What you need to perform it
Primary qualification
- Valid SUPERVISOR-level well-control certification: IADC WellSharp Supervisor or IWCF Level 4, two-year renewal.
- Promotion from Driller per the contractor's matrix, with leadership and emergency-management assessment (industry practice).
- OPITO BOSIET/FOET with CA-EBS, offshore medical and STCW A-VI/1 per flag; on floaters, stability/ballast awareness may be required (indicative).
Basic STCW
- STCW A-VI/1 (4 basic modules)
- OPITO BOSIET current
Specific courses
- Crew management: competency matrix, Driller coaching and handovers
- Advanced simulator well control with deviated and HPHT scenarios (indicative per fleet)
- Operator interface: well programme, management of change and stop-work authority
- Incident investigation and safety leadership (contractor schemes)
Indicative experience
Indicative: at least 5 years as an offshore Driller before promotion; on complex units (deepwater, HPHT) contractors also require hitches as Night Toolpusher before the senior post.
Observations
An industrial billet under the MODU Code, with no STCW officer certificate. Ladder: Driller → Night Toolpusher → Toolpusher → Senior Toolpusher → OIM (the OIM step adds flag-specific requirements for mobile units). Holds stop-work authority over the well operation.
What this role does
The unit's senior drilling authority: answers for the well 24 hours a day, supervises the Drillers on both shifts, approves tripping and cementing programmes with the operator's representative (company man), leads the response to any well-control event and manages the competence and rotation of the whole drilling crew.
Typical watches
- Day job / covering both shifts
Key responsibilities
- Technical and operational management of all drilling activities.
- Direct supervision of the drilling equipment on the rig floor.
- Ensuring compliance with the well plan and safety standards.
- Coordination with Company Man and IOM on the drilling program.
- Equipment management, preventive maintenance and resolution of technical problems.
Operational scope
- Drilling floor
- Drilling control room
- The whole MODU
Profile reviewed by HydroAbyss (2026). Cited rules and timeframes are indicative: the final requirement is set by the flag State, the Administration and each company.