Our Team

Gavin Liu
Gavin Liu
President

Mr. Gavin Liu is the founder and President of Kana Energy Services. Before establishing Kana in 2009, Mr. Liu served as general manager of CP International for 8 years. Under Mr. Liu’s leadership, CP International’s revenue grew from 150,000 USD annually into 238 million USD annually all within 5 years. With more than 23 years of experience in the Oil & Gas equipment and machinery industry, his expertise in strategic planning , supply chain, and customer and manufacturer relationships, allows him to contribute in several projects and future ventures all while managing a growing business.

Gary Taylor
Gary Taylor
VP — Sales & Marketing

Mr. Gary Taylor’s 40+ years of experience in the pressure control equipment business have given him extensive experience in manufacturing, senior management, operations and sales for valve and wellhead products. Mr. Taylor has a wide range of experience in project management, forecasting, start up and launch for product lines. He spent twelve years in the field and has “hands on” experience in installation and repair of wellhead equipment, gate valves, ball valves and actuators.
Mr. Taylor’s employment from the beginning, in shipping and receiving at Cameron, to senior management has been a rewarding journey and a lifelong education. With a firm commitment to the Oil and Gas market, he plans to continue to advance both his personal and business goals.

Paul Hilburn
Paul Hilburn

Paul joined the Kana Energy team as a consultant in 2012. Specializing in Marketing and Sales of our BOP equipment, the name Paul Hilburn is well recognized in the Oil & Gas industry. With an extensive background in the oilfield, Paul held several positions such as marketing in the Overhaul and Repair div./Installed (19) O&R Facilities Worldwide and Sales & Marketing Product Manager for Hydril Company for the first 25 years of his career. During that time, he partnered in a startup Oil Field Pipe and Supply company and startup of Manufacturer/Marketing & Sales of BOP Equipment. Mr. Hilburn is a great asset in the negotiations and expanding business of our BOP product line. When away from the office, Paul loves to spend as much time as possible with his loving grandchildren.

Frank Bonner
Frank Bonner
Director of Business Development

Frank joined KANA in 2019 as our Technical Sales Manager for BOPs. He comes to KANA with 48 years of direct oilfield experience, including hands on Rig work. He worked at the Hydril Company for nearly 20 years as their technical sales and service representative thru Eastern Regional Manager for the USA. While at Hydril, he traveled extensively (both domestic and international), working primarily with well control equipment. Frank has also worked in Casing and Tubular sales/service and worked closely with engineering and product development at times on special products. After leaving Hydril, Frank worked in consulting and for Baker Tanks as Gulf Coast oilfield manager until working directly for Knight Oil Tools full time. At Knight, Frank set up their well control and pressure control quality division as Director of quality services, overseeing the repair and purchase of all pressure control equipment. Before leaving Knight, Frank also developed the technical & quality services division for the entire Knight Rental Company as well as the Knight machine shop repair and manufacturing division.
When Frank is not traveling for work, he enjoys spending time with his family and relaxing at his ranch.

Nicki Taylor
Nicki Taylor
Sales

Being raised in a household of oilfield background, Nicki followed in the family business in 2007 specializing in the API 6A equipment product line. Since joining Kana in 2013, Nicki has been involved in both purchasing and sales here in the United States and overseas. Nicki is exceptionally well-respected in the Oilfield Industry, not only for her vast knowledge of valve and wellhead equipment, but for being a person of high ethical standards stated by her various customers. When she is not negotiating or selling on behalf of the company, she loves to spend quality time with her husband and daughter cooking and trying new recipes with family and friends.

Jessica Ruppert
Jessica Ruppert
Inside Sales

Growing up in the oil business, Jessica decided to best utilize her vast knowledge of oil field equipment at Kana Energy Services for the past 6 years. Jessica is part of our BOP sales team as the inside salesperson and master of all things order-related. Whether it’s submitting new orders, managing logistics, providing certs or locating just what the customer is looking for, Jessica is our go-to for BOP’s. When she is not at work, you can find her spending time with her daughter or traveling to new places.

Leo Li
Leo Li
Sales

With an expansive background in equipment and tool handling, Leo’s harnessing power of mastering and streamlining warehouse procedures and operations has been instrumental in providing innovative ways to boost client engagement. Self-driven, strong and enthusiastic are just three words that best describe Leo. During the initial years employed as a Warehouse Manager at KANA Energy Service, Leo managed warehouse storage system including supplies, product inventory and accounting.

Kana Energy Services
Amanda Martinez
Sales Assistant

Amanda joined Kana in 2018 and immediately excelled in her position under the supervision of her sales management team supervisors. Coming from an extensive 6-year background in sales, Amanda shifted her sights from cellular companies to the oilfield industry. Eager to assist, Amanda’s duties include responding to customers on a daily, recording and updating Kana inventory monthly, accurately updating and maintaining customer files, providing all certifications and material test reports for each product, and creating invoices/packing lists necessary to ship purchased goods all while seeking the most reliable yet affordable freight for our customers. With her new-found career path and her drive to excel in all aspects of the oilfield industry, Amanda decided to re-enroll in school and finish obtaining her Associates Degree in Business. When she’s not working or cracking opening a study book, there is nothing more important to her than being a mother to her 3 beautiful children playing sports, crafting and making memories to last a lifetime.

Panny Lam
Panny Lam
Accountant

Panny joined Kana in August of 2018, holding the position of Business Accountant. With a B.A in Accounting, Panny specializes in accounting services, payroll services, budgeting and small business administration. When she is not accurately recording all incoming and outgoing transactions, Panny loves to spend time with her family.

Roy Yuen
Roy Yuen
Warehouse Foreman

With over twenty years of experience in warehouse and logistics management, Roy has played a vital role at Kana Energy Services since 2015. While managing stock inventory and shipment operations on a daily basis, Roy can always be counted on to ship out customer orders at a moments notice.

Kana Energy Services
Diana Ramos
Administrative Assistant

Diana is the first smiling face you see when stepping foot into our Kana Houston office. She has been an employee of the company for five years constantly building relationships with each client that walks through our doors. Although Diana holds an Associate’s Degree in Process Technology, she has gained a wide overview of the oil and gas industry through her work here at Kana. Diana would tell you that she has come to enjoy her interactions with clients and guests, forming a first name basis type relationship. In her free time, Diana enjoys being active and spending time with her son.