CED Drilling Contracting & Exploration Management: More Than a Drill Rig
YOU DON'T HAVE TO BUY THE RIG. CED CAN RUN THE DRILLING PROGRAMME.
CED manufactures drilling rigs.
But manufacturing equipment is only part of what we do.
We also operate it.
Cylinder Exploration Drilling provides drilling contracting and exploration management services for mineral exploration projects worldwide.
That can mean supplying a complete CED-owned drilling operation.
Or providing experienced personnel and management to operate drilling equipment already owned by the client.
Or taking responsibility for a much wider part of the programme — rigs, crews, consumables, maintenance, logistics, support equipment and day-to-day drilling operations.
The model depends on what the project needs.
Diamond. RC. Air Core. Remote access. Heli-portable. Underground. Production drilling.
Equipment or complete operation.
CED can do both.
What Does a Mineral Exploration Drilling Contractor Actually Provide?
At the simplest level, a drilling contractor puts holes in the ground.
That description misses most of the job.
A productive drilling programme requires considerably more than a drill rig and somebody sitting behind the controls.
You need:
The correct drilling equipment
Experienced drillers
Supervisors
Mechanical support
Drill rods and tooling
Bits and consumables
Pumps or compressors
Drilling fluids
Critical spare parts
Fuel and power
Maintenance
Logistics
Shift planning
Consumable forecasting
Equipment inspections
Operational reporting
Mobilisation between drill sites
When the project is remote, that list becomes even more important.
CED's contracting model is built around the complete drilling operation.
CED Drilling Contracting Services
CED can provide drilling contracting services across multiple drilling methods and stages of the mining lifecycle.
Diamond Core Drilling
CED provides Diamond Core drilling equipment and operational services for mineral exploration, resource definition and geological investigation.
Our Diamond Core capability extends from compact man-portable equipment through to deeper exploration drilling systems.
Depending on the project, CED can provide the rig, pump, drill string, core barrels, diamond bits, drilling fluids, spares and personnel as one coordinated package.
RC Drilling Contracting
Reverse Circulation drilling requires a complete system.
The rig is only one part.
A productive RC operation also requires the correct compressor, drill string, hammer and bits, sampling equipment, consumables, spares and experienced operators.
CED can configure and operate complete RC drilling packages around the required hole diameter, depth, geology and planned metreage.
That can include:
Rig. Compressor. Rods. Hammer. Bits. Sampling system. Consumables. Spares. Crew.
One operation rather than a collection of unrelated suppliers.
Air Core Drilling Services
Air Core drilling can be extremely effective for rapid, relatively shallow exploration programmes.
But speed only becomes valuable when the operation is properly organised.
CED can provide Air Core drilling rigs, compressors, drill strings, consumables and experienced operators for exploration programmes requiring efficient movement between targets.
For large greenfield licences, mobility and logistical planning can be just as important as the drilling itself.
Man-Portable & Heli-Portable Drilling Contracting
Some exploration targets do not have roads.
That shouldn't automatically make them undrillable.
CED specialises in man-portable and heli-portable Diamond Core drilling, with modular drilling systems designed for difficult-access exploration.
But helicopter-supported drilling requires much more than a portable rig.
Equipment weights need consideration.
Loads need sequencing.
Drill pads need preparing.
Water needs sourcing.
Consumables need moving.
Critical spares need to be available.
Crews need supporting.
And every unnecessary helicopter movement costs money.
CED can help manage the complete drilling operation around those realities.
Underground Drilling Contracting
CED's capabilities also extend underground.
We can supply underground Diamond drilling equipment together with consumables, pumps, tooling, experienced crews and operational support.
Underground drilling brings different constraints.
Restricted space.
Equipment mobilisation.
Rod handling.
Ventilation.
Water management.
Maintenance access.
CED can configure the drilling package around the mine rather than attempting to force a surface drilling philosophy underground.
Production Drilling & Drill and Blast Support
Exploration finds the orebody.
Mining still has to extract it.
CED's wider capabilities include production drilling and blast-hole drilling equipment and services.
This gives us the ability to support clients beyond early-stage exploration and into mine development and production.
For clients developing projects from exploration into operating mines, that creates the potential for a longer-term drilling relationship.
EXPLORATION MANAGEMENT: THE PART PEOPLE UNDERESTIMATE
Running several drilling rigs is not simply running one drilling rig several times.
Complexity multiplies.
More crews.
More consumables.
More spare parts.
More fuel.
More maintenance.
More logistics.
More reporting.
More things capable of going wrong.
That is where exploration drilling management becomes important.
CED can provide operational management for drilling programmes, helping coordinate the people, equipment and support systems required to keep drilling productive.
CED Can Manage Client-Owned Drilling Rigs
This is an important part of our model.
The drilling equipment does not necessarily have to belong to CED.
A mining or exploration company may already own rigs.
Perhaps the equipment is underutilised.
Perhaps the company does not want to build its own permanent drilling department.
Perhaps operator quality is inconsistent.
Perhaps maintenance and consumable management need improving.
CED can provide experienced personnel and drilling management services for client-owned equipment.
That can potentially allow the owner to retain the capital asset while outsourcing the operational responsibility to a specialist drilling team.
Or CED Can Provide the Complete Drilling Fleet
At the other end of the spectrum, CED can supply the entire operation.
That can include:
CED drilling rigs
Compressors
Mud pumps
Generators
Drill rods
Core barrels
Bits
RC and Air Core tooling
Drilling fluids
Consumables
Critical spare parts
Drillers
Supervisors
Mechanical fitters
Operational management
The client defines the exploration requirement.
CED builds the drilling operation around it.
One Rig or Multiple Rigs
A programme may begin with one machine.
That doesn't mean it has to stay that way.
CED has the capability to support multi-rig drilling programmes.
If exploration expands, additional rigs and crews can be added depending on equipment availability, programme requirements and mobilisation conditions.
That could mean multiple rigs working across the same project.
Multiple projects within the same country.
Or drilling operations running simultaneously in different countries.
CED's objective is to build operational capability that can scale with successful exploration programmes.
Drilling Crews Matter More Than the Brochure Suggests
Two identical rigs can deliver very different results.
The difference is often sitting behind the controls.
Experienced drillers influence:
Metres per shift
Core recovery
Sample quality
Hole condition
Consumable life
Bit performance
Fuel consumption
Equipment wear
Preventative maintenance
Downtime
An inexperienced operator can turn good equipment into a maintenance problem remarkably quickly.
CED places significant emphasis on operator quality, supervision and mechanical support.
Equipment matters.
Experience makes it work.
Maintenance Is Part of Drilling Management
A drilling contractor should not wait for equipment to break.
CED's approach emphasises preventative maintenance.
Daily inspections.
Scheduled services.
Fluid checks.
Hydraulic inspections.
Compressor maintenance.
Pump maintenance.
Rod inspection.
Consumable monitoring.
Critical-spares planning.
The objective is not to eliminate every breakdown. That isn't realistic in drilling.
The objective is to identify problems early and reduce avoidable downtime.
Consumables Management: Don't Wait Until the Box Is Empty
Consumable planning is one of the least glamorous parts of exploration drilling.
It is also one of the easiest ways to stop a programme.
Bits.
Rods.
Core barrels.
Inner tubes.
Reaming shells.
RC hammers.
RC bits.
Air Core tooling.
Drilling muds.
Filters.
Oils.
Service parts.
CED can forecast requirements around expected metreage and monitor usage as drilling progresses.
Actual ground conditions will always influence consumption.
That means forecasting needs to be updated using what is happening in the hole — not simply what somebody estimated three months earlier.
Critical Spares for Remote Drilling
If you're drilling beside a major service centre, a missing spare part may be inconvenient.
If you're drilling in remote jungle, desert, mountains or another frontier exploration location, the same missing component can become expensive.
CED can build critical spare-parts packages around the rig and supporting equipment before mobilisation.
Not every component needs to be duplicated.
The objective is to identify the items most likely to affect operational continuity and make sensible provision for them.
Exploration Logistics Are Part of the Operation
CED understands that drilling programmes do not exist inside workshops.
Equipment has to move.
Consumables have to arrive.
People need rotating.
Parts need clearing through customs.
Fuel needs reaching site.
The next drill pad needs preparing.
Remote exploration is a logistics operation with a drill rig in the middle of it.
That is particularly true for projects involving helicopters, boats, poor roads or long international supply chains.
CED's management services can work alongside the client's exploration and logistics teams to plan operational requirements ahead of time.
Power, Water and Support Infrastructure
A drilling programme also depends on infrastructure.
CED's wider equipment capability includes diesel generators, compressors, pumps and exploration support equipment.
That allows us to look beyond the drill rig.
What powers the camp?
Where does drilling water come from?
How is it pumped?
Where is the compressor positioned?
What equipment moves the rods?
How are consumables stored?
What happens when the operation expands?
These are not separate questions.
They're all part of making drilling happen.
Exploration Management for Remote and Frontier Jurisdictions
CED is particularly interested in projects where operations are difficult.
Remote Africa.
Asia-Pacific.
South America.
Central Asia.
The Middle East.
Island projects.
Mountainous terrain.
Jungle.
Desert.
Locations where infrastructure cannot simply be assumed.
Those environments reward planning, adaptable equipment and experienced personnel.
They also expose weak supply chains very quickly.
CED's combination of equipment manufacturing and field operations gives us a useful perspective.
We understand the equipment because we build it.
And we understand what operators need because we work with drilling operations in the field.
Why Equipment Manufacturing Changes the Contracting Model
CED is not simply a drilling contractor buying somebody else's rigs and hoping the supplier answers the phone.
We manufacture drilling equipment.
That gives us greater understanding of the systems being operated.
When a drilling programme expands, we can manufacture additional equipment.
When a project requires a particular configuration, we can assess how the equipment should be adapted.
When critical spares are required, we understand what the machine needs.
Manufacturing and operations reinforce each other.
Problems encountered in the field inform equipment development.
Equipment knowledge improves field support.
That feedback loop is valuable.
CED Can Build the Drilling Model Around the Client
Not every client wants the same commercial structure.
One project may need a conventional drilling contract.
Another may want to purchase equipment and have CED operate it.
Another may already own equipment and simply require experienced crews and management.
Another may need a complete turnkey operation.
CED can discuss models including:
CED-owned equipment + CED operation
Client-owned equipment + CED operation
CED equipment sale + commissioning + training
Equipment + personnel + management
Multi-rig turnkey drilling programmes
The correct model depends on project duration, planned metreage, capital strategy and how much operational responsibility the client wants to retain.
From First Hole to Full Exploration Programme
CED wants to build long-term relationships with exploration and mining companies.
A programme may start with a single rig.
If the geology works, drilling expands.
One rig becomes two.
A shallow programme moves deeper.
RC targets lead to Diamond drilling.
Exploration moves underground.
The project progresses toward production.
CED's growing capability means we can potentially support clients across that progression rather than disappearing after the first equipment delivery.
ONE SUPPLIER. ONE OPERATION. ONE OBJECTIVE.
The drilling industry has plenty of equipment suppliers.
It has plenty of contractors.
CED is building something that sits across both.
We manufacture the rigs.
We supply the consumables.
We provide the crews.
We support the equipment.
We can manage the drilling operation.
That gives clients options.
Buy the equipment.
Have us operate it.
Use your equipment and bring us in to manage the drilling.
Or ask CED to build the complete programme.
Rig. Compressor. Pump. Generator. Consumables. Spares. Crew. Management.
One objective:
KEEP DRILLING.
Looking for a Mineral Exploration Drilling Contractor?
If you're planning a new drilling programme, expanding an existing campaign or looking for a different way to manage your drilling operations, talk to CED.
Tell us:
Where is the project?
What commodity are you exploring?
Which drilling methods are required?
How many metres are planned?
What depths are expected?
What equipment is already available?
How many rigs are required?
When does drilling need to begin?
What operational challenges does the location present?
CED can then look at the equipment, crews, consumables, logistics and management structure required around the programme.
DIAMOND. RC. AIR CORE. UNDERGROUND. REMOTE ACCESS. PRODUCTION.
EQUIPMENT OR COMPLETE OPERATION.
CED CAN KEEP IT DRILLING.
Comments