Not only does Houston Electric have an excellent reputation, their extensive project list over the last twelve months signals continued and sustainable company growth.
THE SPARK OF SINGAPORE
Since Directors Jenny Tan and Jimson Wee formed the company in 1993, Houston Electric has witnessed strong growth. For 21 years, the company has been supplying specialist electric products and general electrical supplies to the oil and gas sector, water treatment and petrochemical plants. “Our company has three departments: a project sales department, which caters mostly to projects and provide customers a full package which refers to products assembled to meet our customer’s requirements, instead of just individual components. We have an MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Operations) department, which caters specifically to drilling companies MRO requirements & day to day purchases; and a further department in charge of selling products that we are the authorised distributors of,” says Jimson Wee, one of the company Directors. Houston Electric is the authorised distributor for renowned brands such as Appleton, Eaton, Sola HD, Conax Technologies, Siba Fuses, Shihlin transformers and RPS.
ATEX AND NEC PRODUCTION STANDARDS
Houston Electric’s wide range of products comply with both European ATEX and American NEC standards, enabling them to provide the appropriate products to meet various customer requirements effectively. Further, the company is ISO:9001 and Bizsafe Level 3 certified and is registered with the local Building and Construction Authority in order to keep up with the relevant standards, as Wee comments: “In recent years, we have noticed an increase in projects requiring products complying to European safety standards.” alongside the ability to supply products that meet different certification requirements, staff with many years of experience and in-depth technical knowledge enable the company to handle the necessary technical clarifications for projects. “We have the strength and depth within our workforce to provide electrical components and parts to our customers at short notice,” Jenny Tan further emphasises, keen to highlight the importance of a competent sales team.
SUPPLYING TO BIG NAMES
Not only does Houston Electric have an excellent reputation, their extensive project list signals continued and sustainable company growth. Examples of some of their projects from the past 6 months include:
- Supplying ex-proof Control and Distribution Panels to Sandra Project for Siemens
- Supplying ex-proof Control and Distribution Panels for ABB
- Supplying LED Lightings to the OWA Project for CB
- Supplying Middle Voltage Switchgears to Exxon Mobil
- Supplying general purpose Transformers to the Saudi Sabic Project for Daelim
Tight deadlines are to be anticipated within the oil and gas industry, therefore supply chain is of vital importance to a company like Houston Electric. “For deliveries, we have our own logistics department and also work with local transport companies to deliver goods locally. As part of this process, our logistics supervisor liaises with both parties in order to maximise our daily deliveries,” Tan continues: “When importing goods from our principal companies, we work with our forwarders. This is in addition to carrying a large inventory of stock at all times, in order to ensure that we can always meet customer needs.” By securing a strong relationship with suppliers, the company in turn feel they receive greater support in return for their hard work. But what makes Houston Electric’s supply chain so unique? Tan says it is the speed and efficiency of the MRO team: “We understand that most drilling companies require swift responses and deliveries, hence, this team works closely with our supplier and logistics networks to ensure that on time delivery. Our wide supply network ensures that we can source products for customers quickly.”
WORKING WITH MULTI-NATIONALS
Currently, Houston Electric is working with various multi-national drilling companies and strives to constantly improve the internal workings of the company. “We believe in constant improvement, and as such, we have transformed the company internally for greater role clarity, which has increased overall productivity,” cites Tan. Moreover, the company hope to increase their overseas customer base accordingly, whilst they also reach out to more local companies.
To support this is a team of hard working and highly trained staff, which Tan sees as a crucial component in the company success: “We believe in taking care of our staff and making sure they are happy at work. Testament to these efforts, one of our employees, Madam Pang, has been with us for 16 years and counting.” Houston Electric also provides regular internal training in order to equip staff with skills and knowledge to serve customers better.
GIVING BACK TO SINGAPORE
Houston Electric feels that as an internationally-recognised company, it is important that they give something back to the community. In 2014, the company donated to several causes including: Singapore children’s society, SASCO Senior Citizens home, PCS Lifeblood Centre and Singapore Buddhist free clinic. “We believe it is imperative that we invest some of our time in giving back to society, and we do so in various forms,” says Wee. Both Tan and Wee believe that a combination of hard work and taking advantage of opportunities quickly when they arise is a key component to Houston Electric’s success. “It is our consistency and reliability of service to customers that stand us above the rest. In turn, this fosters trust, which results in repeat business and indeed, it gives me great satisfaction when we receive positive feedback from our customers,” Tan proudly concludes.
