Drilling machine operator: features of the profession

Any work related to the oil industry is very prestigious and in demand in Russia. The rig operator is just such a profession. All about its features will be told in this article.

About profession

The rig operator is an employee who is engaged in drilling operations in the presence of gas and oil fields, fossil exploration, etc. The representative of the profession in question is obliged not only to operate the drilling machines, but also to repair them. A competent specialist in the field of drilling must know all the operating modes of the existing equipment, should be able to establish a system for cooling, protecting or controlling equipment at a distance.

The rig operator has a huge number of functions and responsibilities. In fact, he is fully responsible for the process of drilling in production. It is worth noting that the specialist in question should have more knowledge. Only thanks to the knowledge the operator of the drilling rig can competently organize his professional activities.

Professional training

What about training drill drivers? To get a profession, you'll have to go to college or a technical school for a relevant specialty. There is an opportunity to pass and special courses, however there are they not everywhere.

During the training, the future engineer of the drilling rig gets all the necessary knowledge about the structure and operation of drilling machines, various instruments, mechanisms, etc. Here are the main subjects and disciplines that usually include the training course:

• Socio-economic basis;
• Professional and special courses;
• occupational Safety and Health;
• Rules and methods of drilling;
• geology;
• Operation of drilling machines;
• Practice and some other subjects.

It is worth noting that after graduation the graduate will receive a special certificate and certificate, thanks to which the operator of drilling rigs can get a job.

What should the drill rig engineer know?

Only a person who has a secondary professional education and at least one year of service experience is able to become a master of the drilling rig. Such an employee should have a special certificate of completion of education and a certificate required for admission to work. In addition to all of the above, the rig operator must have some knowledge at a qualitative level. Of course, the amount of knowledge necessary for work depends on the level of the professional. However, it is possible to single out some general points about which a representative of the profession in question should have an idea:

• Labor legislation (or its basis);
• Documentation: regulatory, methodical or regulatory, but in one way or another relating to drilling operations;
• Rules of safety and internal labor order;
• The fundamentals of labor protection;
• Rules of sanitation and hygiene.

Functions and responsibilities of the rig operator

The considered profession is an incredibly difficult, responsible and hard work. The rig operator has a very large number of functions and responsibilities. Among them we can distinguish:

• Drilling works at the designated construction site;
• Performance of mining works;
• The selection and packaging of certain soil and groundwater samples;
• Transportation of necessary elements.

It is worth noting that the specialist in question is required to perform all the functions assigned to him strictly under the supervision of a professional with a higher qualification. The employee must be aware of the observance of safety precautions, as well as the compliance of all work with certain technological standards (this is, first of all, standards for selection, packaging, and transportation of products).

In addition to all of the above, the rig operator must confirm or upgrade his skills every 5 years.

About the Rights of the Drilling Engineer

Like any other employee, the specialist in question has certain professional rights. What is the driver of the rig?

• The employee's watch must meet all safety requirements. The specialist has the right to apply to the authorities in case of any violations, be it out of order of equipment, shortage of some tools, etc.
• The employee has the right to discuss draft decisions with the management (if these projects somehow relate to the work of the specialist in question).
• The operator of a drilling rig is able to coordinate with the management the involvement of any specialists in his labor activity.
• The specialist in question has the right to demand from his superiors the assistance in case of unforeseen situations, any problems, etc.

Thus, the rig master has a fairly wide range of professional rights.

About the responsibility of the rig operator

A large number of rights and obligations always gives rise to a huge responsibility. In the case of a drilling rig operator, this is the case. What is the responsibility of the specialist in question?

• Like any other worker, the drill rig engineer is responsible for improperly performing his professional duties and responsibilities. Everything that prescribes the functions of the specialist in question, the job description, must be strictly observed, and very qualitatively and competently.
• The specialist in question is strictly responsible for the violation of the labor legislation of the Russian Federation, as well as the normative acts concluded with the employer.
• The employee is responsible (up to criminal) for committing offenses, crimes or any other unlawful acts in the workplace.
• For causing harm to the organization, the employee is also capable of incurring liability (in the order established by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Thus, the responsibility of the rig operator is not much different from that of any other employee. However, it is important to remember the huge number of functions assigned to the employee. Wrong execution of them can well entail responsibility.

About the relevance of the profession

Is the rig operator in demand on the labor market? Jobs, it is worth noting, really is, but not everywhere. Everything will depend on the region (whether there is mining in it or not).

It is worth noting, however, one very important point: the profession in question, at least in the Russian Federation, is quite promising and prestigious. The thing is that the drilling work is somehow connected with the extraction of some useful products: oil, gas, minerals, etc. The country needs these resources, and therefore the professions associated with the extraction of minerals will always be encouraged.

And what about the career growth in the profession in question? Here everything will depend only on the experience of the employee and on his desire to learn. It is very important to improve your skills in a timely manner. So, the assistant to the machinist of drilling rigs can become a master, and a simple master is able to grow to an engineer and technical worker. It is worth mentioning such positions as senior technician, site manager, department head, etc. The rig operator, having the due desire, may well occupy these places.

Machinists of drilling rigs 3 and 4 digits

What about the rig operator with the third category? It is worth starting with the fact that this is the most low-skilled worker. As a rule, the beginner has the third rank, only started working after their studies and practice. A specialist with a third rank has the following duties:

• Participation in the drilling of first class facilities;
• Use of motoburs, portable hand-held kits, special rods.

The worker with the fourth category has slightly more extensive functions. These include:

• Performance of drilling operations with the help of non-self-propelled impact-rotary machine tools;
• Drilling with self-propelled rotary machine tools, having a power not exceeding 50 kW;
• Drilling with the help of sounding machines and much more.

Thus, a specialist with a fourth level has much more technical equipment available than a specialist with the qualifications below.

Machinists of drilling rigs 5 and 6 grades

A specialist with a fifth, penultimate category works with the following types of equipment:

• Cable-impact machines;
• Self-propelled rotary drilling rigs;
• Installation of the second class (the higher the class, the greater the capacity of the installations);
• Can use in work perforators, special electric drills, etc.

And what about the worker who has the sixth, most recent and important rank? Undoubtedly, such an employee has a large number of duties and rights. As a specialist with the highest qualifications, the machinist of the drilling rigs of the sixth category is obliged to monitor the fulfillment of the duties of all other employees. Of course, the spectrum of rights and duties is much more extensive in the specialist with the sixth rank.

Advantages and disadvantages of the profession

The considered profession has a number of pluses and minuses. It is worth starting with the shortcomings of work.
These include:

• Inaccessibility of getting work in some regions. The thing is that in some areas mining is not carried out in principle, and therefore finding a job will be quite problematic.
• A lot of responsibilities and too much responsibility. The work on drilling is really quite difficult and problematic to implement. After all, even a small mistake specialist can lead to serious problems.

The merits of the profession include the following items:

• Prestigiousness . Any work, one way or another connected with the extraction of minerals, is considered prestigious in Russia.
• In demand . It is quite easy to find a driver of a drilling rig job. Watch, however, may not be available in all regions. And yet the profession is not very difficult to obtain.
• Good salary.
• The possibility of an early career growth. With the proper desire, it will be quite possible to climb the career ladder and the machinist of the drilling rig. Direct employers who are interested in literate employees are enough for any production.