Tag: directional drilling

Construction Equipment

Vermeer ECO75, VX75 vacuum excavators fill mid-range gap

The Vermeer ECO75 and VX75 from McLaughlin are designed to fill a gap in the mid-range vacuum excavator market, for use on compact job sites, production potholing, setting power poles or fluid management during directional drilling, the company says. Both the ECO75 truck-mounted and VX75 trailer-mounted vacuum excavators feature a 5-inch boom option designed to […]

November 30, 2017

Dealers

Ditch Witch backs Power Pipe HD with one-year replacement guarantee

Ditch Witch has introduced a new replacement guarantee on its Power Pipe HD drill pipes. The program, which Ditch Witch says is an industry first, offers free, one-for-one replacement on Power Pipe HD Fluid Miser II and Power Pipe HD Unlined pipes that break during drilling, within one year of purchase. Plus, Ditch Witch dealerships will […]

August 17, 2016

Workforce

Vermeer launches HDD Circuit training program to meet demand for skilled drill operators

A shortage of skilled drill operators is not something Vermeer is taking lying down. Following the announcement of a partnership with its primary competitor, Ditch Witch, to recruit, train and deploy trenchless crews across the U.S., Vermeer has announced what it calls an “intensive” horizontal direction drill operator training program. Dubbed HDD Circuit, the tuition-based, two-week […]

December 9, 2015

Construction Equipment

Vermeer intros D60x90 S3, D220x300 S3 drills at ICUEE (PHOTOS)

At ICUEE, Vermeer continued introductions into its S3 Navigator drill portfolio, along with showcasing its InSite productivity tool suite, which it debuted shortly before the show. The D60x90 S3 directional drill got a 17-horsepower boost to 202 horsepower from the previous machine, changing from a 6.8-liter John Deere engine to a Tier 4 Final 7.1-liter […]

October 2, 2015

Construction Equipment

These 3 directional drilling design advances pack more power, versatility in HDDs than ever before

The International Construction & Utility Equipment Exposition (ICUEE) in Louisville at the end of this month promises an innovation showcase from makers of horizontal directional drills. Intelligent hydraulic systems, telematics, configurable controls, standardization of controls and displays that can be customized from the type of information shown to colors displayed to units of measure are […]

September 2, 2015

Business

Is the golden age of underground construction upon us?

During the Great Recession, one phrase reached cliché status: “this is the new normal.” In other words, suck it up, things will never be as good as they once were. Get used to diminished returns and don’t dwell on what used to be. So it tends to give you pause when Chris Daum, senior managing […]

June 25, 2015

Construction Equipment

New D23x30 S3 offers sneak peek at Vermeer’s next-gen S3 horizontal drill lineup (PHOTOS)

With the D23x30 S3, Vermeer is offering a sneak peek at features that will be incorporated throughout its S3 Series Navigator horizontal directional drill line, set to debut at the ICUEE trade show in Louisville, September 29-October 1. “We’ve been working vigorously, getting the voice of the customer, discovering their problems,” says Dave Wisniewski, vice […]

June 22, 2015

Construction Equipment

What’s new with directional drills?

Operator-centric moves Keeping operators happy and productive continues to be a main thrust. “This positively impacts contractor’s bottom lines,” says Joshua Beddow, marketing manager, Toro, “which in turn leads to higher productivity.” Because of this, Toro is seeing higher demand for cabs, even on smaller machines. Additional features aimed the operator include color gauges/displays with […]

September 2, 2014

Construction Equipment

Vermeer intros the D9x13 S3, the first in its new line of drills

Improved hydraulic efficiency is one of several enhancements to the D9x13 S3 Navigator horizontal directional drill, the first of the S3 generation, introduced at ICUEE last week. “We’ve increased the speed of the carriage, rotation and vise cycle, all of which translates into completing a bore much faster,” says Jon Kuyers, underground global product manager. […]

October 11, 2013