Purpose-Built Limited Access Drill Rigs

In geohazard mitigation, speed of installation is critical. Active landslides don’t slow down or stop when you start working on them. Unstable rock masses have a very short time frame when they can be stabilized in place. Using the best technology for the job, results in fast installation, which correlates directly with site safety. Using the wrong tool for the job, or only having a few tools to choose from can directly lead to total roadway collapse. For example, the speed of the Soil Nail Launcher™ and GeoStabilization’s purpose-built SuperNails™ prevented total collapse of Interstate 75 in Campbell County, Tennessee, both in 2005 and again in 2012. Conventional drilling rigs could not match the installation rates of either technology, and would not likely have succeeded in preventing failure at either site.

Active landslides and unstable rock masses, by definition, exist near a factor of safety of 1.0. This means that the driving forces causing failure and the resisting forces preventing movement are nearly equal. Any disturbance to this delicate balance can trigger total failure. For this reason, GeoStabilization specifically tailors its purpose-built fleet to work without major access road and significant site disturbance and excavation. This “light” site footprint can also yield environmental benefits and a reduction in permitting requirements.

Many geohazard sites are relatively inaccessible with conventional drilling rigs. Unstable rock masses can be hundreds of feet above the roadway elevation. Landslides can occur on remote sections of gas pipelines. Transmission tower sites can be miles from the nearest road. For this reason nearly all of GeoStabilization’s fleet can travel the most questionable of roads, and much can be mobilized using helicopters, cranes, or high-reach lift equipment.