In chapter one of this long, drawn out tale of the toughest job I've ever had, we had spudded a casing down on a vacant property where a house was going to be moved.

The biggest difference between drilling fluids for vertical rotary mud drilling and horizontal directional drilling (HDD) applications is in the requirements for gel strength.

Today, more companies have begun to recognize that their employees, whether hourly or salaried, benefit immensely from participating in supplemental education opportunities.

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.

When done well, a job safety analysis (JSA) is an effective tool for identifying and addressing worksite hazards before incidents occur.

Because of the equipment's central role in a drilling operation, contractors are often torn between investing in the purchase of a mobile generator or renting the machine as needed.

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.

Contractors, inspectors and all others need to be aware of the surroundings and remember that we work in a dangerous environment.

Gravel-packed wells are very efficient when done right. A crucial part of this is development.