Timing is everything in business, and it’s virtually impossible to have chosen a worse time to start an oil patch business than 2014. At the time, the stars seemed to align for the would-be entrepreneurs; the sale of their employer, an oilfield services company, to a conglomerate spurred the group of colleagues to blaze their own trail. The 10 experienced professionals with different yet complementary expertise formed their own progressive cavity pump company for oil and gas wells that they called MANTL Canada Ltd. in the summer of 2014; the months that followed were some of the rockiest in recent history.
“It wasn’t well timed. The energy industry in Canada declined rapidly at that time because of the change in policies and ESG movements so our first couple years were very tough,” says MANTL Canada president and CEO Matthew Kenna.
The price of oil dropped drastically, going from a high of $107.95/bbl in June to $44.08/bbl in January 2015. The adversity and challenge of those early months served to motivate the group rather than break it, and they decided to create a different kind of oilfield services company to differentiate and elevate it in the marketplace. Theirs was going to be a locally-owned and operated, independent, customer-centric artificial lift company run by a group of like-minded, dedicated, ambitious people. They banded together and rode out the downturn as they focused on building their business from the ground up, providing the personal attention and service to clients that the huge conglomerates historically struggled to do.
“We had the advantage of all being in it together as owners, and we were able to do everything ourselves so we didn’t have to hire outside consultants or staff right away,” Kenna says.
From the start, Kenna and his partners built more than a quality service-oriented company; they built a community. It was important that MANTL’s successes extended to the communities in which they did business. It takes buy-in from participants on all sides of the business to be successful, and through great communication, collaboration and a growing community, MANTL ensured everyone was sharing in the successes.
“There’s lots of nuts and bolts in the things that we do but we have internal support for almost everything. A lot of the people in the markets or the product lines are shareholders in the company. If we succeed, they succeed. It’s a pretty cool program,” he says.
Despite the challenging oil and gas environment during its freshman year, the team at MANTL established themselves in the market, opening and staffing four field stores in Alberta and Saskatchewan, developing and launching new product lines and software into the market and installing their first international pump. By the end of 2015, it was servicing projects in four countries.
Over the past 10 years, the independent manufacturer and distributor of complete PCP systems has grown to 10 field stores across Western Canada that are supported by three Alberta manufacturing shops producing in-house sucker rods, power units, electric and hydraulic driveheads and PC pumps. MANTL is one of the largest continuous rod suppliers in Western Canada with its fleet of eight rod transfer units supported by field welders, portable rod shear and bulk haul trailers; in 2022, the company reached one million metres of continuous rod sold in Canada.
The team of experienced professionals knows the wells in the field inside and out so they can recommend out-of-the-box solutions as well as design and engineer pump systems specifically for the clients’ needs and service what they sell. MANTL also offers customizable automation options designed in-house that keep clients connected to their systems. This high level of expertise and service has helped MANTL grow significantly in Western Canada and beyond.
Today, the company is growing internationally, with two field stores in the United States and operations in Australia and the Middle East. MANTL has pumps operating in 15 different countries and 15 different American states with plans to expand its U.S. presence. The company recently added a re-manufacturing facility in Lloydminster, Alberta, through its acquisition of the sucker rod services and guide installation division of Force Inspection Service. This added 20 more employees to MANTL’s team of what is now more than 100 people and introduced another element of environmental responsibility in reducing a company’s footprint.
“It goes well with the environmental focus that the world has right now. With these reconditioned rods, instead of letting them rot somewhere in a yard or even downhole, we’re pulling them out and inspecting them. The ones that are no good get reused in construction and if they are still good, we clean them all up, repaint them and send them back out again,” he says.
Environmental stewardship and energy efficiency is important in today’s oil patch. The team is proud that MANTL’s progressive cavity pump systems are designed for maximum efficiency, which delivers clients significant energy savings and a long run life. MANTL’s PCP systems use less power to operate, and studies show a 54.2 per cent average reduction of electricity consumption with no production losses, helping clients realize their ESG targets. They also ensure that the combination of rotor and stator in the MANTL PC Pumps perfectly matches the downhole conditions to optimize production. The agile company is not just responding to changes and advancements in the market but is leading the way in the industry.
With the introduction of new products and services and new client markets, MANTL continues to grow in size and scope, driven by a collection of four simple core values that form the foundation of MANTL Canada.
“They’re pretty basic but they resonate with the guys and we’re really happy that we created something that wasn’t just a platitude on a wall,” Kenna says.
The guiding principle is “Give a S#!t” and this slogan has become a mantra at all MANTL locations. The company is comprised of people who put that slogan into practice every day by going above and beyond to get the job done right for customers. Instead of profit-sharing bonuses, MANTL offers “G.A.S.” money that is awarded to employees who adopt that “Give a S#!t” attitude. This can include going the extra mile to service customers, having a well-maintained truck, picking up an after-hours phone call or ensuring safety programs are followed to the letter.
Many key employees live in the areas where customers are utilizing MANTL’s PCP systems and services, so they are often providing services for their friends or uncles or neighbours. Their reputation is on the line, and adherence to the “Give a S#!t” core value ensures there is pride in getting the work done well and taking great care of customers. The leadership team applies the same “Give a S#!t” philosophy to the employees; they focus on work-life balance to prevent burnout and to promote quality downtime with family and friends. That way the team is always engaged, focused and ready to apply the company’s core values with clients, suppliers and each other.
MANTL’s core values have shaped its culture and contributed to its growth and success over the past decade. The team is urged to be creative and resourceful to “Make it Happen,” applying quick, smart decisions that will solve a problem or make a positive impact for clients, no excuses. “Be Better Together” reflects the company’s focus on relationships and treating customers and suppliers as partners working together to achieve mutual success. Lastly, “Don’t Settle” reminds the team to never become complacent; there is always room for improvement and the team should always strive to do better.
“We don’t settle on mediocrity. It’s about saying yes – we can improve that product, yes – we can improve our service, yes – we can do this by removing waste within our system,” says Kenna. “Those are our core values and all of the guys have their interpretations of them and they live by them pretty well.”
As the CEO, Kenna also lives by three Cs to keep the business moving in the right direction: cash, customers and communication. These elements rotate through as priorities depending on what’s happening across the business, and Kenna is always on the lookout for any of the three that need more attention. Whether the push is for customers to support entering new markets, better communication between team members or with clients to ensure needs are being met and operations are running smoothly or an infusion of cash after an acquisition or expansion, MANTL ensures all three Cs are covered.
“Communication, that’s my favourite one. I spend most of my time on that one, developing teams, programs and a clear direction for people,” Kenna says. “Right now, communication is really good, customers are really good, but we’ve expanded our inventories and that’s taken up cash so now we’re focusing on cash again.”
Communication is key, and like in any long-time relationship, it can suffer if all parties aren’t committed to keeping the lines open. In 2019, MANTL added a division that fell outside its wheelhouse and the leadership team struggled to agree on how the company should redefine itself in this new space. Results Business Consultants came in and helped the team talk to each other, listen to each other, and made sure everyone was paddling in the same direction. While the team recently sold that division, the exercise of focusing on effective communication that came from the experience continues to benefit the company.
“Because we did that, our direction now is so clear and we’ve learned how to communicate really well with each other. I think that’s one of the reasons we’ve had the success that we’ve had,” he says.
On paper, the success MANTL has enjoyed seemed like a long shot; they had to build a business in years of rock-bottom oil prices followed closely by a global pandemic. But the start-up not only survived but flourished while so many competitors shrank their stores or disappeared from the marketplace altogether. After 10 years, the group of former colleagues turned business co-owners, along with the team of incredible professionals they’ve assembled, continue to grow MANTL Canada in the artificial lift space simply because they “Give a S#!t”.
10 Locations Across Western Canada
• Peace River, AB • Taber, AB • Lloydminster, AB • Slave Lake, AB • Bonnyville, AB • Sedgewick, AB |
• Wabasca-Desmarais, AB • Moosomin, SK • Macklin, SK • Swift Current, SK
