Atlas Copco’s FlexiROC T15 R drill rig, which is used for a wide variety of small-scale drilling jobs such as preparing building sites and trenching, has now considerably expanded its field of application.
The reason is a completely new boom concept which enables the rig to switch from downwards drilling to upwards drilling in one easy operation. This facility on the FlexiROC T15 R is extremely easy to use. All the operator has to do is put the rig into tramming mode, remove a locking pin, push the feed round 180 degrees, replace the pin and start drilling once again.
This procedure, called re-pinning, takes just a few minutes and enables the rig to be used in eight different configurations, including toe-hole drilling at various angles, upwards or downwards. The switch is also safe to carry out as the feed beam is in a resting position while the re-pinning is being done.
“The FlexiROC T15 R is now even more valuable to have in the fleet,” says Erik Ahlström, Product Responsible Service Engineer at Atlas Copco Surface Drilling Equipment. “With a great vertical coverage area of 18 square meters it can go from drilling vertical holes to horizontal toe-holes and then to upward drilling for, for example, rock reinforcement all from the same set-up.”
The rig is also extremely economical to run thanks to its high-torque Cummins B3.3 (Naturally Aspirated) diesel engine. During tests in Sweden with 47 % active drill time drilling 45 mm holes in hard granite, the recorded fuel consumption was less than 5.7 litres per hour. |
