Surface Blasthole Drill Productivity
Metres per shift, holes per shift and cost per metre from the rock you are
drilling and the pattern you are drilling to. Pairs with Surface Bench Blast Pattern: that one gives you the
pattern, this one tells you what it costs to drill it.
Surface bench drilling only: vertical production holes to a bench. The
published rates are for surface units and do not describe underground development drilling.
Step 1: The rock
Two choices set the penetration rate. Nothing else moves it as much.
Step 2: The hole and the pattern
Take these straight from Surface Bench Blast Pattern.
Step 3: The shift
The gap between penetration rate and metres per shift is where the money goes.
Step 4: Your costs
These are yours, not the handbook's. The source says so: they come from the project.
| Step | Value | Where it comes from |
|---|
Where the shift goes
What a metre costs
Penetration rate by rock strength and fabric
| Rock fabric condition |
|---|
SME Mining Engineering Handbook, Table 7.2-2, p. 440, in metres per hour. Read down for strength and across for fabric: the two together span 55 m/h at best to 12 m/h at worst, a factor of more than four. Fabric matters about as much as strength does, which is not how most rate-of-penetration estimates are made.
Drilling methods and what they are for
| Method | Diameter, mm | Typical depth, m | Typical rate, m/h | Accuracy | Source |
|---|
Percussive methods from the SME Mining Engineering Handbook, Table 7.2-1, p. 439; its rate column is a range across all rock types, so it is a sanity check on the figure from the table above rather than a substitute for it. That table stops at 150 mm, which does not reach a normal production bench hole, so the rotary classes come from the Caterpillar Performance Handbook rotary drill specifications, pp. 3-4 and 3-5. Caterpillar publishes no penetration rate with them, so no rate check is applied to a rotary selection rather than one being invented.
Spending more time on spreadsheets than on the job?
We build the reporting and admin automation for mining contractors, so the numbers keep themselves.
Book a 20 min callTerms of use and disclaimer
Estimating aid only. This calculator is an educational tool. It is not an engineering design and it is not a substitute for the judgment of a competent or qualified person.
No warranty. It is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including any implied warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Equations and constants are cited to their published sources above, but transcription, implementation and the values you enter can all be wrong. Verify every result against the cited source and against your own site conditions before it informs a decision.
Not a statutory document. Nothing produced here is a ground control plan, ventilation plan, blast design, haul road design or hoist design. Those must be prepared, signed and approved under the regulations that apply to your operation. Compliance with MSHA, or with your own jurisdiction's mining regulations, is the operator's responsibility and remains so.
Assumption of risk. You use this tool entirely at your own risk. Mining is hazardous, and errors in ground support, ventilation, blasting or haulage can cause serious injury or death.
Limitation of liability. To the maximum extent permitted by law, Big Dog Mining and its owners, operators and contributors accept no liability for any loss, damage, injury, death, cost or claim, whether direct, indirect, incidental or consequential, arising out of or in connection with the use of this tool or reliance on its output.
Indemnity. By using this calculator you agree to indemnify and hold harmless Big Dog Mining and its owners, operators and contributors against any claim, demand, loss, liability or expense, including reasonable legal fees, arising from your use of it or from any decision taken in reliance on it.
If you do not accept these terms, do not use this calculator.