Marcellus/Utica Shale Supply Chain Tutorial

One of the most frequent questions asked of Jim Willis, founder and editor of Marcellus Drilling News, is “How can my business plug into the Marcellus/Utica Shale supply chain?” The short answer is—there is no short answer! There is no one path to scoring business in this fast-moving, rapidly-expanding shale drilling industry. But don’t despair! This is an exciting time if you own or work for a business in the northeast—anywhere in or near the Marcellus or Utica Shale region. If you can successfully crack into the shale drilling market—i.e. “the supply chain”—you stand a great chance to make a lot of money.

Even in this time of cut-backs and idled drilling rigs, there is still drilling activity in the Marcellus/Utica! Now more than ever you need an advantage to get a piece of the supply chain pie. This tutorial aims to give you that advantage.

This Supply Chain Tutorial first appeared in the Marcellus and Utica Shale Databook. It is our attempt to help you along the path to selling your products and/or services to the shale drilling industry.

In this tutorial we break down the drilling process from the beginning to the end so you have a deep and complete understanding of what happens at each stage. We’ve mapped to each stage the products and services used in that stage, so you can easily identify whether or not your business fits into the picture.

Finally, we list “supply chain opportunities” which are business types by NAICS code/description. Please be aware that we believe our treatment of this topic is thorough, but it is not comprehensive. Just because you don’t see your “type” of business in the list doesn’t mean there isn’t a market for your products and services. We simply can’t list every possible product or service or business! The descriptions and listings on the pages in this tutorial are meant to educate and inspire you so you can imagine your own possibilities and where your business “fits in” to the picture.

After you study the following pages and get an understanding of how drilling a well works, we’ll conclude with a tutorial on how to locate the right person to talk to about selling your products and services. Hold on for the ride!

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