New Texas Oilfield Lab Seeks to Reshore Chem Testing, Supply

Cathedral Holdings, Inc., a U.S.-based specialty chemical distribution group, announced on July 24 its opening a new 5,000-square-foot technical lab and office facility in The Woodlands, Texas. While the space will support multiple specialty chemical companies under Cathedral’s umbrella, it will serve as the official headquarters for Centrium Energy Solutions, the group’s newly launched oil and gas company. The new facilities are designed to advance Centrium’s mission to reshore oilfield chemical sourcing, accelerate product development, and deliver top field performance. The new facility brings together operational offices, formulation experts, and a dedicated performance lab—enabling faster, field-ready chemical solutions and real-time technical support under one roof. Centrium will use the facility to provide rapid answers and reliable results to oil and gas companies of all sizes. Jonathan Rogers, General Manager of Centrium Energy Solutions, said that this is not just another chemical supplier office. “It’s where oilfield service providers regain control. We’ve taken Cathedral’s proven model from other performance-critical sectors—like personal care and industrial—and tailored it to the realities of upstream and midstream oil and gas.”

The Centrium lab enables oilfield service providers to:

• Replicate field conditions to test product fit before deployment
• Eliminate trial-and-error by dialing in formulation specs using real crude and brine samples
• Speed up product development with accelerated stability and compatibility testing

Oil and gas testing capabilities include:

• Corrosion inhibition testing (RCE, LPR, digital microscopy)
• Wax inhibition testing (cold finger)
• Phase behavior and surfactant profiling (contact angle, IFT, emulsion stability)
• Custom formulation support and design (freeze-thaw, pH, viscosity and thermal evaluations)

This lab isn’t just for quality control; it’s for getting oilfield service providers the best product fit faster—with science, not guesswork,” said Tom Fenderson, Centrium’s director of technical services. “Our lab capabilities help customers avoid downtime, reduce reformulation cycles and win more business with performance.”

 

Built on a Proven, Scalable Model

Centrium’s facility in The Woodlands is the latest expansion of Cathedral Holdings’ national footprint, which includes eight U.S. distribution centers serving multiple sectors. By building off this shared infrastructure, Centrium has been able to ensure on-time delivery and maintain chemical availability even during industry-wide shortages and offshore delays. The model, which has already driven success for sister companies IndSpyre Solutions, Essential Ingredients and Forium Solutions, combines U.S.-based warehousing, vendor consolidation and demand-responsive logistics—all now adapted for oilfield-specific sourcing, blending and application challenges.

The launch of the innovation hub was celebrated with a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony, which brought together oilfield service providers, chemical suppliers and industry partners. Attendees toured the lab, previewed new testing capabilities and explored how Centrium is enabling more prominent domestic chemical supply—a strategic move as tariffs, delays and geopolitical uncertainty continue to pressure global supply chains.

Oilfield service providers interested in a free formulation review or to learn how to reduce total chemical costs can visit CentriumEnergy.com