NEW 6011DT Solves Direct Push Predicaments with Big Power in a Small Footprint

Succeeding in an industry that ebbs and flows - often at the whim of environmental regulations - requires versatile equipment to efficiently complete environmental sampling. So when the NEW 6011DT debuted during Open House this spring, companies jumped at the chance to add the benefits of the small footprint and powerful GH63 percussion hammer to their fleet.

“We needed to buy small rigs with shorter piston to drill under 8-foot ceilings with 7822DT power to drill in tough city geology,” said John Schretzmayer, president of Associated Environmental Services Ltd in New York City. 

Primarily working in the five boroughs where restricted access rigs make life easier due to the footprint of the property, the 20-year-old environmental and geotechnical drilling company was using their 7822DT with 2-foot rods so they didn’t hit the ceiling, even digging floors out to get the foot down to get more clearance. Schretzmayer believes the NEW 6011DT will allow them to get deeper soil samples with the power of the 7822DT where their 420M and 54LT just didn’t have the power to get through the challenging geologies.

“This will be much faster and easier. Most of the work we will do with this rig is for initial real estate transactions so you don’t need augering,” Schretzmayer said. “When clients see the full-size rig in a small area under 8-foot ceilings it will open up more opportunities. I’m glad they made this machine. It’s the main reason I flew out to Open House and was so impressed I bought two.”

Seeking a more reliable option than their aging 6610, Dusty Schroeder, president of Midwestern Drilling in Minnesota, was also immediately drawn to the NEW 6011DT, providing his down payment before he left town after Open House.

“I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it,” Schroeder said. “We want to continue to be the best and have the best field equipment. Our clients’ reputation is always on the line and we aim for perfection while in the field.”

The 11-year-old environmental drilling company primarily completes soil and groundwater sampling and monitoring well installations. The option for a low-clearance cylinder and the 4-foot footprint will allow them to get into smaller areas others can’t get into.

“The 6011DT provides an advantage for interior boring locations – car dealerships, dry cleaning, quick lube places. It allows us to get in between hoists and see what’s down there,” Schroeder said. “It’s always good to upgrade equipment. It improves our ability to get jobs when we have newer, up-to-date equipment.” 

For Casey Crosby, owner of Strongarm Environmental in California, he didn’t need to see the NEW 6011DT in person to recognize how the rig would feed their business.

“This size rig is our bread and butter – installing temporary monitoring wells, taking soil vapor samples,” Crosby said. “It’s size is really good for inside work where the 7822DT is too big and unnecessary for us. The 6011DT is powerful; being Geoprobe^® it’ll be reliable; and the price point is reasonable.”

He anticipates the 6011DT providing their 25-year-old environmental field services company more capacity.

“I foresee it giving us a better choice for inside work, getting into tight spaces where we currently use the 540M – which is great but slow,” Crosby said. “It’s a little bigger footprint, so we can get better coverage inside and work faster at dry cleaner, industrial, and manufacturing facilities. It’ll also be safer and more stable to be able to get in and out easier.”

The rig’s similarity to other Geoprobe^® rigs they’re running gives him confidence to proceed with purchase sight unseen.

“We’re excited to get that thing!” he said. “Once again Geoprobe^® is offering something people wanted.”

All three company leaders echoed their appreciation for dependable, quality Geoprobe^® products and customer service.

“The advantages of using Geoprobe® rigs are threefold. Service – if we have issues the service guys are awesome and can walk the guys through whatever issues they are having and get the rig back up and going. There has never been a time they couldn’t. Parts – if I call today, I can get them tomorrow. Reliability – our first Geoprobe^® rig we bought 20 years ago started right up after 10 years without use like it was running yesterday,” Schretzmayer said.