challenged every day to bring ideas that will help make plants safer workplaces and to find better ways workers can obtain the products and knowledge they need to perform their jobs safely.
DNOW addresses these concerns by constantly communicating with our customers, discussing their product and service needs, achieving a better understanding of the drivers for their business, and always searching for and delivering better ways of servicing customers that bring more value to our relationships.
For more information, visit www. distributionnow.com or call (800) 228-2893.
