What will you do?
Working as a drilling machine driver or drilling foreman, you install the drilling structure, organise the workstation and carry out first line maintenance on the machines and equipment. You register the drilling data, finish the boreholes and always work safely and with respect for the environment. This is outdoor, hands-on machine work on civil engineering sites.
- Install the drilling structure
- Organise and set up the workstation
- Carry out first line maintenance on machines and equipment
- Register the drilling data
- Finish the boreholes
- Work safely and with respect for the environment
Skills to develop
- Technical feeling for machines and civil engineering work
- Physically fit for outdoor work in all weather
- Accurate registration and reading of drilling data
- Ability to work as part of a drilling team
Your foundation for this occupation
Horizontal-drilling training should cover route information, machinery and crew coordination. Ask which technique the employer uses and how supervision works. Learn plans before controls. Existing infrastructure information and the approved assignment are essential preparation.
From preparation to your first day
Develop the practical skills
Practise communication between the operator and the colleague tracking progress. Maintain prescribed records and confirm current information. Prepare materials without cluttering the work zone. Unexpected deviation requires procedural discussion, not an independent route change.
Check your work
Match records to route and project. Record confirmed changes and report unusual conditions. As-built information matters to later work in the same location. Ask how data are checked and handed over.
How can you grow?
Specialise in operation, route monitoring or crew leadership. Cable and pipe projects can need different preparation and equipment. Discuss travel, weather, site access and maintenance time. Describe experience by technique.
Frequently asked questions
Can I immediately do vertical-drilling work too?
Not without further induction. Route monitoring, organisation and application differ. Some machinery skills transfer, but the technique and crew communication need specific learning.