GRUNDODRILL 4X convinces in England

Drinking water in a forest reserve

In the Langley Wood, New Forest Reserve, near the small town of Hamptworth in the south of England, a water pipe was required to supply fresh water to the wild cattle. The water pipe with a diameter of 50 mm connects a 820 m long tower, in which rainwater is collected, with the water troughs of the animals. The drilling started at the rainwater tower and was carried out in several 50 metre sections. The division of the total drilling distance into these relatively short sections was based on the length of the PE pipes SDR 17.6, which were supplied in rolls of 50 metres each. The ends of the PE pipes were joined together in small excavation pits, which served both as the target pit for one drilling section and subsequently as a rigid pit for the next drilling section.

The well was successfully completed within 10 days on behalf of GM Utilities Limited, Horton and Tracto-Technik UK Ltd, Bedford. After setting up the GRUNDODRILL 4X and completing the preparatory measures, the first pilot bore was drilled through the sandy loam soil into the target pit 50 m away. The position of the drill head was continuously localised via a hand-held transmitter and the course of the drilling was thus monitored. In the target pit, the Tracto-Technik UK team replaced the pilot bore head with an expansion head at the end of which the PE pipeline was attached. Thus, the water pipe was pulled directly into the ground during the expansion drilling. The GRUNDODRILL 4X was then repositioned and the next 50 m section drilled. After installation the PE pipe, the client was very satisfied with the work of the Tracto-Technik UK team, as the environmentally sensitive area of the forest reserve was disturbed as little as possible and the cattle can now be supplied with fresh water at any time.

Data cable in the industrial estate

In an industrial park in Loughton, northeast of London, a large car dealer needed a new data cable to be installed between two office buildings. The installation was carried out in a PE pipe with a diameter of 100 mm, which acted as a cable duct. Since the 48 m long route for this was along or under a busy road within the fabric area in the area of a T-junction, the trenchless HDD drilling method was chosen for the installation. The cramped space conditions and the requirement to affect the paved area as little as possible spoke in favour of using the GRUNDODRILL 4X. For example, a small borehole could be used for near-surface drilling - a starting pit was not required in this case.
 
On behalf of the car dealership Sytner Chigwell (BMW), a team from Mole Utilites, Wirral, was able to successfully complete the installation after only two days. And this despite the fact that soil conditions made drilling difficult. The very stony, partly filled ground disturbed the control of the pilot hole. Thus a pre-expansion was necessary before the PE pipe could be drawn in with the planned expansion bore. A bentonite suspension was used as drilling fluid. The car dealer was very satisfied with the work and delighted with the ease of use of the GRUNDODRILL 4X.
 

Data cable under a country road

Also a data cable, but this time in open terrain as an undercrossing of a country road, had to be installed in Trelogan, near Liverpool. The client here was SP Energy Networks, based in Blantyre, Scotland. The HDD bore with the GRUNDODRILL 4X was carried out by a team from Mole Utilities. Over a length of 18 m, a PE pipe was installed as a cable duct with a diameter of 110 mm. The starting point of the drilling was a field on one side of the road. The GRUNDODRILL 4X could easily be positioned two meters away from the starting pit due to its light weight and manoeuvrability. The pilot boreing was initially carried out through the soil into the starting pit and from there under the country road through to the target pit on the other side of the road. Since the target pit was a very narrow trench, from which the cable duct was installed further in open construction, the pilot bore head reached it slightly laterally offset, but this did not pose a problem for the further expansion and retraction process. Due to the unstable soil conditions, the subsequent pre-expansion drilling was carried out using a bentonite suspension to support the borehole. At the same time, the PE cable duct was drawn in when the expansion hole was retracted. After only three hours, the cable duct for the data cable was installed under the country road. The Mole Utilities team was very pleased that the GRUNDODRILL 4X well could be drilled so smoothly and quickly.
 

Power cable for a solar installation

The installation of an innovative solar system "SmartFlower" on a private property in Leeds required the installation of two power cables. Since the property was a garden with a well-kept lawn, installation it in an open construction method was out of the question. The Mole Utitlites team, who had planned the solar system and were also responsible for installing the necessary cables, therefore opted for the trenchless HDD process. This was the reason why the GRUNDODRILL 4X was used. The small bearing surface in combination with the low weight of the drilling rig meant only minimal damage to the lawn. For protection, mats were also used, which were placed under the drilling rig. In addition to the two power cables connecting the solar panels to a generator, a PE irrigation line with a diameter of 25 mm was installed.
 
The first hole with a length of 47 meters started in the corner of the garden and ran under a tent to the garage. The second well, 42 metres long, was drilled under a stable. After the respective pilot boreing, both the power cables and the PE line were bundled with the expansion drilling and pulled back to the starting point in a single operation. Despite the stony soil conditions, both wells were successfully completed within one day. After completion, the owner of the private property was extremely satisfied with the work of the Mole Utilities and the use of the GRUNDODRILL 4X, which had greatly spared his garden.