
The rig floor is the business end of the drilling machine. It is the place where the drilling operation is controlled and where accidents and disasters can be prevented. The rig floor area is under the command of the Driller, the most important person on a drilling rig, because he is the person with the hands on the controls for the drilling machine and also receives alarms and signals from the well directly on his various control panels. The Driller is in charge of the rig crew. He reports to his supervisors which is the Tourpusher and Toolpusher.
A lot of planning is included when building a new drilling rig. The result is often an improvement over existing rigs. When a rig floor is designed there is often collaboration between Drillers, Rig Owner, Engineers and other people with a vested interest in the success of the project.
The layout must consider a number of criteria, including “must do” and “must not do” as well as “need this” and “got to have that”. It is like designing a dream home, everything has to fit perfectly and compromises are only acceptable in the small claims department.
The main elements on and around the rig floor include:
• Doghouse – The drillers control room, where all the main controls for the rig floor area is located.,
• Drawworks – the power winch that lift or lower
s drill string into the well. Part of hoisting system which includes mast or derrick, Drill line, Crown block with sheaves, Travelling block with sheaves and finally the drill line and anchor.,
• Derrick/Mast – Supports all the weight of the drill string and allows lengths of pipe to be lifted or lowered into the well and allows racking of lengths of tubular to be racked (stored) in stands when not in use.,
• Rotary table – Where the drill string enters the hole and where slips and other tools are used to suspend drill string and add or reduce number off tools to be run into the hole.,
• Pipe handling equipment – “Automatic” addition or removal of stands from drill string sometimes including stand building capacity.,
• Iron Roughneck – Machine used for Make-up or break-out of tubular in the drill string. Removes the dangerous use of manual operation with rig tongs.,
• Rig tongs (Manual) – Manual tong used for make-up or break-out of tubular in the drill string.,
• BOP control panel – Where the Driller controls the Blowout Preventer Stack. It allows the Driller to close-in the well.,
There are quite a few instruments for the Driller to observe and control and quite a few of the instruments/gauges and buttons seems to be added to the initial set-up giving the overall impression of the cabin as being cluttered and confusing. This is unfortunately quite often the picture of a Drillers Cabin, or Dog house. All sensors and data required for the driller are available on the two screens.
The concept of operating a drilling rig entirely just by two joy-sticks and two screens can be a challenge to the older generation of drillers. They do not like to rely solely on a computer manufacturer to make all the rig safety devices work. Especially when talking about well control equipment (BOP). But this is the future and it creates even higher demands on rig crew competencies than ever before.
Rig crews in the future must be multi-skilled specialists trained to work with and maintain special equipment and tools not seen in any other industry. Additional equipment usually placed on the rig floor or in the immediate vicinity includes:
• Air winches – Winches either air- or Hydraulic driven with a load range approx. 10000 lb. used for lifting pipe to the rig floor from the pipe deck or used for lifting heavy things around on the rig floor or even for lifting and hang off equipment in the Derrick. One type of air winch must also be available on the rig floor and this is a winch which must be used for lifting personnel and only be used for this purpose.,
• Standpipe manifold – A system of valves piping and connections used for routing drilling fluid piped up from pump room to standpipe(s) in the Derrick into the mud hose (Kelly hose) through the swivel and down the drill string.,
• Choke manifold – A system of valves piping and connections used in well control situations where BOP is closed and mud and well bore fluids coming from the well (Annulus) are routed from the BOP up the choke line to the choke manifold and then through the choke and the Mud/gas separator where gas is removed from the mud and then over shale shaker and to the mud process tanks.,
• Pipe rack – Racking area on the pipe deck. On a land rig special racks are built so that pipe can be rolled right onto the catwalk and the hoisted to the rig floor. Horizontal pipe storage area for pipe or casing.,
• Catwalk – Movable walkway where pipe is landed when removed from rig floor to pipe deck storage or vice versa. This walkway is also attached to the V-Door ramp which is the slide coming from rig floor towards pipe deck.,
The rig floor has to accommodate all these tools and equipment and it is even more complicated by the fact that electrical systems may have to be explosion proof. This includes making the equipment electrically safe and spark proof to prevent accidental
fires and explosions if gas or oil leaks out of the well. EX proofing is expensive and under stringent requirements and special training is required for electricians working with this type of equipment.
It is an amazing engineering feat to see the complex jumble of high-pressure piping, air lines, mud hoses, hydraulic hoses/piping and electrical wiring fitted underneath the rig floor and terminating up through the rig floor in just the right place.