28 Mining Constru C tion 1 2013 Edinburgh Stirling W hen Scottish compan y HF Drilling Supplies Ltd w as founded in 1986 it set out to pro vide lar ge hole drilling and piling equip ment for local contractors S p e c i a l i z i n g i n o v e r b u r d e n c a s i n g adv ancement and piling applications the compan y soon found that its products and its e xper tise w ere in high demand and not just in central Scotland its home base b ut throughout the UK and abroad By the end of t he 90s b us ine ss w as thri v ing and o v er the ne xt fe w y ears the com pan y s manuf acturing and assemb l y prem ises doub led in size In 2004 the compan y became an Atlas Copco distrib utor pa ving the w a y for fur ther e xpansion and in 2010 became a w holl y o wned subsidiar y T oda y as a full y inte g rated par t of the or g aniza tion the compan y s e xper tise has made it possib le to create a Competence Center pro viding equipment and ser vices to drill ing companies around the w orld Large hole and deep hole The compan y still focuses on its traditional equipment b ut no w as an Atlas Copco Competence Center its emphasis is to anal yze customer requirements to gether with its local sales engineers and pro vide cost ef fecti v e solutions These solutions consist of the latest drilling equipment and accessories for lar ge hole and deep hole applications and co v er geotechnical piling casing adv ancement w ater w ell and shallo w oil and g as applications This in v olv es all of the equipment required from the drill rig dri v e do wn to the drill bit and includes adapters drill rods hammers drill shrouds casing com pressors and pumps to gether with technical advice on cor rect use and maintenance The compan y is also b uilding its rental capacity Rental gi v es the customer the oppor tunity to select the most effcient method of completing the contract without ha ving to b uy the equipment This option i s e s p ec i a l l y a t tr a c t i v e w h e n t h e c o s t of purchasing equipment is a signifcant pro por tion of the re v enue that will be ear ned from the contract A complete package Andy Jacques HF s Operations Manager points out that the compan y has become the suppl y center for all of the k e y components r e q u i r e d i n l a r g e d i a m e t e r a n d d e e p h o l e drilling W e ha v e the most comprehensi v e range of equipment and ser vices a v ailab le under one roof he sa ys F or e xample w e assemb le and deli v er complete cluster drills to gether with associated equipment for ser vice and repair on site W e also From Scotland with C o M peten C e How a small group of drilling entrepreneurs in Scotland became a major player in the Atlas Copco world of drilling technology If the customer has a problem we examine it in detail and offer a cost effective solution Andy Jacques HF s Operations Manager