Page 61 - pd306-July22-mag-web_Neat

“For all the costs associated with drilling, I tell you what is really ex- cess to drill-hole performance.
pensive; drilling a hole in the wrong direction,” Ayris says. “It starts with the geologist who designs the programme,” Gillies
He should know. Since starting Downhole Surveys (DHS) in 1989, says. “The programme is uploaded to the DeviCloud. Drillers can
Ayris has been at the forefront of gyro surveying, watching the pro- then access it but so can DHS. That remote technical support capa-
cess move from expensive nice-to-have to essential part of the drill- bility allows Mike and the team to look at it every day and identify
ing process. issues early. Previously, it was reliant on drillers calling us but now we
“We provide the instruments to ensure that you start a hole in the look at data and anticipate problems. Tech support may even notice
right direction and then monitor it all the way through to depth.” issues where the driller doesn’t.”
That transformation has been enabled by technological advances Ayris said the system enhanced the speed of surveying.
which allow for quicker and more accurate diamond drilling. DHS has “This is our bread-and-butter, resolving problems we might see in
kept pace with this rapid rate of change. In 2018, the company part- the cloud, so we can rectify the programme quickly,” he said. “It be-
nered with Norwegian directional drilling comes real-time tech support and that will
group Devico to develop the DeviGyro only improve as more underground op-
brand A miniature gyro sensor with differ- erations get Wifi. That will allow us to take
ent configurations to suit a range of sur- our support to the next level. Quite often
vey applications. there is a huge amount of time wasted
“Technology has enabled this,” Ayris calling and waiting, with wifi it becomes
explains. “Sensors are getting smaller smoother and quicker and will be really
and cheaper which allows surveying to powerful when geologists can change the
become quicker and more inobtrusive. set-up based on the existing deviation.”
We can survey every 30m and it takes For Gillies, the development of its soft-
no longer than it does to pull the core. It ware capability enables DHS to react to
means drillers are surveying more with- clients’ needs quickly and effectively.
out it costing the client.” “This is the beauty of software, you can
Not only are they cheaper, but the sim- make massive changes by improving the
plicity of the DeviGyro and associated software and adding features,” she says.
Devicloud platform means they are easer “It is often about us developing and show-
to use. ing clients what the equipment is capable
“DHS has always been about putting intu- of but our development is based on the
itive technology directly into the hands of feedback we have received from them.
operators,” DHS general manager Megan We are continually seeing what clients do
Gillies says. “Where traditionally a lot of training was required to be with data and what they need from it. This is not a finished product,
able to conduct accurate surveying, our systems are now about as we continue to develop and enhance it.”
simple as running an iPhone. The drillers operate all of the tools via While gyros are extensively used in exploration drilling, there hasn’t
a handheld PDA, and the feedback is that they are very easy to use, been the same uptake in production scenarios but Ayris sees evi-
smart, reliable and robust. dence of this changing.
The key is in the software, it really unlocks all the potential in the tool “With the technological advances, there is a strong trend towards
and enables the drillers to conduct surveys quickly and easily.” surveying blast holes,” he says. “You might wonder why you would
The technological advances provide a wealth of information drillers survey a blast hole when it is only 25m but it is around the space
and geologists can access from the gyro. between the blast holes. If two holes are both deviating 2-3m, the
“We have got more data than ever before,” Ayris says. “The survey blasting result could be problematic. Surveying allows for more ac-
tool is recording 10 shots a second, where it used to take two min- curacy and therefore greater productivity.”
utes to set up a shot. We are taking a survey every 30m and each
survey repeats from 0m. The data builds up and we average it out to
validate the information.”
When combined with the cloud-based DeviCloud platform, the
wealth of data gives drillers and exploration teams near-instant ac-

aUSTRaLIa’S PaYDIRT JULY 2022 Page 61