Schlumberger

The Schlumberger company is the leading Franco-American oilfield-service company, supplying customers working in the international oil and gas industry. It was founded by Conrad and Maurice Schlumberger in 1934, after the renaming of the preexisting Societé de Prospection Électrique, founded by the same two brothers in 1919. The two brothers actually opened their first office in 1920, and, starting in 1923, began conducting geophysical surveys in Romania, Serbia, Canada, Union of South Africa, Belgian Congo, and the United States. In 1929 they operated in Venezuela and India. In 1940 Schlumberger's headquarters were moved to Houston, Texas. The company developed financial as well as technical innovations. Among the major technological innovations were the SP Dipmeter for finding the angle of formation dip in the borehole, and the Resistivity Dipmeter tool. In 1952 Schlumberger bought 50 percent of Forex drilling rig company. Later it acquired the U.S. company Johnston Testers, which specialized in testing and production (1956); Dowell Schlumberger (50% Schlumberger, 50% Dow Chemical), which specialized in pumping services for the oil industry (1960); Solatron, a British electrical instrumentation company (1962); Flopetrol, which specialized in testing production of oil wells (1971); and Applicon and Balteau (1981). Schlumberger is a world leading company in oilfield services, specializing in supplying technology, project management and information solutions to the oil and gas industry.

SEE ALSO Petroleum.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Allaud, Louis; Martin, Maurice; and Schwob, Marcel. Schlumberger. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 1978

Auletta, Ken. The Art of Corporate Success: The Story of Schlumberger. New York: Penguin Books, 1985.

INTERNET RESOURCES

"History and Milestones." Schlumberger web site. Available from http://www.slb.com/press/company/history

Federico Boffa