WorldWide Drilling Resource

Exploring New Solutions in Canada Adapted from Information by Boart Longyear and the Northern Centre for Advanced Technology Boart Longyear was recently awarded $1.37 million to support the develop- ment of a mineral exploration drilling site and drilling systems technology. The fund- ing will be used for testing the company’s technology to increase productivity. Thanks to the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) funding and matching corporate capital investment, the company plans to work at the Northern Centre for Advanced Technology (NORCAT) to test and develop several proprietary technologies at NORCAT’s Underground Centre in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. Michael Gravelle, Minister of Northern Development and Mines for the provincial government and chair of the NOHFC said, "The Ontario government is very pleased that Boart Longyear's management team has chosen the Sudbury region for its newest R&D [research and development] facility. It is a very significant step in building up our R&D mining cluster in Northern Ontario." Some of the innovative technologies to be tested at the NORCAT Underground Centre include next generation wireline tooling, smart drill rig technology, XRF (x-ray fluo- rescence) technology for examining core samples, and high-speed drilling technology. The company will also test underground drill rigs and tooling inside the underground mine, in addition to surface rigs outside the mine. The former Fecunis Mine has adit access for conven- ient mobilization. According to NORCAT CEO Don Duval, “We also use the mine as a showcase site. Once our clients use the facility to develop, test, derisk, and commercialize their technology, there is a unique opportunity to install and showcase that technology (in the mine). Boart Longyear’s investment really exemplifies the opportunities in our community. We have stellar academic institutions in our backyard and sup- portive governments at the municipal, provincial, and federal levels. We also have a lot of operating mines in the Sudbury Basin, but the one story we don’t tell enough is the unbelievable and exciting mining technology cluster we have.” Serving the Water Well, Environmental, Sonic, HDD, Mining, and Construction Industries A Manufacturer of: Inertia-Welded Drill Pipe, Dual-Wall Drill Pipe, Wireline, Drill Rod/Casing, Composite Wireline Drill Rods, Sonic Drill Pipe/Casing/Bits, Percussion Casing/Bits, Drill Collars, Fishing Tools, Subs, Starter Rods, and Stabilizers. We now accept: Threads: API, Mayhew, BECO, DCDMA, FEDP, 88.9mm-177.8mm Other Industrial Threads and Custom Threads Drill Pipe Inc. 550 S Third St. • Winsted, MN 55395 Phone: (866) 220-8342 • (763) 592-8670 • Fax: (763) 592-8661 tom@drillpipeinc.com • www.drillpipeinc.com The NORCAT Underground Centre, built on the site of the old Fecunis Mine, is used by a number of mining supply companies to test emerging technologies. Photo circa 1956, courtesy of NORCAT. 86 DECEMBER 2017 WorldWide Drilling Resource ®