This month I would like to talk foundation drilling safety, in particular micropile and tieback drilling safety. Micropile and tiebacks are commonly drilled using drill rigs capable of drilling in multiple positions from vertical to horizontal and 0 to 90 or even 120 degrees from the rig’s centerline. We commonly refer to these as “multipurpose” drills. This flexibility makes these types of drills extremely useful, but it also leads to some specific safety concerns.

 The first concern involves the possibility of drilling without a sight-line on the hands of your helper/oilers drill rod and casing connections. The control panels on most water well and geotech investigation drills sit directly next to the mast, so you can easily monitor your drilling assistant’s movements throughout the connection process. On many multipurpose rigs, if the mast is set up perpendicular to the centerline of the drill rig it becomes difficult for the driller to see the connection process. Clear communication between the driller and the drill crew becomes paramount in these types of situations.