Underground Construction - June 2019 - 4

EDITOR'S LOG

Robert Carpenter | Editor-in-Chief

Survey Says: Clear Sailing for HDD

This issue marks the 21st version of
Underground Construction's exclusive
Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD)
Survey. We've been embedded within the
HDD market since the '80s. This survey
is an important tool that allows us to
understand market nuances, fluctuations,
issues and challenges. Beginning on page
22, you'll see our 2019 report replete with
expansive charts and graphs that clearly
profile a healthy industry-one that is rife
with opportunities for growth and promise
of a bright future.
However, its positive outlook also
raises a cynical observation from veteran
drillers: the bubble must burst sometime;
we witnessed it happening in 2001. But
short of a major economic crunch, our data
reflects the belief that most HDD markets
will remain strong for several more years.
When discussing the overall HDD
economy, one of the primary drivers, as
in the '90s, remains telecommunications
work, specifically fiber optic installations.
There is certainly a tendency to compare
the cross-country fiber boom of the '90s
with today's bustling market. However,
while there are certainly similarities and
fiber continues to play a major role in
the strength of the U.S. drilling market,
a true apples-to-apples comparison is
not applicable as we near 2020.
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JUNE 2019 | UConOnline.com

Before the turn of the century, it was
the lure of cross-country fiber optic
installations paired with the explosive
development of a perfect construction
technique for telecommunications (HDD)
that set the market spinning. Directional
drilling was rapidly expanding into other
market areas back then, but the impact
was still relatively minor everywhere else.
However, for the small rig market, which
dominated at the time, telecom was mecca
for profit. Scores of people, even those
with very little construction experience,
jumped feet first into the market as
owners were desperate to get their fiber
in the ground and there was a shortage
of available contractors. With equipment
easy to obtain, the attraction of a fast
buck was very strong.
In 2000, almost 4,000 HDD rigs were
sold. For the amount of work at the time,
that was probably about 2,000 rigs too
many. Most had no idea that the sky was
about to fall. Indeed, by the beginning
of 2001, the bottom dropped out of the
market, and in 2003, only 460 HDD units
were sold.
The market dynamics are much different
now. Certainly, there is economic exposure
for those focused solely on telecom
installation as HDD is used at such a
high rate for fiber work. The introduction
of 5G networks has strengthened telecom
work even more.
While other markets don't use HDD
with such intensity, it has become a major
tool for virtually all facets of underground
utility and pipeline work. HDD has found
uses previously deemed impractical.
These days, the variety of niches for HDD
seems limited only by the imagination.
With enhanced tooling for both broader
performance and specific applications,
more doors are opening for HDD. Intersect
boring, once an incredible feat, is now
becoming almost routine. The introduction
of Direct Pipe, kind of a combo of
microtunneling with a steerable, HDD
twist, has made impossible jobs possible.

Cross bores remain the bane of
directional drilling, and until that
issue is finally resolved, it will
present problems with acceptance
of the technology. Mud disposal
continues to be an environmental
concern for many areas of the
country not convinced that used
drilling fluid is truly inert.
Still, there are challenges to the market
as it continues to mature. Cross bores
remain the bane of directional drilling, and
until that issue is finally resolved, it will
present problems with acceptance of the
technology. Mud disposal continues to be
an environmental concern for many areas
of the country not convinced that used
drilling fluid is truly inert (despite research
to the contrary). Disposing of mud has
become an important-and costly-
portion of any project planning.
At some point, fiber work will slow. The
best guesses range from 3 to 7 years. But
telecom work likely will not come to an
abrupt halt, as it did in 2001. There will
still be work, albeit at a slower pace. And
granted, there will be those companies that
have not diversified their capabilities or
are over-extended. But with all the other
markets still projected to be solid, and with
no end in sight for HDD opportunities,
most contractors will survive a telecom
slowdown in good shape.
Since the fabled bust, it's been a long
and winding path back up the mountain
of prosperity. We've now achieved almost
15 years of growing market activity driven
by a variety of factors and diversified
industries. All this adds up to a bright
future for HDD. *

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Underground Construction - June 2019

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