Description
Operate a variety of drills such as rotary, churn, and pneumatic to tap subsurface water and salt deposits, to remove core samples during mineral exploration or soil testing, and to facilitate the use of explosives in mining or construction. Includes horizontal and earth boring machine operators.
- • Regulate air pressure, rotary speed, and downward pressure, according to the type of rock or concrete being drilled.
- • Verify depths and alignments of boring positions.
- • Start, stop, and control drilling speed of machines and insertion of casings into holes.
- • Select the appropriate drill for the job, using knowledge of rock or soil conditions.
- • Operate controls to stabilize machines and to position and align drills.
- • Select and attach drill bits and drill rods, adding more rods as hole depths increase, and changing drill bits as needed.
- • Drill or bore holes in rock for blasting, grouting, anchoring, or building foundations.
- • Operate machines to flush earth cuttings or to blow dust from holes.
- • Drive or guide truck-mounted equipment into position, level and stabilize rigs, and extend telescoping derricks.
- • Perform routine maintenance and upgrade work on machines and equipment, such as replacing parts, building up drill bits, and lubricating machinery.
- • Drive trucks, tractors, or truck-mounted drills to and from work sites.
- • Record drilling progress and geological data.
- • Retrieve lost equipment from bore holes, using retrieval tools and equipment.
- • Assemble and position machines, augers, casing pipes, and other equipment, using hand and power tools.
- • Pour water into wells, or pump water or slush into wells to cool drill bits and to remove drillings.
- • Operate water-well drilling rigs and other equipment to drill, bore, and dig for water wells or for environmental assessment purposes.
- • Perform pumping tests to assess well performance.
- • Document geological formations encountered during work.
- • Withdraw drill rods from holes, and extract core samples.
- • Retract augers to force discharge dirt from holes.
- • Place and install screens, casings, pumps, and other well fixtures to develop wells.
- • Design well pumping systems.
- • Disinfect, reconstruct, and redevelop contaminated wells and water pumping systems, and clean and disinfect new wells in preparation for use.
- • Review client requirements and proposed locations for drilling operations to determine feasibility, and to determine cost estimates.
- • Signal crane operators to move equipment.
- • Inspect core samples to determine nature of strata, or take samples to laboratories for analysis.
- • Fabricate well casings.
- • Create and lay out designs for drill and blast patterns.
- • Monitor drilling operations, by checking gauges and listening to equipment to assess drilling conditions and to determine the need to adjust drilling or alter equipment.
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
