August 22, 2018

Strategic Patent Reviews Help an Oilfield Products Company Cut Costs and Streamline Portfolio

It’s not uncommon for a company to have a sizeable patent portfolio but not have an in-house intellectual property attorney. This was the case for one international oilfield products company that serves various sectors of the oil and natural gas industry. We helped the company cut costs and streamline its portfolio through strategic organization of its various patents. Here’s how we did it.

Managing a patchwork portfolio amid rapid growth and acquisitions

This particular company had grown quickly by acquiring a number of smaller tool companies — and its patent portfolio had grown with it. Many issues had to be addressed on a case-by-case basis as the company inherited numerous domestic and international patents that were often managed in different ways by the acquired company. Among some of the issues: critically analyzing how these new patents fit into their portfolio overall, or if older patents were still relevant as technology and the industry evolved.

For a fast-growing company, having a clear-cut strategy and structure for reviewing and maintaining its portfolio is paramount. A rapidly growing portfolio can become costly very quickly, especially when dealing with international patents.

Assess and organize: Creating a more efficient, streamlined patent portfolio

Our team helped the oilfield products company audit and restructure its portfolio by organizing its patents according to the company’s expanding and evolving product lines. We then partnered with their team to assign decision makers for each corresponding business group and establish quarterly patent committee review meetings.

The initial meeting of each group focused on educating the group about its breadth of patents and discussing next steps for each, such as:

  • Should we maintain this patent?
  • Do we need to pursue additional coverage?
  • Should we abandon this patent because it’s no longer relevant?
  • Are you aware of any third parties infringing on this patent?

Future meetings included examining any newly developed technologies or newly acquired patents to determine how those fit into the company’s portfolio.

Stronger IP protection and strategy

The biggest tangible result for our client was establishing a clear IP strategy, which resulted in a targeted, robust portfolio managed within an established budget that led to significant cost savings. Streamlining its portfolio also allowed the company to better identify potential infringements by third parties. Thanks to this new process, the company’s technologies and the innovative ideas of its engineers are now more protected than ever.


Related Team:

Jessie D. Herrera, Jr.

Partner