Evolutionary Power

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As the energy industry moves toward a new future, Taurus Industrial Group delivers the tools and technology for the journey

In a rapidly changing world, Taurus Industrial Group is bullish on progress. While the company name is new, the work of this Houston-based firm is well known in traditional energy, power, and utility markets. The players comprising the recently rebranded organization have been industry stalwarts for decades.

Formed in 2019 through the rollup of two different businesses by private equity firm SCF Partners, today’s Taurus Industrial Group has introduced an end-to-end service portfolio unique to both the traditional and alternative energy markets.

In bringing together the Titan Epcom Group, an amalgam of acquired legacy performers across a range of specialties, with refractory and scaffolding experts Hi-Tech Industrial Services, Taurus Industrial Group has emerged as a truly diversified integrated service provider with across-the-board services to support the changing constellations within the overall energy, utility, and power industries.

In addition to serving the petrochemical, oil and gas, refining, and specialty chemicals sectors, the group serves emerging sectors including solar and wind. Their comprehensive offerings include engineering and design, electrical and instrumentation services, power systems, controls, testing, mechanical and rotating equipment maintenance, as well as scaffolding, insulation, fireproofing, and refractory services.

“We are increasing our footprint into emerging markets like renewable solar and wind energy, along with conventional power generation, such as gas-fired and hydro,” company COO Hari Gopu told BOSS. Their work in these markets isn’t new. Before the creation of the Taurus Industrial brand, its foundation companies, with expertise in electrical & instrumentation installation, power systems testing, as well as refractory and scaffolding, had executed several successful solar, wind, and power generation projects.

“The industry as a whole is rebalancing, and it’s clear that the energy transition and the focus on emission reductions and renewables and the broader ESG plays are really hot topics even amongst the most traditional of industry participants in oil and gas or petrochem sectors,” he pointed out. “Most are looking at this area with greater scrutiny because their shareholders are demanding it. Emissions and carbon footprint reductions are quickly becoming key executive-level discussion points.”

Infrastructure is key to the equation, and interest in electrical and instrumentation services or power controls and testing capabilities is dramatically increasing as a result. As Gopu put it, “To bring more solar or wind online you have to build the transmission, distribution, electrical systems and the infrastructure to be able to support it. The power needs to be connected to the grid, efficiently and at scale. There’s a lot of demand growth in those areas and Texas is a leading state in terms of renewable energy push. Our location and geographic footprint are very advantageous in this regard.”

Even some change-resistant energy company owners are considering renewables-related adjustments to their facilities, such as using electric vehicles and installing charging stations, moves unheard of a few years ago. “We’re seeing this exchange across the industry,” he said, stressing that the product state hasn’t changed, and that demand is actually increasing for things like plastics, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals. “That’s driving a lot of pull-through in those areas,” he said.

Disruption and Dynamism

As deferred or canceled projects due to the pandemic begin to reappear, Gopu is noticing an interesting shift. “Whereas in the past we had a lot of mega projects, mega shutdowns, or mega capital projects, we’re starting to see more smaller-sized projects.” He ascribes the trend to a more cautious approach to capital investments, as well as large-scale capacity additions in refining and LNG, for example, concluding with customers adapting their focus and cadences to fit a new post-crisis reality.

“There’s been a trend towards smaller capital projects and being much more selective on how they procure those,” he noted. “Those things play very well to us because one of the key strengths we have is our integrated service capability where we can offer end-to-end services as a one-stop shop.” That single source, single point of contact approach helps customers shave overhead while significantly improving efficiency from both a procurement and operational delivery perspective.

Taurus Industrial brings another advantage to customers: a robust stable of proven partners, including Turtle and Hughes, Elliott Electric Supply, and RAM Alloys. “We’ve been around for 55-plus years, and we can’t do this on our own. We have fantastic partners,” Gopu said. “There’s been a number of times Elliott Electric has gone above and beyond to support us when we were at a critical stage and did so on very short notice. Turtle and Hughes is a name that goes without needing any explanation. They’re a fantastic business; they service a number of companies similar to us and they’ve been able to do so for a long time.”

The mechanical rotating equipment services Taurus Industrial offers frequently call for the fabrication of pipe and structural steel, which requires alloys and related materials. “We need some core relationships in these areas, and RAM Alloys is a partner that can move with us when things on a project change rapidly,” he said. “Having companies like RAM, Turtle, and Eliott that have been very good partners for our business for a number of years is pretty cool.”

While many service providers in the industry stake their claim to success on longevity, Taurus Industrial pushes beyond the obvious, instilling a continuous improvement mindset focused on safety, quality, people, and process throughout the business. In the energy industry’s current “adapt or die” environment, this approach enables Taurus Industrial to constantly evolve and meet the challenges of this “new” normal.

The firm is driving innovation through technology. The company’s investment in digitization enables them to access data quickly and use it to drive better decisions and information flow to their customers. “The world is changing, and we have to think about our business differently to align with what the future needs are going to be,” Gopu posited.

“Doing the same isn’t going to get you the same result; it’s going to get you an inferior product as your competitors are going to beat you because they’re thinking about things that you’re not and the smart ones will invest in areas you’re not.” Good thing Taurus Industrial is thinking ahead, meeting the current needs of both traditional and emerging players in the markets they serve, and anticipating a vibrant future.