Mr. David O. Trahan is a native of Louisiana who makes his home in Lafayette, Louisiana. Mr. Trahan graduated from the University of Louisiana in 1975 earning a Bachelor of Science from the College of Biological, Mathematical, and Physical Sciences. After college Mr. Trahan represented a multi-national energy service company as a sales and technical representative working to solve a broad range of chemical application problems in oil & gas production and drilling fluid systems.

 

In 1984, Mr. Trahan, along with two business associates, formed Coastal Fluid Technologies to supply new chemical treating and drilling fluid additive technologies to oil & gas operating companies. Over the next several years Mr. Trahan formulated and invented several new fluid treatment methods designed to solve oil & gas operating problems in production, pipeline and drilling fluids. Mr. Trahan and his team of scientists formulated over 500 different chemical application products. Many of these innovative ideas received letters of patent from the United States Patent Office. This brought recognition to Mr. Trahan and his company as being innovators in the specialty chemical field. Mr. Trahan was one of the first inventors to recognize the benefit of using synthetic hydrocarbons such as polyalphaolefin in water-based drilling fluids. Creating several drilling additives formulated with PAO base fluid, Mr. Trahan revolutionized how water-based drilling fluids function in critical well conditions. Recognizing the need for a more effective method to remove pipeline solids and contamination, Mr. Trahan developed a chemical cleaning system that is now used throughout the world as a safe and effective method of cleaning oil and gas pipeline systems.

 

In 1997, Mr. Trahan was recognized in the business community by being honored with the selection as the Ernst & Young ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ for Louisiana in the category of Specialty Manufacturing. In that same year Mr. Trahan and his business associates agreed to sell their energy service business to Holland Chemical (Brenntag) an international chemical distribution company. Following the sale, Mr. Trahan, along with partners founded a product research and development company with the goal of developing chemical products and supplying the technology and/or the product to channel partners who were best positioned in the market to immediately take advantage of the developments. This effort provided Mr. Trahan with knowledge and experience in a broad range of chemical application areas such as aviation, construction, coatings and energy. Some of the notable, first-of-their-kind product developments include: environmentally friendly aircraft de-icing additives, structural polymer solutions with ballistic grade rating, environmentally acceptable oilwell drilling fluid and drilling fluid additives, hydraulic fluids for use in subsea controls on deepwater drilling rigs and production platforms, and pipeline cleaning.

 

At the core of Mr. Trahan’s product creation process is the unique technical ability to take a product from the initial concept realization phase to commercial introduction phase in a short time frame and in a cost-effective manner.

 

Today, Mr. Trahan is the CEO, Co-founder and Managing Member for Rapid Energy Services, L.L.C., a company that coordinates the commercial efforts of several companies co-founded by Mr. Trahan and his business partner Mr. Ben Davis along with other business associates.