- Verify detonation of charges by observing control panels, or by listening for the sounds of blasts.
Occupations with related tasks Save Table: XLSX CSV
- Listen to engines, rotary chains, or other equipment to detect faulty operations or unusual well conditions.
- Monitor sound wave-generating or detecting mechanisms to determine well fluid levels.
- Maintain and perform safety inspections on equipment and tools.
- Operate controls that raise derricks or level rigs.
- Prepare reports of services rendered, tools used, or time required, for billing purposes.
- Install pressure-control devices onto wellheads.
- Confer with others to gather information regarding pipe or tool sizes or borehole conditions in wells.
- Operate pumps that circulate water, oil, or other fluids through wells to remove sand or other materials obstructing the free flow of oil.
- Drive truck-mounted units to well sites.
- Interpret instrument readings to ascertain the depth of obstruction.
- Thread cables through derrick pulleys, using hand tools.
- Select fishing methods or tools for removing obstacles such as liners, broken casing, screens, or drill pipe.
- Close and seal wells no longer in use.
- Direct drilling crews performing activities such as assembling and connecting pipe, applying weights to drill pipes, or drilling around lodged obstacles.
- Apply green technologies or techniques, such as the use of coiled tubing, slim-hole drilling, horizontal drilling, hydraulic fracturing, or gas lift systems.
- Operate specialized equipment to remove obstructions by backing off or severing pipes by chemical or explosive action.
- Perforate well casings or sidewalls of boreholes with explosive charges.
- Examine unserviceable wells to determine actions to be taken to improve well conditions.
- Insert detection instruments into wells with obstructions.
- Listen to engines, rotary chains, or other equipment to detect faulty operations or unusual well conditions.
- Monitor sound wave-generating or detecting mechanisms to determine well fluid levels.
- Observe electronic graph recorders and flow meters that monitor the water used to flush debris from holes.
- Monitor drilling operations, by checking gauges and listening to equipment to assess drilling conditions and to determine the need to adjust drilling or alter equipment.
- Operate controls to stabilize machines and to position and align drills.
- Start, stop, and control drilling speed of machines and insertion of casings into holes.
- Regulate air pressure, rotary speed, and downward pressure, according to the type of rock or concrete being drilled.
- Select and attach drill bits and drill rods, adding more rods as hole depths increase, and changing drill bits as needed.
- Drive or guide truck-mounted equipment into position, level and stabilize rigs, and extend telescoping derricks.
- Operate machines to flush earth cuttings or to blow dust from holes.
- Verify depths and alignments of boring positions.
- Perform routine maintenance and upgrade work on machines and equipment, such as replacing parts, building up drill bits, and lubricating machinery.
- Select the appropriate drill for the job, using knowledge of rock or soil conditions.
- Document geological formations encountered during work.
- Drive trucks, tractors, or truck-mounted drills to and from work sites.
- Assemble and position machines, augers, casing pipes, and other equipment, using hand and power tools.
- Record drilling progress and geological data.
- Retrieve lost equipment from bore holes, using retrieval tools and equipment.
- Fabricate well casings.
- Pour water into wells, or pump water or slush into wells to cool drill bits and to remove drillings.
- Create and lay out designs for drill and blast patterns.
- Place and install screens, casings, pumps, and other well fixtures to develop wells.
- Operate water-well drilling rigs and other equipment to drill, bore, and dig for water wells or for environmental assessment purposes.
- Review client requirements and proposed locations for drilling operations to determine feasibility, and to determine cost estimates.
- Drill or bore holes in rock for blasting, grouting, anchoring, or building foundations.
- Perform pumping tests to assess well performance.
- Disinfect, reconstruct, and redevelop contaminated wells and water pumping systems, and clean and disinfect new wells in preparation for use.
- Design well pumping systems.
- Signal crane operators to move equipment.
- Withdraw drill rods from holes, and extract core samples.
- Inspect core samples to determine nature of strata, or take samples to laboratories for analysis.
- Retract augers to force discharge dirt from holes.
- Observe electronic graph recorders and flow meters that monitor the water used to flush debris from holes.
- Monitor drilling operations, by checking gauges and listening to equipment to assess drilling conditions and to determine the need to adjust drilling or alter equipment.
- Observe and monitor equipment operation during the extraction process to detect any problems.
- Drive moving equipment to transport materials and parts to excavation sites.
- Unload materials, devices, and machine parts, using hand tools.
- Set up and adjust equipment used to excavate geological materials.
- Organize materials to prepare for use.
- Repair and maintain automotive and drilling equipment, using hand tools.
- Clean up work areas and remove debris after extraction activities are complete.
- Clean and prepare sites for excavation or boring.
- Load materials into well holes or into equipment, using hand tools.
- Provide assistance to extraction craft workers, such as earth drillers and derrick operators.
- Collect and examine geological matter, using hand tools and testing devices.
- Signal workers to start geological material extraction or boring.
- Dismantle extracting and boring equipment used for excavation, using hand tools.
- Dig trenches.
- Observe and monitor equipment operation during the extraction process to detect any problems.
- Observe and listen to equipment operation to detect binding or stoppage of tools or other equipment malfunctions.
- Hang ventilation tubing and ventilation curtains to ensure that the mining face area is kept properly ventilated.
- Conduct methane gas checks to ensure breathing quality of air.
- Check the stability of roof and rib support systems before mining face areas.
- Operate mining machines to gather coal and convey it to floors or shuttle cars.
- Drive machines into position at working faces.
- Move controls to start and regulate movement of conveyors and to start and position drill cutters or torches.
- Reposition machines to make additional holes or cuts.
- Determine locations, boundaries, and depths of holes or channels to be cut.
- Repair, oil, and adjust machines, and change cutting teeth, using wrenches.
- Install casings to prevent cave-ins.
- Scrape or wash conveyors, using belt scrapers or belt washers, to minimize dust production.
- Move levers to raise and lower hydraulic safety bars supporting roofs above machines until other workers complete framing.
- Apply new technologies developed to minimize the environmental impact of coal mining.
- Guide and assist crews laying track and resetting supports and blocking.
- Observe and listen to equipment operation to detect binding or stoppage of tools or other equipment malfunctions.
- Listen to mud pumps and check regularly for vibration and other problems to ensure that rig pumps and drilling mud systems are working properly.
- Inspect derricks, or order their inspection, prior to being raised or lowered.
- Inspect derricks for flaws, and clean and oil derricks to maintain proper working conditions.
- Control the viscosity and weight of the drilling fluid.
- Repair pumps, mud tanks, and related equipment.
- Set and bolt crown blocks to posts at tops of derricks.
- Start pumps that circulate mud through drill pipes and boreholes to cool drill bits and flush out drill cuttings.
- Position and align derrick elements, using harnesses and platform climbing devices.
- Supervise crew members, and provide assistance in training them.
- Guide lengths of pipe into and out of elevators.
- Prepare mud reports, and instruct crews about the handling of any chemical additives.
- Clamp holding fixtures on ends of hoisting cables.
- Weigh clay, and mix with water and chemicals to make drilling mud, using portable mixers.
- String cables through pulleys and blocks.
- Steady pipes during connection to or disconnection from drill or casing strings.
- Listen to mud pumps and check regularly for vibration and other problems to ensure that rig pumps and drilling mud systems are working properly.
- Monitor progress of drilling operations, and select and change drill bits according to the nature of strata, using hand tools.
- Train crews, and introduce procedures to make drill work more safe and effective.
- Observe pressure gauge and move throttles and levers to control the speed of rotary tables, and to regulate pressure of tools at bottoms of boreholes.
- Count sections of drill rod to determine depths of boreholes.
- Push levers and brake pedals to control gasoline, diesel, electric, or steam draw works that lower and raise drill pipes and casings in and out of wells.
- Connect sections of drill pipe, using hand tools and powered wrenches and tongs.
- Maintain records of footage drilled, location and nature of strata penetrated, materials and tools used, services rendered, and time required.
- Maintain and adjust machinery to ensure proper performance.
- Start and examine operation of slush pumps to ensure circulation and consistency of drilling fluid or mud in well.
- Locate and recover lost or broken bits, casings, and drill pipes from wells, using special tools.
- Weigh clay, and mix with water and chemicals to make drilling mud.
- Direct rig crews in drilling and other activities, such as setting up rigs and completing or servicing wells.
- Repair or replace defective parts of machinery, such as rotary drill rigs, water trucks, air compressors, and pumps, using hand tools.
- Clean and oil pulleys, blocks, and cables.
- Bolt together pump and engine parts, and connect tanks and flow lines.
- Remove core samples during drilling to determine the nature of the strata being drilled.
- Cap wells with packers, or turn valves, to regulate outflow of oil from wells.
- Line drilled holes with pipes, and install all necessary hardware, to prepare new wells.
- Position and prepare truck-mounted derricks at drilling areas specified on field maps.
- Plug observation wells, and restore sites.
- Lower and explode charges in boreholes to start flow of oil from wells.
- Dig holes, set forms, and mix and pour concrete, for foundations of steel or wooden derricks.
- Monitor progress of drilling operations, and select and change drill bits according to the nature of strata, using hand tools.