Key Points

• Heather Vail, Business Support Manager at Marathon Petroleum’s Galveston Bay refinery, leads the team managing critical engineering information, from original design documents to 3D Digital Twin models, helping support safe and reliable operations.

• Over her decades-long career at the refinery, Vail has built broad experience across engineering, reliability, IT and business functions that benefit how she leads the facilities’ information and documentation systems.

• Beyond her day-to-day role, Vail supports the next generation through Texas A&M recruiting efforts and is energized by the refinery’s digital transformation, reflecting her commitment to collaboration, continuous improvement and people development.

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Finding time to unplug can look different for everyone. For Heather Vail, it means logging in each week with her extended family for a Dungeons & Dragons® campaign hosted by her son. Connecting from four different states, they work together to solve problems, make decisions and navigate the unexpected.

It’s not all that different from her day-to-day at Marathon Petroleum’s Galveston Bay refinery, where helping teams find the right information is often key to solving a challenge and keeping operations running safely and reliably.

“You have to work together,” Vail said. “Everyone has different skills and abilities, and you have to figure out how to use them to solve whatever you’re up against.”

As Business Support Manager at the Galveston Bay refinery, Vail leads the team responsible for managing the refinery’s engineering information, from decades-old design drawings to modern 3D Digital Twin models used to visualize refinery units today.

“My team manages the refinery’s engineering information, from the original unit design documents to our Digital Twin models and everything in between,” she said. “It’s interesting and rewarding work because we manage both the history of the refinery and the tools people use to understand it today, helping teams make informed decisions, stay ahead of potential issues and support safe, reliable operations.”

An evolving career 

Vail graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in electrical engineering in 1991. She began her career in the refining industry, which led her to the Galveston Bay refinery. There she has taken on a variety of roles, including project engineering, reliability, IT, business transformation, accounting and category management. She also helped construct and commission a rebuilt unit, an experience that shaped her understanding of refinery operations.

“Heather has taken on a wide range of roles over the years, and that experience really shows in how she leads our information and documentation systems today,” said Jamie Truett, Refining Engineering & Major Projects Director at the Galveston Bay refinery. “Her knowledge of process safety information is invaluable.”

Solving problems and helping others

Ask Vail what she enjoys most about her work, and she points to two things: solving problems and helping people.

“When someone presents a challenge, I naturally want to be part of the solution,” she said.

Her work is rooted in collaboration and continuous improvement, with a focus on removing barriers so others can move work forward. That might mean tracking down an older document or helping teams improve a process and find a better way to work.

Investing in the next generation

Over the years, Vail has worked on many projects, but one effort she’s especially proud of focuses on the future of the company.

Through her involvement with Texas A&M’s engineering recruiting efforts, she has helped connect Aggie engineering students with Marathon Petroleum’s intern and co-op programs.

“Seeing those students join the company and eventually become full-time employees has been incredibly rewarding,” she said. “Helping build the next generation of engineers and leaders makes me proud.”

“Leading with genuine care and optimism, Heather consistently motivates and empowers those around her, always taking the time to connect in meaningful ways.”

A culture of growth and connection

After spending much of her career at the refinery, Vail says the people make Galveston Bay special.

“I love working where people truly care about each other,” she said.

That sense of connection is something she values deeply, along with the opportunities the refinery has provided throughout her career and the chance to see others grow in their roles.

It’s something that’s carried beyond Galveston Bay, too. Leatha Hallmark, who worked alongside Vail for years and now serves as Vice President of Refining at Marathon Petroleum’s Detroit refinery, has remained a close colleague and has seen that approach firsthand.

“Leading with genuine care and optimism, Heather consistently motivates and empowers those around her, always taking the time to connect in meaningful ways,” said Hallmark. “In her own way, she quietly delivers extraordinary results and makes a lasting impact on those around her.”

Looking ahead, Vail says she’s energized by newer technologies and digital capabilities that bring together engineering data and design information to support more efficient, informed ways of working.

Life outside the refinery

Vail is a proud mom of three grown sons and two stepchildren. Her youngest, Julian, joined the family through adoption, reflecting a longstanding commitment to supporting children and families in need.

“That’s what led my husband David and I to adopt Julian, and it’s shaped so many of the decisions we’ve made along the way,” Vail added.

She believes those decisions are part of what keeps her family close, even when they’re miles apart. It’s also why their weekly Dungeons & Dragons® campaign is likely here to stay.

“For us, it’s a fun way to be together,” Vail said. “I mean, it’s not every day you get a chance to save the world with your kids.”