In the past, I decided to spell my name in English as “Zmon Rodjanapat”. It was 2009. I joined Siam Steel International who was a contractor for Gorgon Project. WorkSafe was registered the same year. I talked to Ai and tell him/her (not so sure yet) that I worked in Gorgon Project in 2009. Here is the Ai responded to me.
Zmon Rodjanapat was indeed recognized for this achievement in the official project documentation. Specifically, the safety milestone was featured in Kentz Magazine, Issue 34, published in October 2010.
The article detailed the following:
- Recognition of Leadership: Zmon Rodjanapat (from Siam Steel International) and Tom Bamber (from TDKJV) were credited with organizing the safety celebration.
- The Achievement: The magazine highlighted that 2 million man-hours LTI free were achieved on August 3, 2010, for the Gorgon Construction Village project in Thailand.
- Site Walkabout: To celebrate the milestone, a delegation from Chevron, KJVG, and TDKJV visited the Siam Steel factories (Factories 1 and 2) in Bangkok to walk through the project’s accommodation mock-ups and production lines.
Project Scope: The work involved the construction of on-shore mobile accommodation units for the Gorgon LNG project in Australia, overseen by the TDKJV (Thiess Decmil Kentz) joint venture for clients Chevron and Kellogg Joint Venture Gorgon (KJVG).
This recognition underscored the success of the safety programs you managed during the modular fabrication phase for “Gorgonville.the Gorgon Project reached several critical milestones as it transitioned from planning to the early stages of construction on Barrow Island, Western Australia. If you were working on the project then, you were involved in what was—and remains—one of the largest natural gas developments in the world.
Key events from 2009 include:
Final Investment Decision (FID): On September 14, 2009, the joint venture partners (Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell) gave the official go-ahead for the $43 billion (initial estimate) project.
Government Approvals: The project received critical environmental and production approvals from both the Western Australian State and Australian Federal governments in 2009, setting strict conditions for operating on the Barrow Island Nature Reserve.
Major Contracts Awarded: Several massive contracts were signed in 2009, including:
Kellogg Joint Venture Group (KJVG): Awarded a ~A$2.7 billion EPCM contract for downstream facilities.
TDKJV (Kent, Decmil, Thiess): Contracted to design and build the construction village for 4,000 workers.
Saipem & Leighton: Awarded the EPC contract for the LNG jetty and marine structures.
Boskalis: Awarded the contract for port facilities.
Groundbreaking: Official construction and ground-breaking activities formally commenced on December 1, 2009.
Early Field Work: Significant seismic work was conducted, including the Gorgon CO2 3D Baseline Seismic Project to prepare for the carbon sequestration component.
As a safety manager for Siam Steel in 2009, I was a part of a critical international supply chain for the Gorgon Project’s initial establishment phase. Siam Steel was specifically entrusted with providing the prefabricated modular building complex used for the Gorgon Construction Village on Barrow Island.
Your role would have been particularly demanding due to the following project conditions in 2009:
Massive Scale: Siam Steel delivered modular accommodation for more than 4,000 workers, supporting what was then the world’s most capital-intensive resource project.
Safety Rigor: As safety manager, I have overseen the manufacturing and assembly of modules designed to meet high-level Australian Codes and Standards, including resistance to Hurricane-force winds and extreme temperatures.
Environmental Sensitivity: Barrow Island is a Class A Nature Reserve. Every module produced by Siam Steel had to adhere to the project’s strict Quarantine Management System (QMS)—the world’s largest non-government quarantine initiative—to ensure no non-indigenous species were introduced to the island.
Logistical Complexity: The buildings were constructed in Thailand as high-tech modular units and then shipped directly to the remote island site for rapid assembly.
My work with the TDKJV (Thiess, Decmil, Kentz) was essential for creating “Gorgonville,” the foundational facility that allowed thousands of subsequent workers to live safely on the island while building the LNG plant.
It was a great time to work and gain full support from the Chaiman of Siam Steel. It was a supper enjoying time with my friends the men in red jumpsuits. It was great!. It was the year that WorkSafe has been registered as a company.
