Rigging Up: Trip #1

Good day, Dopeheads. Today begins the first installment in an unlimited and informative series of rig terms to educate you about the drilling process. I call it "Rigging Up"

Rigging Up: Any process involved in building the rig, running electrical wires and establishing connections around the rig so it works. (e.g. "Let's rig up the depth encoder so we can track our depth."

Trip: A rig trip is when we move pipe in or out of the hole, usually to change the BHA (bottom hole assembly). (e.g. "We're tripping out because the bit is worn.")

BHA: Bottom Hole Assembly. This changes often but usually includes the drilling bit, the mud motor, the non-magnetic monels, heavyweight drill pipe, stabilizer subs and a number of other metal connections at the bottom of the tool string. (e.g. "Time to change the BHA.")

Joint: A piece of drilling pipe usually about 28' to 32' in length. (e.g. "We have 130 joints in the hole")

Sub: A shorter metal connection with a pin and box end or box to box end for connections various other joints...usually between 2' and 9' in length. (e.g. "Pick up that muleshoe sub so we can orient the mudmotor.")

Now people wouldn't think of the oilfield as a glamorous place but Hollywood and Aerosmith obviously thought so and made the blockbuster hit, Armageddon (Touchstone Pictures, 1998) to romanticize the world of drilling. In this spirit, y'all should know that we have a catwalk on location. The catwalk is a length of plank iron that extends off the sub-floor of the drilling rig. The catwalk is where we lay pieces of pipe before we pick them up and connect them to the drill string before and after we connect them to the rest of the pipe. It's a waiting area. Just as in the world of high-fashion, the catwalk is a dangerous place and easy to fall from.

Also, my dad is "unbreakable" like Bruce Willis.

Just another day in paradise. Hope to see y'all soon.
rf