Keep your eye on the ball. Step up to the plate. Knock it out of the park.
Those well-known adages were relevant to Austin McGinis when he was a high school baseball player and remain so today in his role as a natural gas liquids (NGLs) distribution representative at Williams.
But instead of moving players around bases, he’s part of a team moving NGLs through various pipelines to customers around the country.
Teamwork and communication are key to both pursuits, said McGinis, whose primary role is scheduling deliveries of ethane from storage facilities in southeast Texas to manufacturing customers in Louisiana.
“As a catcher I had to be ready for anything, a baserunner trying to steal 2nd base or a wild pitch,” he said. “In my job, I’m still like a catcher, working with operations, pipeline control and our marketing affiliate to make quick decisions to counter any unexpected time-outs like pipeline maintenance or Gulf Coast storms.
“Like baseball, you always have to know who’s on first and second,” he said. “We are in this as a team, so we rely on each other to make the right calls.”
He said he also takes satisfaction in knowing the NGL products he helps move make life better for many Americans.
Ethane – the NGL he schedules – often is used to fuel industrial plants and as a raw material for making products like plastic bottles, detergents and refrigerants.
It’s even used in the making of synthetic rubber, a component in baseballs. (That’s how the ball bounces!)
McGinis is a graduate of Oklahoma State University with a bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics. He joined Williams in 2017 and is fan of the St. Louis Cardinals.