The success and longevity of local drilling companies is a sustainability issue of its own and, while many factors contribute to the success of a business, it’s worth seriously considering the financial aspects that have historically led to profitability and growth for contracting firms.

We recently got the results back from our latest email survey, and we found that more than six in 10 contracting firms either strongly agree or agree that the shortage of good help has limited the amount of work they can take on.

Knowing how to read financial statements helps keep you in the black.

Do you know how much debt your business has? Do you know the value of the assets the business has?

Raise your hand if you like profits. I bet everyone has their hands up. But do you really understand what profit is, why you might have losses or how to read an income statement?

Sean Ryan, owner and president of American Drilling Inc. in Pensacola, Fla., founded his business in December 2015.

Let's talk for a minute about the life blood of a small contracting firm.

It's often said (though not necessarily true) that a shark has to keep swimming to breathe. I think about education in the same terms.

It is critical to the health of our team to remember why we are drilling water wells, why we are conducting pump tests, why we are fixated on well development, and why we are insisting that the project be executed perfectly.

What does your business disaster plan look like?