Geotechnical drilling on a small scale

A tight squeeze for the little Geo 205 Geotechnical rig

The Comacchio Geo 205 is one of the smallest machines in our fleet. Of foremost importance for a Geotechnical drilling contractor is the ability to access restricted site locations. So often locations are surrounded by man made or natural obstacles that prevent larger drilling rigs from getting close. At a smidge over 2500kg the Geo 205 is lighter and narrower than Geoprobe 7720 environmental rig. With rubber tracks the can be sucked under its belly to reduce width in can squeeze through a narrow passage of only 1.4m. Despite its small stature the Geo 205 is still capable of HQ coring to 30m quite comfortably and it automatic SPT hammer ensures safe operation. The tight squeeze is assisted but fully remote control operation allowing the driller to keep well out of harms way. It must be acknowledged that its short stroke reduces rod lengths to 1.5m and with a small engine and rotation torque it cannot compete with its larger siblings in production. That however is opportunity cost of accessing such challenging locations. Given that so many metropolitan geotechnical investigations require only 10-20m total depth the 205 is a very handy little machine to have in the lineup.