The quiet mornings sitting on the deck are not quite as tranquil as they once were. With a new housing development going in a half a mile west of your house and the major road construction a half mile to the east, there are lots of sounds that travel in on the cool morning breezes. In fact, even when you are not driving by the directional drilling contractors and their large machines that are early indicators of the work that is going on, it is easy to know that things are changing. It will, of course, be nice for the community and your morning commute once both of these projects are completed, but for now the noise is just one more reminder of the changes that are happening just a short distance from your house.
As the last weeks of summer and the first weeks of fall arrive, it certainly is no surprise that there are a number of construction projects that are trying to get as much done as possible before the cold and icy weather arrives.
Underground Drilling and Directional Drilling Contractors Play Important Roles in Many Construction Sites
Long before the visible parts of a new construction site are evident, there is already much work that is going on. From lines for underground cables and wires to plumbing preparation, steerable trenchless machines are literally laying the groundwork for these projects. Consider these facts and figures about the drilling industry and the roles that they play in the nation’s economy:
- Telecommunications installation, driven by the fiber-to-the-premises wave, increased its horizontal directional drilling (HDD) market to 24.4% in 2017.
- High density polyethylene pipe (HDPE) is the most common type utilized in the directional drilling market. In fact, HDPE is used in approximately 49.7% of projects, according to the 2017 Horizontal Directional Drilling Survey, h.
- When compared to traditional methods, directional drilling produces twice the amount of oil or gas being extracted.
- There are approximately 2.5 million miles of total pipelines used to transport fuel products from source to market in the U.S.
- By the year 2022, the global horizontal directional drilling market is expected to reach $14.95 billion.
Progress is rarely silent, and in some cases it is very loud. Knowing that your favorite road will be ready for winter, however, or that your children will soon have new neighbor kids to play with can help you remain patient through even the most complex construction projects.
