DRILLBITS
Monthly eNewsletter from the IADC

The SPE DSATS/IADC ART Symposium on “Comprehensive Impactful Drilling Systems – How do we Evolve?” is open for registration.

• Date: 16 March 2026
• Time: 13:00 – 18:30
• Location: Galveston, Texas, US 
• Venue: Galveston Island Convention Center – Grand Ballroom C 

About the Symposium

DSATS (SPE’s Drilling Systems Advancement Technical Section) is entering a new era as it transforms its scope from a focus purely on automation to a broader view of Drilling Systems. This shift reflects evolving industry needs and emerging trends, and the 2026 DSATS Symposium is designed to help define this next phase of DSATS activities.

This event will be combined with ART (IADC’s Advanced Rig Technology Committee) as DSATS seeks alignment and additional steerage from this esteemed organization.

This symposium is designed to explore 6 themes that leadership of SPE DSATS has generated which have potential to deliver new industry insights to advance drilling systems. These themes are:

1. Human Factors & Culture – How do organizational behaviors impact adoption of drilling systems?
2. Data Attributes & Lifecycle Goals – How do we define the data we need for next-generation decision-making?
3. Collaboration Models (3Cs) – How do we move from competition to collaboration across all stakeholders?
4. Physical System Limiters – How do we rethink hardware, processes, and testing approaches?
5. Data Infrastructure & Workflows – How do we leverage standards like OSDU and Data Mesh?
6. System vs. Components – How do we identify “threads” that must connect across the well lifecycle?

The symposium will kick off with a SPE DSATS and IADC ART update including the DSATS annual officer and board elections. The working session will be initiated by key industry experts from various areas of the business (Eric Kolstad, Caturus Energy; Austin Groover, Nabors Industries; Moray Laing, Halliburton; David Reid, NOV) addressing two of the themes each followed by a moderated panel session (moderator John de Wardt, DSATS Director Emeritus) to debate their views.

The rubber will hit the road during an interactive working session where attendees, seated in assigned teams, will collaborate on specific theme development through a structured, facilitator-led process. This work will translate key insights into reported session output to guide DSATS’s future direction. Outputs from the session will be reviewed by the DSATS Board and Officers for development of the technical section’s forward plan.

A networking reception will follow the symposium working session.

Early registration is strongly recommended to assure group assignments for those wanting to input their thoughts, views, experience, and expertise into this program.

Symposium Schedule

• 12:30–13:00 | Registration Check-In  (Pick up your name badge at the conference registration desk located by the exhibit hall)
• 13:00–17:00 | Symposium
• 17:00–18:30 | Networking Reception

Add this event to your conference registration or register separately by selecting ‘Ticket Only’ under the registration categories.    

For more information or questions regarding the 2026 SPE DSATS/IADC ART Symposium, feel free to contact committee member John de Wardt via LinkedIn.