Southeast Directional Drilling Realigns Organizational Structure to Expand into Municipal, Industrial Projects

Southeast Directional Drilling (SEDD) has announced that it has realigned its organizational structure to pursue horizontal directional drilling (HDD) growth opportunities in the municipal and industrial sectors.

SEDD’s new Municipal/Industrial division will be housed in the company’s new office in Superior, Wis. The company’s flagship Pipeline Operations division will remain at SEDD’s headquarters in Casa Grande, Ariz.

To help ensure the success of this realignment, SEDD has named two new members to its management team. Mel Olson, P.E., a former engineering and construction vice president for Frontier Pipeline, has been named vice president of municipal/industrial operations for SEDD, after serving as a project manager and head of business development for the company. Todd Barton, one of SEDD’s original employees whose former duties included project manager and lead estimator, will serve as vice president of pipeline operations for SEDD.

“We’re excited about the opportunity to grow and strengthen our company by expanding our work on government, utility and other industrial projects,” said SEDD president Steve Ugrich. “As we looked to the future, we recognized we had the perfect resources in terms of the experienced people on our staff and the continued financial backing of Sorenson Capital to strengthen our position as a premiere horizontal directional drilling contractor.”

SEDD has a long-established reputation for its work on traditional oil and natural gas pipeline projects throughout and outside the United States, including a world-record-setting 56-in. crossing in Trinidad and Tobago.

In 2010, through a strategic partnership with Sorenson Capital, SEDD purchased Frontier Pipeline, an HDD company that had an extensive background in municipal projects. This included a successful project for the Connecticut Department of Transportation, which involved the installation of a 48-in. product line with a 45-degree turn over a length of 1,900 ft, beneath the New Haven Harbor.

 

About Southeast Directional Drilling

Founded in 2002, Southeast Directional Drilling is led by a management team with more than 100 years’ combined experience in the HDD and pipeline construction industries. The company has successfully completed more than 150 miles of crossings, including 35-plus miles of 42-in. diameter or greater. The company is licensed and bonded to work in all 50 U.S. states.