Importance of Safety: Drill Pier Construction

“It is important to constantly be preaching the benefits and the need for safety,” said Safety Manager, Ricky Hayes of Drill Pier Construction, an EWN client. EWN got the chance to speak with Ricky about his company’s safety practices in lieu of National Safety Month when he recently attended EWN’s Master Evaluator Certification Program (MECP) Class.

In order to maintain the concept of safety, Drill Pier Construction focuses on two key practices, annual training, and daily toolbox meetings.

Hayes mentioned that they worked with a third-party group to get their company an effective, annual safety program up and running. Drill Pier’s annual training consists of 13 different programs that are presented and reviewed by the employees. Following the completion of each section, the employees go through a verbal series of Q&A time.

Additionally, daily toolbox meetings are a two-part safety training practice that Drill Pier Construction utilizes on a regular basis. The first part is more “job-site focused,” Hayes informed us. The first thing they review is common tasks, proceeded by what-if scenarios and what could go wrong on a drill rig. The second part involves the individual operator going to the job site. The operator evaluates the site with the ground hand, and they both review what could go wrong with scenario walkthrus. Once completed, sign-off sheets are required to be filled out and submitted.

Hayes stated that “Obviously, we don’t want anyone hurt. But if and when incidents occur, the costs are astronomical, especially for a smaller-sized company.” He also told us that they typically have a count of 6-15 employees, so being a man down can be traumatic.

Drill Pier, located in Lubbock, Texas, is one of only two Foundation Drilling companies in the area. The company began with one leased drilling rig and one operator who had over 30 years of drilling experience. Within a few months, the company purchased its first drilling rig and added another experienced operator to the payroll along with two ground hands. Before the company celebrated its first anniversary, two more rigs were purchased and experienced drillers and ground hands were hired to handle the company’s growing business. Recently, a fourth rig has been added. Today they have over 80 years of drilling experience.

Learn more about Drill Pier Construction by visiting drillpierconstruction.com or connect with them on Facebook.