In 1977 in Saudi Arabia, Bob was tasked to organize the principal ownership accountability and loan cost back accountability data base for 324 heavy construction cranes worth $.5B (in 1977 dollars), as well as the maintenance library for that equipment.
Allowing that Bob had little or no computer knowledge to that point in time, he was coached regarding Data Base Management System (DBMS) for the pertinent IBM 370 system by the person he was replacing for the project, and shortly came up with an outstanding design to fulfill the requirements of the FLET, or Fluor Large Equipment Tracking system.
Bob then proceeded to set up the Maintenance Library for this equipment, and managed to locate 3 smaller cranes worth $.5 M that had previously been ‘lost’ in the system as an added bonus for the joint venture prior to returning home.
Once again, this project was considered to have been superbly brain stormed, designed and developed.
There probably could have been little added in either quality or quantity to this DBMS design and development at a later dateat a later date. Bob also took around 300x 35 mm slides up and down the Saudi East Coast in preparation for an ARAMCO briefing to be held in Houston, TX, and felt that he could have headed the entire Fluor-Arabia ‘gas gathering project’ then valued at roughly $15-20B USD had Fluor allowed him to work, and there not been in place a Fluor administrative requirement that promotions could be allowed only 1 grade at a time per year. Bob’s sending was also that Cost & Scheduling was somehow running ahead of the inflow of employees, resulting in same having to be ‘at work’ for 10 hour work days, but with only roughly 3 hours worth of work to do!! Bob also felt that Fluor, in the process of things, ‘ripped the Saudis off’ for this project ‘big time.’ ‘Fluor-Arabia’ was a Joint Venture between US Fluor and Saudi ARAMCO.
