At Western Michigan University's Michigan Geological Repository for Research and Education, we develop workshops that are offered both in-house and at external regional locations. At these workshops, petroleum professionals present their research findings, address cutting-edge technologies and cost-effective techniques. Since 1994, several thousand professionals have attended our workshops and report using the information they learned there. These workshops are developed through collaboration with industry members, governmental agencies, service companies and other universities.
MGRRE’s oil and gas research and outreach programs are tailored to provide Michigan’s operators with new information about exploration ideas and technologies that encourage development and production in an environmentally responsible manner. For these companies, undertaking costly research activities is not a viable option; they must gain education and access to technology from outside their doors, a key function provided by MGRRE.
At MGRRE, we know that industry relies on us for cutting-edge data, as evidenced by the over 10,000 hits per month that our databases receive. As such, we also distribute data and research results through our webpages and make our cores, samples and well records easily accessible on-site.
MGRRE’s industry outreach program, conducted in our capacity as a Petroleum Technology Transfer Council satellite center, was previously funded through the Department of Energy. Even though no funding has been available to workshop presenters throughout the country for several years, we continue to carry out this work thank to generous industry donations and user fees.