Henry J. "Hank" Ramey

Biography

Henry J. "Hank" Ramey was a department head and professor in the petroleum engineering department at Stanford University. He gained an international reputation for his contribution to the design and interpretation of pressure transient testing of oil and gas wells to determine the properties and size of reservoirs. With the help of his students, Ramey is credited for much of the mathematical and practical development of modern well testing. He also was an innovator in the development of thermal oil recovery methods and received the US Department of Energy Award for Exceptional Publis Service for his work that led to the development of the geothermal energy industry.

An SPE Distinguished Member, Ramey was very active in the society, serving as chairman of the 1965 Annual Meeting Reservoir Engineering Committee, the 1966 Monograph Committee, and the 1960 Transactions Editorial Review Committee. He also served on the SPE Board of Directors during 1972-75, and he served terms on SPE's Education and Accreditation, Lester C. Uren Award, Western Regional Meeting Program, and Anthony F. Lucas Gold Medal Award committees. He was 1969 chairman, 1967-69 program chairman, and 1966 treasurer of the SPE Golden Gate section.

Ramey received the 1983 Anthony F. Lucas Gold Medal, the 1975 John Franklin Carll Award, the 1973 Lester C. Uren Award, and the 1959 Cedric K. Ferguson Medal, and he was an SPE Honorary Member and a 1984 Distinguished Lecturer. He died in 1994 at the age of 67.