Cameron- A Schlumberger Company

In 1922, Jim Abercrombie and Harry Cameron designed the world’s first blowout preventer (BOP) in the dust of the floor of their shop in Houston, Texas. The new invention revolutionized the fledgling drilling industry. Soon, BOPs manufactured by Cameron were being used throughout Texas and far away as Mexico and Venezuela.

In 1927, Abercrombie and Cameron went on to develop a BOP with rams that could be closed with steam or water pressure. And the firsts just kept coming. Cameron Iron Works later introduced BOPs with larger bore sizes and higher pressure ratings. In 1962, Cameron became the first company capable of designing and delivering a complete underwater drilling system. And in 1988, Cameron set a record for the delivery of sophisticated subsea BOP stack systems and electro-hydraulic multiplex (EH MUX) drilling controls systems.

In the same way Cameron's technology led the drilling industry, the company also became prominent in the land and subsea production arena. Cameron designed and delivered surface wellheads and Christmas trees, and in the early 1960s, pioneered subsea production.

As the subsea market developed, Cameron was once again at the forefront of innovation. It developed the first 15K production system, the first EH MUX control system, and the first all-electric production system. In 1993, Cameron introduced the SpoolTree horizontal production system—an innovation that has been adopted as the industry standard for horizontal subsea production.

During its history, Cameron has acquired and integrated many oilfield pioneers into its business, including W-K-M, Thornhill Craver, McEvoy, Demco, Ingram Cactus Corporation, NATCO, LeTourneau Technologies’ Drilling Systems and Offshore Production divisions, TTS Energy Division's drilling equipment business, Douglas Chero Spa, and others. These acquisitions have extended the scope of Cameron offerings to incorporate valves for upstream, midstream, and downstream applications; treatment and disposal systems for gas, oil, produced water, seawater, and solids; and state-of-the art measurement systems for a variety of industries.

Today, Cameron is part of Schlumberger Limited, delivering a comprehensive portfolio of "pore-to-pipeline" products and services to the global oil and gas industry. The company that began with a rough sketch on a dirt floor now leads the way in surface, drilling, processing, and flow control technologies, ushering a new era of oilfield innovation.