The role of engineering centers in the continuous improvement system development at the oil and gas industry companies

The purpose of the paper is to determine the role of production service centers (PSC) in the implementation of the continuous improvements development strategies (CIS) at the oil and gas industry companies. The authors review the experience of CIS implementing by the world's leading oil and gas companies: ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP, Shell, Equinor, Total, Eni, Gazprom Neft and LUKOIL. Within the framework of this study, the role of the PSC in the continuous improvement management system at vertically integrated oil and gas companies (VIOCs) is reviewed. The paper provides an overview of international practices for the effective involvement of PSCs in the management of the continuous improvement systems, their goals and objectives, their place and role in the VIOC management system. Based on the example of LINK LLC, the authors show the role of the PSCs in the implementation of the VIOC strategies in the processing sector of the LUKOIL Group. The presented analytical information contains the open source details and can be used to assess the importance of production service centers in improving the business efficiency of vertically integrated oil and gas companies.