Knowledge Retention in Oil and Gas – Stuart Wright’s EPC Win

Knowledge retention in oil and gas is one of the industry’s most pressing challenges. Stuart Wright, a global well design consulting firm, faced a critical dilemma: how to protect valuable engineering knowledge in a high-turnover, resource-strained environment. With engineers frequently rotating in and out of projects or leaving for competitors, years of expertise risked walking out the door. Each departure disrupted productivity, cost time and money, and left incoming staff struggling to restart project work.

The Challenge: Safeguarding Knowledge in a High-Turnover Industry

In the fast-paced oil and gas exploration sector, maintaining process continuity is difficult. Well development projects involve complex, sequential work that must be executed safely and efficiently. However, frequent staff rotation and fierce competition for skilled engineers meant project knowledge was constantly at risk. Without a structured way to capture and transfer that expertise, teams faced costly setbacks and inconsistent performance.

The Solution: Building a Process-Based Knowledge Center

To counter this, Stuart Wright implemented Interfacing’s Enterprise Process Center® (EPC) as a central platform for knowledge retention in oil and gas. The firm mapped out its complete well design methodology—covering stages from concept to execution—and defined key roles, responsibilities, and workflows. Explanatory documents were embedded directly into process maps, and logical task sequences were created for use by new engineers stepping into ongoing projects. This ensured that no matter who was performing the work, the same standard procedures and knowledge base were applied.

How EPC Improved Knowledge Retention in Oil and Gas

With EPC, Stuart Wright established a repeatable, role-based approach to managing engineering knowledge. Process transparency meant that incoming staff could easily identify their responsibilities, locate key documentation, and resume project work without delays. Engineers reported significant gains in onboarding speed, and training costs were notably reduced thanks to the standardized process documentation. The firm could now train engineers faster, minimize project downtime, and ensure that critical knowledge remained within the company despite staff changes.

Sustainable Growth Through Process Clarity

With over 55 years of combined industry experience, Stuart Wright’s leadership knew that sustainable growth required more than expertise—it required structure. EPC helped transform that expertise into a shareable, scalable framework. Instead of knowledge walking out the door, it now lives in a system that everyone can access, follow, and improve.

How Interfacing Can Help

Interfacing’s Enterprise Process Center® enables knowledge-intensive industries to protect and scale their expertise. Whether you’re managing upstream oil projects, complex engineering tasks, or high-stakes compliance, EPC provides the process visibility and governance needed to improve performance, even in the face of resource turnover.