Offshore Technology Conference

I was at OTC (Offshore Technology Conference).This was my first time to attend OTC.
— Transportation. I was expecting heavy traffic around Kirby and Fanin. It was Okay! No Traffic at all! Plenty of parking spots. I used a shuttle bus from yellow parking lots to NRG park.
-.NRG park
OTC used three facilities which were NRG Stadium, arena, and center. Companies had booth at NRG Arena and Center. There was a big concert at NRG stadium. I enjoyed dance and music at NRG stadium.
— Exhibition and seminar
Over 2600 companies around the world came to OTC! I learned lots about oil&gas industry. Many companies showed new technology. Many professors gave us lectures about oil and gas industry.
— People
OTC was very international. I met people around the world. Rodeo Houston was very Texas event. But OTC looked like United Nations. About 2600 companies participated in OTC. I saw many Chinese, Korean and European companies.
— Entertainment.
OTC had entertainment events. I attended Appreciation concert at NRG stadium. It was a great event with music.
I live in an energy capital of the world. I need to know more about oil&gas industry. OTC is the best place to learn oil&gas industry and meet nice people around the world.

The Offshore Technology Conference, commonly known as the «OTC» is the big techno and party bash of the petroleum industry; its annual event, sort what a Woodstock would be to a rocker or a hippie. People come from all over the world to attend. All of restaurants and hotels of Houston are booked full for it. It has well over 2,000 vendors, a simple one day ticket to see it costs $ 160.00 and it has every display imaginable from the simple work glove to the ultra-​high tech frac and drilling rigs. Besides conferences, there are parties everywhere with plenty of top shelf booze along with lavish eats.
When you’re here, you’ll run into everyone from the low life hard working rough neck to the multibillionaire high rolling wildcatter. It’s so immense you’ll never be able to cover within a day.
There are a lot of misconceptions of the oil industry, so it’s good to understand something about it. First off, it is an American thing, but it didn’t start in Texas. It started in Pennsylvania with a little 69 ½ foot well that only managed to produce 29 barrels (a barrel of oil is 42 gallons) a day, but that production alone doubled the entire oil production of the world at that time. The boom that followed had its bad points, such as pollution etc., but also its good points. It made the USA the industrial might it is today and most certainly saved the whale, then the main source of oil, from extinction.
Today, without any doubt, Houston is the hub center of the world oil industry and the Offshore Technology Conference is its annual industrial crown jewel.
But, of course, if you’re not involved with the petroleum industry, you could probably «Give a Frac» less about it.

For 2011, the between-​location shuttle buses were more efficient than past years (but I think the OTC is smaller due to economy getting drilled).
Planning your route beforehand online is about the same as last year, which was excellent. Some of your companies of interest may have presentations through the day, which are usually announced in email, and may affect your route and agenda.
Getting your pre-​registration badge is simpler and faster than ever.
The Dynamo Cheerleaders caught a few eyes, as did the usual cadre of female booth magnets. The cheerleaders may have inspired some bored booth sitters late in the day to play soccer with a hand-​squeeze ball.
The industrial equipment displays were at the usual high caliber.