Tulsan Brings Military Experience to 'Check Six' Success

Tara Vreland, News 9

TULSA, Oklahoma -- In 2006, Brian Brurud, a highly decorated naval fighter pilot, got a call from an acquaintance who worked on a Canadian oil rig.

His friend said, "We're doing things twice a lot. I'm not happy with our safety numbers. What did you guys do in the Navy?"

That's how Check Six came to be.

"In some cases you have to slow down to hurry up. But you want to do things deliberate. And you want to do things one time," Brurud said.

Burred says 'check six' is actually a tactical term.  He says the tail is the most vulnerable area for a pilot. Check Six is a safety measure to check the tail of your wingman.

In the Check Six business world, former fighter pilots, naval aviators, Top Gun instructors, Navy Seals and astronauts take the safety training they used in the military and teach those techniques to people in high risk industries--industries like oil and gas drilling and mining operations.

Brurud's company was recently ranked 100 in Inc 500's list of the 500 fastest growing companies in the U.S.

"It speaks well of the talented folks we have going out sharing their experiences to the benefit of others," Brurud said.

Burred says Check Six doesn't know about oil rigs specifically, but they know about safety and holding employees to a higher standard.

He says that their success is measured in the billions of dollars saved in job efficiency and the lives that are saved because mistakes aren't made.

"It's unbelievably rewarding.  Short of being in the military with your comrades there, this is pretty close," Brurud said.