Newpark Drilling Fluids opened its new world headquarters at 21920 Merchants Way, off Mason Road near I-10, on June 17.

Newpark Drilling Fluids, a subsidiary of Newpark Resources, broke ground in March 2012 and features a 37,000 research laboratory with a state-of-the-art downhole drilling simulator and analytical capabilities.

The 106,000-square-foot center is located on 12 acres and will hold the laboratory and technical staff under the same roof alongside management, administrative, engineering, operations, sales and marketing groups. Since the company's formation in 1997, Newpark Drilling Fluids has expanded its reach to six continents with several hundred rigs in current service activity.

"Over the last several years the energy corridor was expanding west past Katy," John Beltz, Newpark Drilling Fluids Marketing Director said. "It was a perfect transition move for us to make. There were many great locations with acreage and land out there."

The new facility houses 140 employees after pairing with other Newpark Drilling Fluids branches.

"We took a couple of other smaller locations that were a part of the Newpark Fluids and after consolidating we brought everyone into this new campus facility," Beltz said.

With an active offshore market including deep water locations, the company provides resources throughout the United States and Canada from drilling activity in onshore Texas and Louisiana, the mid-continent, and the Rocky Mountains.

For more information visit www.newpark.com.