Interviewer: Diane Austin, Laura Ek

Affiliation: University of Arizona

Dennis Sullivan referred Laura to Randy Hernandez. He described him as someone who works for one of the major oil companies designing safer platforms. Diane and I met at his home in Lafayette.

Mr. Hernandez was born in 1958 in Lafayette, Louisiana. He graduated from North Side high school in Lafayette. During high school he did electrical work. After his high school graduation he went to USL for a short time, but took a break for a while and continued his electrical work. At his father’s barbershop, he got an offer to apply for a job with an oil company. In the 1980s, he got an interview with “one of the majors” and has worked for them for the past 30 years. His employer supported an educational program, so he went back to school full time for the industrial technology program on the 7/7. Eight years later he held his degree in industrial technology. He originally held a position as a maintenance specialist, and worked his way up to higher technical positions, then technical project management positions. He moved into his house in Lafayette in 1989. He has a wife and two children.

In the interview, he discusses his participation in the 7/7 programs in industrial technology at ULL (then USL) before it was phased out. He describes the workings of the major company he works for, and the benefits in the way he finds they do their work. He talks about major changes in technology in his work over time, how he prepared himself to do other work, and how he contributed to safety programs within his company. He briefly discusses the role of women in the industry, including who he worked with and what sectors of the industry they were in. Towards the end of the interview, he shares some of his thoughts on the BP spill, and on the future of oil in Lafayette.