Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/674536
T his is not all good news to HDD contractors, who are struggling to man drills in the face of such demands. "Our customers are telling us, 'we can't work because we don't have the people,'" Tony Bokhoven, training manager, Vermeer. And so they've asked for help. In response, Vermeer unveiled its fi rst HDD Circuit training in February, and invited Equipment World to visit its second class in March. The company is betting that contractors will not only pay the $4,000-per-student cost (see side- bar, "HDD Circuit basics" on page 54), but that they'd also be willing to be short on personnel for two full weeks while they trained. The two weeks were a bare minimum to convey what Vermeer felt needed to be taught, Bok- hoven says: "It's more than just knowing how to fl ip switches and turn rod. We didn't just want to teach people how to run a drill. We want to teach them how to be a driller." Full immersion The resulting training course takes a full immersion approach that includes both classroom and fi eld (see sidebar "What's taught" on page 52), all of which takes place at Vermeer headquarters in Pella, Iowa. For example, after learning safety and drilling fundamentals, students then travel a short distance to a fi eld to practice what they've just learned. Each eight-member class is divided into teams of two, one on the drill and one on the EquipmentWorld.com | May 2016 49 training | by Marcia Gruver Doyle | MGruver@randallreilly.com Although just one part of the horizontal directional drilling (HDD) market, telecoms are struggling to keep up with the fi ber installation demands of an Internet- ravenous population. According to 2015 report, industry group USTelecom forecasts Internet Protocol traffi c to grow 250 percent during the next fi ve years. Vermeer takes a small class, immersion approach to HDD training On target: Trainer Andrew Golly with DCI, and student Aaron Adcox with Atmos Energy celebrate hitting the target cone on a training bore. "When they hit the cone, their chests are out," says Golly. "They just beam, and then they're hooked."