Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/85684
machine matters | by Lauren Heartsill Dowdle Compact HDD systems are drilling through environmental requirements and into new markets. DIRECTION I mproved technology and a minimally invasive approach are helping small horizontal directional drilling (HDD) systems gain ground in fiber- optic, sewer and gas markets. "While the maxi-rigs are often considered the most exciting of these machines, the small rigs are really the workhorses of the HDD industry, composing by far the largest percentage of the HDD contracts being performed," says Bob Martin, general manager, HDD Broker, a used directional drill on- line site. Drills in the 30,000-pound pullback and below group make 30 June 2012 | EquipmentWorld.com up 60 percent of the used HDD sales, according to HDD Broker's 2011 data. Evolving electronics Aiding in their popularity are the advances in technology. "Back in the 1990s, HDD designs were changing so fast, they were like computers," says Richard Levings, senior product specialist, Ditch Witch. "Your model was obsolete two months after you bought it." But by the 2000s, the HDD rigs started to mature, and the designs began to solidify and stabilize. Now, companies are making small, incremental changes to the units, creating a more consistent design from all manufacturers, Levings says. "What you see is the equipment gradually performing better than it once did," says John Olander, direc- tional drill specialist, TT Technolo- gies. "Instead of doing three jobs a day, for example, crews are now able to complete four." And the majority of these changes are based around improving the drills' electronics, including im- proved interfaces, easier-to-use electronic controls and cruise con- trol. "There has been an increased