ESA (Endangered Species Act)

The minimum required space between workers, equipment, or hazardous materials on a job site. Subcontractors must verify these distances before mobilising crews or staging equipment. Violating specified separation distances can trigger stop-work orders and affect contract standing.

The legal obligation to compensate another party for damages or losses caused by your work or negligence. For subcontractors, this typically arises from property damage, personal injury, or contract breaches on a job site. Adequate general liability insurance is your primary protection against civil liability claims.

A contractual or regulatory rule requiring subcontractors to hire local workers, source materials locally, or partner with regional firms. Non-compliance can disqualify you from bidding or trigger contract penalties. Common on projects funded by governments or national oil companies.

An official work request issued before any ground disturbance, requiring underground utilities to be marked out. Subcontractors must have an active locate ticket on site before excavation begins. Working without one can result in fines, liability, or contract termination.

Protective gear — such as hard hats, steel-toed boots, high-visibility vests, gloves, and eye protection — that subcontractors and their crews are required to wear on oil & gas and construction sites to meet site-specific safety standards and regulatory obligations. As a subcontractor, ensuring your workers arrive on-site with proper, compliant PPE is typically your responsibility and a condition of maintaining your contract.

A joint API/ASME standard used to assess whether ageing or damaged equipment is still safe to operate. Subcontractors may be required to conduct or support FFS assessments on pressure vessels, piping, and tanks. Results determine if equipment can stay in service, requires repair, or must be decommissioned.

When a Jobsite Incident Happens: What Field Workers Need to Know Before Signing Anything

What to do after a jobsite injury or incident, what your rights are before signing incident reports, how workers' compensation works, and how to protect yourself on multi-employer worksites.

OSHA Citations on Multi-Employer Worksites: What Subcontractors Need to Know

Learn how OSHA's multi-employer citation policy works, why subcontractors get cited for hazards they didn't create, and how to protect your company on operator-controlled job sites.

How to Read and Negotiate an Oilfield Master Service Agreement (MSA): A Subcontractor's Guide

Learn which MSA clauses actually matter for oilfield subcontractors: indemnity, insurance, payment terms, and change orders. Know what you're signing.