Drilling is a specialized industry that not many know about. Typically, the drilling industry is shrouded with myth and taboo. In our increasingly environmentally conscious world, drilling is painted as both a greedy and superfluous entity that only robs our world of precious natural resources and makes the rich even richer.
While both of those things may be true, it is also true that Americans consume approximately 19 billion barrels of oil per day. So until America’s oil use is drastically exacerbated, the need for drilling won’t be going anyway anytime soon.
So while the United States is still hooked on oil like an intravenous drug user, we might as well get to know the necessary devil for what it is. Here is a short but comprehensive list of need to know drilling terms and facts for the average Joe and Julia. You might still resent big oil by the end of this, but at least you can intelligently resent it!
Auger Drilling
An auger drill is a specific drilling device that is used to remove drill material. In composition, the auger drill essentially looks like a large yet terrifying screw. When the blade rotates, the material gets moved out of the hole.
Auger Boring
Auger boring utilizes auger drills but in a horizontal manner. Auger boring is typically used on pipeline drilling projects.
Directional Drilling
This kind of drilling is the practice of drilling wells that aren’t vertical. Rather, they deviate from a wellbore on a planned path to a specific target. This is typically used for oil drilling.
Directional Boring
Also known as horizontal directional drilling, directional boring is part of directional drilling services. Directional boring is a steerable trenchless method, meaning it is done in either a shallow arc or above ground. This is the least disruptive of drilling methods, and is used for maintaining and installing underground power lines, gas lines, sewer lines, oil lines, water lines, and more.
