Water Well Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/617280
These are the direct costs to operate the drill, but there are many indirect costs as well to include like insurance, utilities, and interest—just to name a few. I mention all of these to point out the more efficient you are on a job, the better it is for the bottom line. If you can drill a well with 20% less time on the job, that's time you have to put toward completing the next job. The fewer steps you have on a particular well site, the quicker you can move onto the next task. Many of the things we did over the years included having a well organized drill tender and support trailer. Our drill tenders were customized tool boxes where everything had a place. Our support trailers were the same way. It's important to look at each individual process you do on a drill site and continually ask yourself the question, "Is there something we can do to shorten this process without sacrific- ing the quality construction that goes into the well?" Most of the time there's always something one can do. Sometimes it may take a while to figure it out, but be on the lookout when you are faced with one of those time-consuming tasks. Over the years we noted things that ate up a lot of time, so when new drills were purchased, we looked at what could be customized on the drill at the factory that could enhance our method of operation. We found many and built them into our drills. For example, we include both diesel engine and hydraulic tank pre-heaters we can pre-program to start up prior to us arriving on site to have the rig ready to drill on cold winter days. This is a huge time saver and contributes to sig- nificantly less wear and tear on the motor and the hydraulic system. We also installed automatic greasing systems. Before we did that, we found to properly grease a drill would often take at least one and a half to two hours per greasing—time that could have been put to use for drilling. After we did that, we found we had less downtime due to the rig always being greased and having less bearing failures, especially in those hard-to-get-to "grease zerks"! Another efficiency we have adopted over the years is hav- ing our support/yard staff have materials ready and loaded on a pickup trailer each morning to eliminate load time in the yard. This usually includes casing and grout as well as other bentonite products. Those items are also loaded in a special way, based on what items are needed first to prevent unnecessarily moving things around once these products are on site. Last, we always have a pre-planned "drillers packet" ready to go. It includes information customized for that job, a work report, maps to get to the job site, and other drill logs in the area. Since we are required in our state to collect drill sam- ples, we also have the sample bags filled out ahead of time so the crew on site doesn't have to do so. Planning and efficiency are two critical key items that are a must in the water well industry. In an era where profits are continually being squeezed by other costs and regulations, it is vital one continually "looks outside the box" and works to- wards the efficiencies vital to a successful drilling operation. 'Til next time . . . WWJ Gary Shawver, MGWC, is president of Shawver Well Co. Inc., an employee stock ownership plan company in Fredericksburg, Iowa. He has been in the water well industry for 40 years and is a Master Groundwater Contractor. He has served as president of the Iowa Water Well Association, the Iowa Groundwater Association, and most recently served on the NGWA Board of Directors. Shawver is semi-retired, having recently sold his business to his employees. He contributes to NGWA's member e-publication and can be reached at grs@shawverwell.com. Twitter @WaterWellJournl WWJ January 2016 31 DACUM Codes To help meet your professional needs, this article covers skills and competencies found in DACUM charts for drillers and pump installers. DO refers to the drilling chart. The letter and number immediately following is the skill on the chart covered by the article. This article covers: DOA-2, 3; DOB-1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9; DOC-3, 4, 6, 9; DOD-1, 2; DOE-1; DOJ- 6, 7; DOK-1, 2, 7, 10; DOL-11 More information on DACUM and the charts are available at www.NGWA.org. Become a Certified Well Driller Author Gary Shawver, MGWC, is a Master Groundwater Contractor. Find out more about certification at www.ngwa.org/ Professional-Resources/certification-exams/pages/default.aspx. R C N CTERIA! 096 2 . ORE, ALER! USH + WELL Jr. Blvd. • Lubbock, TX 79404 747.2096 • coteychemical.com N BA FOR CHOICE WEAPONS R W 806 7 U A M 7 4410 MLK 806.7