Customer Spotlight: Farwest Corrosion Control Company

For a business that started on a handshake 67 years ago, Farwest Corrosion Control Company has come a long way over the years.

For this month’s Customer Spotlight, we caught up with Executive Vice-President Dan McGrew to chat about the history and future of this family-owned business.

VD: Good afternoon, Dan. Can you tell us a bit about Farwest Corrosion Control Company?

DM: It’s a family company, currently second-generation ownership. It’s a cool story, actually. The company was started on a handshake deal. All those years ago, Gordon Rankin, the father of current President Troy Rankin, was working as a driller in Texas. This guy he knew said, “We have a company out west called Farwest if you want to go run it, I’ll give you some ownership.” So they made a deal, then and there. He packed the kids up in a truck, drove to California, and started working here selling Anodes (corrosion protection). Slowly, he took over and bought the company out, added a couple of other companies along the way, and it became what it is today. They maintained the construction drilling side of the business, but we’re primarily a materials company now. So there’s been a lot of growth and change.

VD: That’s some pretty unique history. Can you tell us a bit about what services your company offers now?

DM: Primarily, we provide corrosion control and cathodic protection for the oil and gas industry. We are primarily a materials manufacturer and distributor of corrosion control products. We also perform engineering and technical services for cathodic protection. As far as construction, we do the installation of the systems. That’s where the drilling rigs come in.

VD: Why did you decide to go with Versa-Drill for your construction needs?

DM: We used to have old rotary table rigs from another company. Then we bought a used Versa-Drill rig 5-7 years ago from a third-party seller. The reason we got connected with Versa-Drill directly is we had an issue, so we called the manufacturer [Versa-Drill] to see if we could get it fixed. With only the serial number, their team immediately knew the rig, the whole history, and were able to take care of us. It was just great service. Being a family company is another bit of an affinity there. So we bought a second, newer rig from a third party. We called prior to buying it and Versa-Drill told us about the history and verified what the third-party seller was saying. Once again, super helpful.

Finally, in 2019, I bought a new one. From then, we just slowly upgraded. We bought another that just got delivered. And with California, we have some new emission standards so our current fleet is becoming obsolete, so I’m replacing another rig. So that will be my third new one, but my fifth Versa-Drill in total.

VD: And which drilling rigs have you bought so far?

DM: The V-140X is the only one. It’s a good rig and does exactly what we need. The three I purchased directly from Versa-Drill were even customized for us. We told them what we did and what we needed, and they came up with a unique idea. Typically these rigs have an air compressor mounted on the deck and that allows you to drill with both air and water. But since we only drill with water, we just use a mud rotary. So their team took off the air compressor and put a mud manager system on there. I’ve never seen it before and I think it’s unique to what we do. So we have a custom-tailored rig that’s perfectly set up for our needs here in California. We’re pretty excited about that.

VD: Besides being custom-made, do you have any other favorite features that help out day-to-day?

DM: We like the carousel component. We really like the deck-mounted mud management system on there. It works really well for us. It’s also got a remote feature where, for a portion of the drilling, the operator can actually step down from the deck and safely operate the rig remotely. It’s a nice safety feature. The customers appreciate that too, especially in the oil and gas world.

VD: Somewhere down the line, machines need new parts. What was your experience with having parts shipped?

DM: We’ve had parts shipped on a number of occasions. It’s always been seamless. That’s the other reason we’ve stayed with Versa-Drill. My driller can call their parts team and describe what he needs over the phone and they will get it out—never a problem or issue.

VD: What about Versa-Drill made you come back time and time again?

DM: Their team is super helpful. It’s great service from a good company. For us, they just make sense.

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