5 Questions to Ask a Drilling Contractor Before Hiring

By: Dale Emerson

SINOCOREDRILL supply professional and honest service.

 

Drilling a well seems straightforward&#;so choosing a drilling contractor for the job should be, too, right?

Not so fast.

Even for simple well designs, it&#;s important to work with an drilling contractor that knows what they&#;re doing and has the tools and experience to draw on if anything goes wrong. In this blog post, we&#;ll share five questions you should ask when vetting contractors for your well development project.

 

Do you have experience drilling this specific type of well?

There are a lot of different types of wells&#;mining wells, monitoring wells, water wells, injection wells, etc.&#;and each type can involve different equipment, designs, goals, or even regulations mandating how they are developed.

Some drilling companies specialize in one or two types of wells. If they haven&#;t developed many wells similar to the kind you need, they may not know the most efficient and cost-effective way to get the work done, and they aren&#;t going to know how to address problems if they arise. Your contractor should have plenty of experience with the type of well you need, and be able to discuss specific projects they&#;ve worked on and how those wells performed.

In this project, a combination of air and mud rotary drilling with custom safety engineering controls was used to successfully rehab production wells for a mining company. The company saved thousands of dollars and avoided the total loss of two production wells damaged by vandals.

 

Do you have the right drilling equipment?

Many drilling contractors have a limited range when it comes to their equipment, and some of them may want to try to do the job with what they have&#;even if it isn&#;t best for your project. It&#;s important to ensure you work with a company that has wide variety of drilling technologies in their fleet so you know they&#;re choosing the right equipment for your well. If you would like to learn more about they types of drilling technologies and techniques, check out Firm Foundations: Drilling Basics.

 

How do you ensure you can perform well development or rehab on sites that have limited or restricted access?

You may require wells to be drilled, maintained or rehabbed anywhere from the side of mountain to an urban neighborhood with heavy pedestrian and vehicle traffic. These types of sites are referred to as limited access or restricted access.  In places where standard rigs can&#;t access, how does your contractor plan to access the site and do the work?

The best answer to this question involves two parts: equipment and experience. If the contractor you&#;re considering doesn&#;t have a rig that can go off road, it&#;s unlikely that remote mountain well is going to get drilled (at least by them). And if they don&#;t have smaller rigs that can fit on sidewalks or between buildings, the contractor may be unable to develop your well in the urban location, too.

But even if a contractor has the equipment, it&#;s important that they have experience, too. Ask if their drillers have worked on limited and restricted access projects in the past and how they overcame challenges related to the space.

 

How do you handle rehabbing wells that are in worse shape than expected?

On well rehab projects, it&#;s often hard to know what shape the well is in until you get to the site to check it out. Your contractor may realize that the well has deteriorated much more than anticipated. It&#;s important to ask potential contractors what they do when that arises&#;are they going to have alternative methods for rehabbing the well? Will they provide you with data and cost estimates to compare rehab with developing a new well?

The important thing is that the contractor you choose has an answer to this question&#;that they can demonstrate they will work with you to find the best solution, and make sure you can make an informed decision.

 

For more information, please visit Drilling Equipment Solutions For Minging Industries.

Can you perform testing to demonstrate the level of production?

It&#;s important to know how your well is performing. This is true when it is first developed as well as throughout its lifespan. If you are not tracking well performance, you will miss signs that it is beginning to fail&#;and subsequently, miss out on the chance to rehab instead of replace it.

Once a well is rehabbed, testing is still smart. You want to understand how much improvement was gained from the rehab project to confirm it was worth the cost and effort.

 

Do you offer a guarantee of production?

This is a bit of a trick question, but it&#;s a quick way to rule out people who shouldn&#;t be working on your wells. When it comes to well development and rehabbing, nothing is certain&#;and anyone offering a guarantee either doesn&#;t know enough to understand that or is trying to pull a fast one. A good drilling contractor should be able to provide educated estimates about outcomes, but they will always come with the caveat that there are unknowns that can impact your results.

If you're interested in well maintenance or redevelopment to extend the life of your wells (and save time and money), we'd be happy to discuss your project. 

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Drilling and blasting are commonly adopted techniques for overburden removal and ore excavation in opencast as well as underground mining operations. Blast hole drilling also constitutes the simplest and the most economical solution for discovering and accessing underground mineral deposits.

Choosing appropriate drill and blast methods is critical to improving mining productivity and increasing profit margins while enhancing worker and environmental safety.

Finding suppliers of mining drilling and blast mining equipment and services

Mining Technology has listed leading suppliers of mining drill and mine blasting equipment and systems, based on its extensive experience in the sector.

The list covers suppliers of a wide range of drill and blast solutions for the mining industry. It includes manufacturers and suppliers of various mining drill and rock blasting machines and components for mining applications.

The list also includes mine blasting and drilling service providers, suppliers of blasting materials, such as bulk emulsions and explosives, as well as vendors of mining drill rig parts and drilling fluids.

The information contained within the download document is useful for mining operation managers, mining exploration geologists, mine planners, engineers and consultants, and any other individual involved in mineral exploration and ore extraction in the mining sector.

The download contains detailed information on drill and blast contractors and their product and service lines, alongside contact details to aid your purchasing or hiring decision.

Related Buyer&#;s Guides which cover an extensive range of mining equipment manufacturers, solutions providers and technology can also be found here.

Mine blasting and rock drilling tools and services

Drill and blast equipment and services for the mining industry include, but are not limited to:

• Deep-hole drills, reverse circulation drills and pneumatic rock drills
• Underground coring mobile drill rigs, excavator drills, crawler drills, and bolting rigs
• Hydraulic drilling and demolition equipment
• Down-the-hole, water-powered and slot drilling systems
• Blasthole drilling and surface blast machines and tools
• Underground drill rig parts, assemblies, and drilling fluids
• Remote firing devices, explosives, and laser-based measuring equipment
• Diamond and surface core drilling services for mineral exploration
• Drill rig repair and refurbishment services
• Blast optimisation and design services

Frequently asked questions

• What role does drilling and blasting play in mining?

  Drilling and blasting are essential techniques in mining for breaking up rock and accessing ore deposits. These methods are widely used for both surface and underground mining operations, enabling efficient excavation of minerals and overburden removal.

• What are the types of drilling equipment used in mining?

  Mining operations use a variety of drilling equipment, including deep-hole drills, pneumatic rock drills, crawler drills, and hydraulic drill rigs. These machines are chosen based on the specific mining requirements and the type of rock being excavated.

• How do blasting services optimise mining operations?

  Blasting services ensure precise and controlled explosions to break rock, maximising productivity and safety. Proper blast designs reduce rock fragmentation, improve digging efficiency, and minimise environmental impacts, such as vibration and noise.

• What safety measures are necessary for drilling and blasting?

  Safety measures include using remote firing devices, proper training for personnel, and following strict protocols for handling explosives. Advanced sensors and laser-based measuring systems are also used to ensure precision and minimise risks during blasting.

• Who are the leading suppliers of drilling and blasting equipment?

  Leading suppliers include Atlas Copco, Epiroc, and Sandvik. These companies provide high-performance drilling machines, blasting tools, and safety systems that help mining operations achieve efficiency, precision, and safety.

  Are you interested in learning more about Surface Drill Rigs? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!