Agenda

Bernard P. Krzys is the founder of Benjamin Media, Inc., publisher of North American Oil & Gas Pipelines, Trenchless Technology and six other construction industry business magazines. Bernie’s media background spans 30 years.

Bernie also has a considerable background in manufacturing and utility construction. He served as the President of American Augers, Inc., (now part of The Charles Machine Works/ Ditch Witch.) Bernie additionally had an extensive career as a management consultant with Arthur Andersen & Co. (now Accenture).

Bernie has served on various boards of directors including North American Society for Trenchless Technology (NASTT), the National Utility Contractors Association (NUCA), the Trenchless Technology Center at Louisiana Tech University and the Centre for the Advancement of Trenchless Technologies at the University of Waterloo in Canada.

Bernie has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Kent State University in Ohio. He served in the U.S. Army as an officer and is a recipient of the U.S. Army Commendation Medal.

Mr. Jim Hughes has been in the pipeline industry for almost 35 years with two-thirds of that being with pipeline operators and a third with engineering consultants.  He is currently the Senior Director, Integrated Services for Hunt Guillot & Associates, LLC in their Houston, Texas office.  Previously Mr. Hughes held positions at Louisiana Gas Service Company as District Engineer in North Louisiana, Area Engineering Lead for Enterprise Products in their Seminole Pipeline office in Sugar Land,  Mustang Engineering as Operations Manager in Fort Worth, Kinder Morgan as a Senior Project Manager, Midstream Engineering Manager for Chesapeake and Engineering Advisor for Devon Energy, all in Texas. Jim’s extensive pipeline operations and project management experience exposed him to relevant industry codes and standards including, PHMSA (DOT Parts 190-199), Texas Administrative Code, Texas Railroad Commission, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Corps of Engineers (COE), OSHA, ASME, ANSI and NACE.

Mr. Hughes graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a degree in Petroleum Engineering and served as Vice President of the Society of Petroleum Engineers while there.  He has been involved with The Pipeliners Association of Houston since 2001, volunteering with the Golf Tournaments and Sporting Clays Tournaments.  In 2016 he became Chairman of the Sporting Clays Committee and is currently serving as the Houston Pipeliners Vice-President and will move into the Presidents role in January 2022. He is also a member of the Houston Chapter of the Gas Processors Association.

Jim’s primary passion is his faith and family. He has been married for 30 years and has three sons; the oldest in a surgical residency program in the Fort Worth area, one starting a new role with a national home builder, and the youngest starting his sophomore year in Physics at the University of Texas – San Antonio. He enjoys working with his church and has made numerous trips to Nicaragua and El Salvador on missions. He also volunteers at Mission Centers Houston as time permits to assist with rebuilding facilities.

Global Executive with accountability for growth of multimillion-dollar existing business and new business units. Skilled in operations, sales, business, marketing, and domestic/global management, and managing senior-level technology teams. Experienced in both domestic and international markets and posted in Singapore for 6 Asia country companies, including China, India, Indonesia, Korea, and Malaysia. Worldwide recognition in development and advocacy of climate change and carbon policies, e.g., Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS), 45Q CCUS/ EOR policy, etc.

Continuum Capital Principal Mark Bridgers is a consultant to the engineering and construction industry and leads a Global Energy Vertical Market team. He works with global energy firms, pipeline companies, local distribution companies, electric transmission/ distribution utilities and power generators to support the planning, design and constitution of capital assets. As a recognized expert in capital construction and operational challenges, Bridgers was recently honored with membership in the Society of Gas Operators (SOGO).

Dale Anderson brings extensive experience spearheading rapid and sustained growth in the utility construction industry. 2018 will mark Anderson’s 32nd year in the utility construction industry, where he began his career as a field laborer.  His resume includes extensive background in negotiating new contracts and maintaining existing customer relationships. Prior to joining Miller Pipeline, Anderson held the position of President & COO with the MRM Network of Companies, before his most recent position as Senior Vice President for the Quanta Services Organization.

Mr. Anderson now serves as Executive Vice President and is responsible for Miller Pipeline’s Eastern and Great Lakes Operations. He is also involved with strategic planning, training initiatives, high-level customer support and relationship formation, and represents the company through participation in industry-related organizations and events.  Dale is an active member of the Distribution Contractors Association (DCA) since 1998 where he was elected to DCA’s board of directors in 2007, and served as the Association’s President in 2016. He currently serves as vice-chair on the DCA Labor Negotiations Committee.

Global Executive with accountability for growth of multimillion-dollar existing business and new business units. Skilled in operations, sales, business, marketing, and domestic/global management, and managing senior-level technology teams. Experienced in both domestic and international markets and posted in Singapore for 6 Asia country companies, including China, India, Indonesia, Korea, and Malaysia. Worldwide recognition in development and advocacy of climate change and carbon policies, e.g., Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS), 45Q CCUS/ EOR policy, etc.

Todd Denton is President, Phillips 66 Pipeline LLC.  With 27 years of experience in the oil and gas industry, Denton is an expert in liquids pipeline and terminal projects and operations.
Phillips 66 Pipeline operates approximately 12,000 miles of liquids pipelines, 55 refined products and crude terminals, and an NGL Fractionator. Prior to assuming his current role with Phillips 66 in May 2012, Denton worked for NuStar Energy where he most recently served as Vice President, Pipeline & Terminal Operations.

He is currently a board member of the Association of Oil Pipe Lines (AOPL) and serves as Chair of the American Petroleum Institute (API) and AOPL Pipeline Safety Excellence Steering Committee. He is a member of the U.S. Department of Transportation Technical Advisory Committee, appointed by Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood in 2009.

Denton earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Texas Tech University in 1986. He later earned a Master of Science degree in Finance and Economics in 1996 from West Texas A&M University.

Captain David Murk, US Coast Guard (ret.), is the Pipeline Manager at the American Petroleum Institute (API) and is responsible for the oversight of infrastructure policy and technical issues to support and advocate for the safe and reliable transportation of petroleum liquid and natural gas by pipeline. Murk joined API having served twenty-six years in the public sector including twenty-four years with US Coast Guard and two years at US Department of Transportation (USDOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). In his last three years in the Coast Guard, Murk served as the Senior Maritime Advisor to the Secretary of Transportation. Immediately prior to joining API in 2016, Murk served as the Director of Field Operations in the Office of Pipeline Safety, PHMSA, USDOT where he helped lead over 140 pipeline inspectors in the oversight of federal safety regulations for interstate natural gas and petroleum liquid pipelines and liquefied natural gas facilities.

Murk began his career at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut earning a BS in Applied Science and has a Master’s Degree in Business Administration. David, his wife Pam and boys reside in Maryland with their five dogs.

Michael Istre joined the INGAA Foundation in 2017 after more than 20 years of consulting engineering in the pipeline industry.  His project portfolio includes world-class onshore and offshore pipelines for natural gas, oil, refined products, and carbon dioxide in the US, Canada, Mexico and Venezuela. Mr. Istre serves as Foundation’s Project Manager where he is responsible for the planning, execution, management and communication of the Foundation’s research program. He also participates in a variety of industry work groups related to natural gas transmission and pipeline construction. Mr. Istre is a professional engineer and received a Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Louisiana-Lafayette and a Masters of Science in Mechanical Engineering from The University of Texas.

Andrew Isherwood is Director, U.S. Gas Innovation for TC Energy Corporation.

In this role Andrew reports directly to the Executive Vice-President and President of U.S. and Mexico Natural Gas Pipelines, and is responsible for innovation activities across the U.S. Natural Gas Pipeline footprint. These activities include the development of greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction strategies and business development activities for new technologies such as: renewable natural gas (RNG), hydrogen and carbon capture and sequestration (CCUS.)

Prior to this role Andrew served as Manager, Business Development, responsible for identifying and implementing growth opportunities across the U.S. Natural Gas organization.  Andrew has been with TC Energy for 13 years and has served in multiple roles throughout Canada and the U.S. including: Commercial Operations, Marketing, Midstream, and Corporate Development and Strategy.

Andrew is a Charter Financial Analyst and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Finance from the University of Calgary and currently resides in Houston, Texas.