SGA Natural Gas Association Announces Inaugural 2026 Advance Partners, Establishing a New Industry Model for Workforce Readiness

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DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 15, 2026--

The SGA Natural Gas Association (SGA) today announced Equipment Control Company (ECCO), Heath ®, Miller Pipeline (an Artera Services company), nGenue Software, and SWCA Environmental Consultants as its inaugural 2026 Advance Partners, marking a defining shift in how the natural gas industry invests in workforce readiness, operational excellence, and long-term capability.

The Advance Partnership represents SGA’s most senior collaboration model and establishes a new category the Association now owns: enterprise-level workforce infrastructure built through sustained operator and partner investment. Designed around SGA’s pillars - Share. Grow. Advance - the model moves beyond episodic, event-based training toward scalable systems that develop talent, leadership, and operational mastery across the natural gas value chain.

Advance Partners work alongside SGA and its members to embed expertise directly into workforce development systems that operate year-round, at enterprise scale, and across the natural gas value chain. “This is not incremental improvement, it’s future-proofing,” said Suzanne Ogle, President and CEO of the SGA Natural Gas Association. “Our members are no longer thinking in terms of one-off classes. They are investing in consistent capability across operations, safety, engineering, leadership, and emerging needs. The Advance model allows learning to be treated as infrastructure, not an event.”

From Training Events to Workforce Infrastructure

SGA’s Board has been clear in its direction: the industry is facing increasing demand, unprecedented scale challenges, retirements, rapid hiring, regulatory complexity, and accelerating technology change. The historical, event-dependent training model does not scale to that reality. The Advance Partnership and SGA Training Subscription do.

The Advance Partnership, paired with SGA’s enterprise Training Subscription, was built directly from member feedback to address those challenges head-on. Together, they form a unified workforce readiness system that removes barriers to access, reduces administrative friction, and delivers consistent, measurable impact across organizations.

Through the Training Subscription, subscribing member companies provide their entire workforce with access to instructor-led training and certificate programs, ensuring learning reaches every level of the organization. When combined with Advance Partner expertise, the result is a full-court press on workforce readiness, embedding learning where it matters most and allowing capability to scale with the industry’s needs.

2026 Inaugural Advance Partners

The following organizations were selected as inaugural Advance Partners because they bring execution, expertise, and long-term commitment to the industry:

• Equipment Control Company (ECCO) delivers integrated control and measurement solutions that enhance safety, reliability, and system performance, translating operational complexity into practical, compliant outcomes. https://equipmentcontrols.com/
• Heath® provides natural gas safety services, training and methane detection technologies, serving utilities and energy operators across North America and internationally. https://heathus.com/
• Miller Pipeline, an Artera Services company, contributes decades of frontline experience in constructing, maintaining, and modernizing natural gas infrastructure, with a deep commitment to safety culture and workforce development. https://millerpipeline.com/
• nGenue Software brings technology-enabled insight through integrated operational and financial management solutions that help operators modernize processes, reduce risk, and scale efficiently. https://ngenue.com/
• SWCA Environmental Consultants, a 100% employee-owned firm, supports energy projects from planning through restoration, delivering environmental planning, permitting, inspection, and compliance services that keep critical infrastructure projects moving forward with confidence. https://www.swca.com/

Together, these companies exemplify what the Advance Partnership represents: associate leaders who go beyond support, helping to actively build industry capability.

Operator Adoption Signals a Broader Shift

This model is already gaining momentum. A large, diverse, and representative group of SGA member operators across the natural gas value chain — spanning pipelines, investor-owned utilities, municipals, and marketers throughout North America — has opted into the enterprise Training Subscription, signaling a decisive shift toward workforce development as core infrastructure. By 2027, this approach will be the standard operating model for workforce development across SGA’s membership.

By aligning operator investment in workforce development with Advance Partner expertise, SGA is creating a true partnership ecosystem — one that strengthens safety, reliability, and performance while positioning the industry to meet growing global energy demand with confidence.

“What makes this moment different is that commitment is showing up on both sides of the table,” Ogle added. “Operators are investing in enterprise-wide training, and Advance Partners are embedding their expertise directly into the systems that develop people and capability. That’s what real partnership looks like.”

View source version on businesswire.com:https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260115648359/en/

CONTACT: For additional information

Suzanne Ogle

Phone 972-620-8505

Email:[email protected]

Sganaturalgas.org

KEYWORD: TEXAS UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA

INDUSTRY KEYWORD: SOFTWARE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES UTILITIES ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES OIL/GAS TRAINING ENERGY TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT EDUCATION HUMAN RESOURCES CONSULTING

SOURCE: SGA Natural Gas Association

Copyright Business Wire 2026.

PUB: 01/15/2026 04:07 PM/DISC: 01/15/2026 04:07 PM

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260115648359/en