Extreme Engineering - Recipient

The Yiddish term, “Chutzpah,” is hard to define, and so is often explained this way. “Chutzpah is demonstrated by the man who has just been accused of killing his parents and throws himself at the mercy of court on the grounds that he’s an orphan.” Alternatively, you could describe it by using the story of Derek and Glenna Logan, Paul and Margaret Camwell, Tony Dopf, and Wendell Siemens. In 2001, they took a huge chance, leveraging nothing more than a belief in themselves and years of oil-patch and engineering experience to start Extreme Engineering Inc. Their concept was to put disruptive-enabling technology called acoustic telemetry into a small package that allowed real-time oil drilling readings. They made some initial progress with the technology and started bringing on researchers but no cash was coming in. So the main project was put aside and they raised operating revenue by pitching their engineering expertise, taking on projects that allowed them to use client money to develop technology whose intellectual property Extreme would retain. How’s that for know-how mixed with Alberta entrepreneurial spirit? Pretty soon they had a group of platforms. Then they started supporting the platforms and kept expanding around the acoustic telemetry technology in which, six years later, they are the acknowledged world leaders, with offices in Denver and Fort Worth, in addition to their Calgary headquarters.

Derek graduated from SAIT and is a huge fan of the Calgary-based institution. Extreme works closely with SAIT people and, essentially, using it as the company’s feedstock. In fact, it’s the SAIT alumni who typically who create practical applications for the extraordinary research developed by the 25-or-so engineers and scientists who work out of the company’s 12th Street headquarters in southeast Calgary. The firm has been so successful that it now employs over 90 people. And while he figures he still knows 70 of them and their spouses by name, he shakes his head ruefully at the rapid growth. “Six years ago we had a dream and we just figured out a way to keep going until it started to happen. It’s hard to believe we’ve come so far, so fast.” But he’s quick to add success requires a total team effort. “If you have the right people, challenges will drive them and all of a sudden nothing is impossible. Sometimes it just takes a little longer, that’s all. We have a lot of expertise and are capable of handling a whole project, from soup to nuts. But it’s not just an internal team.” He ticks off on his fingers the various groups responsible for the terrific progress. “I really want to acknowledge all the people on the outside on whom we continue to rely. For example, there’s the Government of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program, our remarkable board of directors who challenge us daily, our legal counsel, and even our bankers. They’re all terrific.”