Directional drilling is gradually revolutionising construction, mining and infrastructural activities globally. Referred to as direction drilling, the technique has earned a reputation that makes it suitable in different Australian operations ranging from utility installation to actual mining. But, in fact, how does this new method help to save time and money, compared to traditional ones? In this blog, we’ll look at how this strategy succeeds at the core of delivering value and why this course of action can help businesses save more.
What is Directional Drilling?
The method of directional drilling is used for laying pipelines, conduits and cables, without major excavation on the surface. In contrast to other approaches where major areas of the ground must be excavated to place the collection infrastructure, directional drilling can be employed to create a straight or slanted borehole horizontally to the required depth or at a specific angle to the point of interest.
One such method is known as the direct pipe method, however horizontally directional drilling (HDD) is a more common variety of this approach commonly used for longer installations over roads, rivers or areas of significant environmental protection. HDD is used to avoid rupturing and distraction of ground surface since it enables the establishment of a pipeline or cable system with less interference to the social or ecological structure of most areas.
Saving Time with Directional Drilling
Another major benefit of directional drilling is that it saves a tremendous deal of time on the projects. Conventional excavation techniques are usually time-consuming to implement and involve attracting a lot of manpower and equipment to evacuate territory, eradicate ground and install utilities. Besides, the methods cause traffic interferences, and blockage of common spaces and everyday functioning, which bring additional time losses.
Minimising Disruption
In the urban areas, maintaining the continuity of the surface is important in the process of constructing a leeward. One common advantage of using directional drilling is the fact that it is ideal while working in highly populated places such as cities or even in areas considered sensitive to the economic impact of the project such as protected regions. With conventional strip mining techniques, massive portions of roads or parks would have to be excavated causing major disruptions to the community, commerce and natural environment.
Cost-Effective Solutions
Directional drilling can be a much cheaper solution than conventional drilling, which often takes longer. That is, in terms of investment costs, gear and competent human power in organizing and executing the technique of directional drilling may look more costly than traditional methods; nevertheless, the prospects are unique and immensely beneficial. Here’s how it helps reduce costs:
- Reduced Labour Costs: Again, due to employing a smaller crew and the overall time taken for the project being less the labour cost is significantly low. Less manpower is required to manage the structures and requires significantly less effort than the construction of trenches.
- Less Site Restoration: As directional drilling does not result in disturbing the surface greatly, remediation of the work site when the actual drilling is done is minimal. This cuts on expenses incurred in reconstructing roads, replacing trees that were uprooted or redeveloping social amenities affected by the excavation.
- Lower Risk of Damage: Directional drilling seems to be a more effective method, especially for installing pipelines and cables because it provides greater accuracy thus avoiding unnecessary destruction of other structures. Most of the conventional methods are likely to compromise the surface utilities or interfere with underground infrastructure including services that can be very costly to repair or set back.
- Environmental Benefits: Avoiding environmental remediation costs is another advantage if one decides to use the directional drilling technique. Since its implementation, it has been discovered that little or no soil excavation is required and therefore there is minimal environmental degradation, which makes the cost of compliance and site restoration almost negligible.
Ideal for Complex Projects
Perhaps the most valuable aspect of directional drilling is the possibility of its application. It can be applied where conventional techniques are either impracticable or very costly. For instance, crossing under rivers, streams, tracks, heavily populated cities or roads can be easily accomplished through the use of horizontal directional drilling. In these situations, the other option would be to burrow an object, a very tiresome and time-consuming process.
This flexibility makes directional drilling a good solution in large projects complicated by the need for exact and productive direction. From water mains to electrical conduit and fibre optic cables, directional drilling companies are now considering this method ideal since it is cheaper and time-saving.
Conclusion
The application of directional drilling in construction and infrastructure projects has over time proved to be efficient, creative, and cheap. Thanks to its benefits in minimizing surface excavation, impact on the environment and accessibility to workforce and site, the project for this technique has increased in popularity in construction projects around Australia due to the reduced labour and restoration costs. Whether you are dealing with a basic installation process or a complicated one, using directional drilling is beneficial especially because it is cost-effective.
