Hammer & Steel Adds Delmag Drilling Rigs To Product Offering

Hammer & Steel has added a fleet of Delmag drilling rigs to its line of piling and pile driving products, increasing its ability to meet the needs of all segments of the deep foundation industry.

The company has purchased a variety of hydraulic drilling rigs built by Delmag, a manufacturer most Hammer & Steel customers recognize for its superior line of diesel pile driving hammers. The drilling rigs are made in the same works in Esslingen, Germany that produces the hammers, and they are manufactured to the same exacting standards. While not as well known in the United States, the powerful and efficient Delmag drilling rigs are used throughout Europe.

The initial Hammer & Steel order included a total of five crawler-mounted drill rigs. The three largest have torque ratings of 190,000 ft-lb; another is rated at 130,000 ft-lb and the last at 90,000 ft-lbs.

These rigs feature demolition-grade CAT carriers with substantial enhancements to the undercarriage, higher horsepower diesel engines and upgraded hydraulically extendable tracks for stability. Other notable features include mastmounted hydraulic winches; dual joystick controls with push-button selection of operations such as self-plumbing of the mast; set-up/fold down for transport; and oscillation of casing. Self-erecting systems, free-falling auxiliary winch and mast extensions are also available.

Hammer & Steel has based its fleet of Delmag rigs at its centrally located St. Louis headquarters, reducing the mobilization costs for contractors. Additionally, the 90,000 ft-lb unit can be mobilized with just one truck.

These versatile rigs are capable of performing a variety of work in several configurations, noted Mark Colvin, who handles sales and rental of Hammer & Steel's Delmag and LoDril.

For Example:

• In the Kelly Bar configuration, piers can be drilled, soil improvement methods can be employed and displacement piles created.
• Casing lengths up to five meters can be used with ease.
• With the Continuous Flight Auger (CFA) set-up, auger cast piles can be installed.
• Jobs requiring oscillation or submersion of casing while drilling with tooling can be readily installed with a Double Rotary Head arrangement.
• Rock-drilling auger heads are available for the convenience of clients in sizes ranging from 24 inches to 72 inches, in 6-inch increments.

"While Hammer & Steel has traditionally worked extensively with pile driving contractors, we want to be able to help everybody in the deep foundation industry," explained Colvin, who recently joined the company expressly to handle drilling rigs. "We have expertise in geotechnology and geology that can help all segments of the market. Hammer & Steel has made a big investment in machines, parts, tooling and manpower in order to position itself as a valuable partner with drilling contractors."

Colvin, whose roots in the deep foundation industry go back two decades, spent time at the Delmag plant in Germany, seeing how the rigs are built and learning to use them. "The deep foundation market is obviously interested in the Delmags," he observed. "Shortly after the first unit was delivered, it was sent to a job site for soil improvement work."

Veteran Hammer & Steel technician Dusty Yahnke has been assigned maintenance duties for both the Delmag and LoDril rigs. Dusty also spent several weeks in Germany getting extensive hands-on experience with the Delmag machines.

For answers to any questions about the Delmag drilling rigs, including specifications, contact Mark Colvin at the St. Louis office.