I N N O V AT I O N S • J A N U A R Y - M A R C H 2 0 1 4
2
My grandfather – T.D. Williamson, Sr. – knew a thing or two
about the notion of a family business. Back in 1920, he founded
The Petroleum Electric Company. That original modest enterprise –
which later became the TDW we know today – was founded with one
goal in mind: to meet the need for electric power in the oil fields.
Since those earliest days, TDW has innovated and adapted in order
to serve our customers well. During the past 94 years, we have become
the world’s most recognized name in pipeline equipment and services.
From hot tapping and plugging to pigging, from integrity inspection
to offshore isolation, we have grown and evolved to meet the ever-
changing needs of industry.
As part of a private, family-owned business, all of us here at TDW –
the Williamson family, the Board of Directors, our executive leadership
and our personnel worldwide – are excited about our opportunities
going forward. Look at TDW and you will see a depth and continuity
of commitment to all aspects of our enterprise.
And because we are a family business, we don’t have to manage
our results or limit our investments to meet short-term quarterly
expectations of Wall Street. We can focus on doing what is right for the
business over the long-term. That’s precisely what we will continue to
do in 2014, and beyond. We will continue to reinvest in the products
and services that have made us successful, and in our greatest asset –
our dedicated personnel around the globe.
Those personnel are pioneering innovative solutions to age-old
challenges, including the need to detect pipeline cracks. You can read
more about how our new SpirALL
®
EMAT technology is addressing
that need in the cover story beginning on page 14 of this issue of
Innovations
™ magazine.
At the end of the day, our customers trust TDW to deliver
solutions that serve them well now, and help them ensure the safe and
reliable operation of their pipeline infrastructures for decades to come.
We take that trust very seriously. After all, many of our customers
started out as small businesses long ago, and they’ve grown alongside
us, just like family.
BY DICK WILLIAMSON
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
E X E C U T I V E O U T L O O K
The
Family
Business
