The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Polaris in joint venture to get foothold in US market
North-east training company Polaris Learning has teamed up with a US firm as it aims to get a foothold in the US oil and gas industry.
Oldmeldrum-based Polaris said yesterday its new joint-venture with Safety Management Systems (SMS) would deliver a range of training courses to onshore and offshore workers, mainly in Texas and Louisiana.
Polaris added it hoped to secure a “vital foothold in the lucrative American market" with the move.
The international expansion has been supported by Scottish Development International (SDI)
Safety Management Systems, part of Acadian Companies, already has training centres in Houston and Louisiana which have welcomed more than 134,000 students since 2011.
The link-up with Polaris will allow these learners to complete qualifications remotely at the click of a button. Polaris staff will provide additional support through webinars, video conferencing and e-mail.
Polaris managing director Keith Adam said: “America is a growing market. The longer term projections are for them to recover to something like 2million barrels per day.
“There's a more complex legislative framework in the States, especially after the Macondo (2010 blowout) incident. We know that the need is there."
He added: “This link-up is an important first step and we expect to secure a number of key clients for our range of training courses within the first year of this collaboration.
“To begin with, the scope of our agreement will cover the US only.
“But we are hopeful this could lead to further opportunities in Canada, Mexico and South America.
“We've worked internationally for quite a long time, building up our experience primarily in the North Sea and then exporting that out with the squeeze on the industry in the last couple of years.”
SMS, headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana, is one of the largest health, safety, environmental, medical, security and training service companies in the US.