What is a split-type underground core drilling rig?

A rig built as separate modules — drill frame, hydraulic power pack and control console — so each piece fits through a drift and is assembled at the drilling station.

How much headroom does the rig need?

Feed stroke is 1,800 mm and the mast is low-profile, so it works where a 3 m rod cannot stand upright.

Can it drill in any direction?

Yes. All UG models index from 0 to 180 degrees for up-holes, down-holes, horizontal and fan patterns.

Electric or diesel underground?

Electric is standard at 380 V from 45 kW to 110 kW, with 660 V and 440 V on request.

Do you supply flameproof or MA-certified versions?

Flameproof builds for gassy coal mines are a separate engineering package; the approval standard must be stated at enquiry.

Which rods and barrels go with an underground rig?

1.5 m and 3 m wireline rods in BQ, NQ and HQ with Q or RQ threads, matching barrels and impregnated bits.

Underground Core Drilling Rigs (Split Type, 550 – 1,600 m)

An underground core drilling rig has to reach the face through a drift, not drive to it. Our UG series is built as three pieces — drill frame, power pack and control console — so each one passes a narrow heading, is assembled at the station, and moves on to the next one. Electric drive, 0 – 180° head, BQ to HQ wireline.

Send Drift Dimensions See Surface Rigs

SPLIT TYPE, EXPLAINED

Why in-mine rigs are built in three pieces

A single-frame machine cannot be turned into a 3 m × 3 m drift. Splitting the rig is what makes underground coring possible at all.

Frame, power pack, console

Three modules, each sized to pass a drift and a shaft cage. Assembled and aligned at the station in a shift, not a week.

0 – 180° drilling angle

Up-holes for fan patterns, down-holes for grade control, horizontal for exploration drives — the same head, no re-rigging.

Electric drive

380 V (or 660 V on request) removes diesel exhaust from the heading. Motors from 45 kW to 110 kW across the range.

Low-profile mast

Feed stroke is kept at 1,800 mm so the rig works under backfill and in narrow vein stopes with limited headroom.

MODEL MATRIX

Underground coring rigs by depth and torque

Depth in BQ / NQ / HQ. All four models drill 60 – 96 mm holes and rotate 0 – 1,200 rpm.

Model	Depth BQ / NQ / HQ	Max. torque	Feed / lift	Motor	Drilling angle
UG-550	550 / 450 / 350 m	1,100 N·m	60 / 70 kN	45 kW, 380 V	0 – 180°
UG-750	750 / 650 / 450 m	1,700 N·m	100 / 100 kN	55 kW, 380 V	0 – 180°
UG-950	950 / 850 / 600 m	2,400 N·m	100 / 100 kN	75 kW, 380 V	0 – 180°
UG-1450	1,600 / 1,300 / 800 m	3,200 N·m	135 / 135 kN	110 kW, 380 V	0 – 180°

A 6 m rod is not used underground: the whole range is set up for 1.5 m and 3 m rods so a round can be pulled inside the drift.

THE RANGE

Four underground core drilling rigs

Same architecture, four torque classes. Choose by the depth you must reach from the station, not by the size of the heading.

UG-550

UG-550 Underground Core Drilling Rig (Split Type)

Entry split-type machine for development headings: 550 m BQ, 45 kW motor, 1,100 N·m. Frame, power pack and console go down the drift separately.

Depth (BQ / NQ / HQ)550 / 450 / 350 m

Motor380 V, 45 kW, 1,480 rpm

Hole dia.60 – 96 mm hole (BQ – HQ)

Full specifications

UG-750

UG-750 Underground Core Drilling Rig (Split Type)

The workhorse for grade control and resource drilling: 750 m BQ, 1,700 N·m, 55 kW. 0 – 180° head for up-holes and fan patterns.

Depth (BQ / NQ / HQ)750 / 650 / 450 m

Motor380 V, 55 kW, 1,480 rpm

Hole dia.60 – 96 mm hole (BQ – HQ)

Full specifications

UG-950

UG-950 Underground Core Drilling Rig

Deeper in-mine coring with the same footprint: 950 m BQ, 2,400 N·m, 75 kW, still a three-piece split package.

Depth (BQ / NQ / HQ)950 / 850 / 600 m

Motor380 V, 75 kW, 1,480 rpm

Hole dia.60 – 96 mm hole (BQ – HQ)

Full specifications

UG-1450

UG-1450 Deep Underground Coring Rig

Deep underground exploration from a station: 1,600 m BQ / 1,300 m NQ, 3,200 N·m, 110 kW motor.

Depth (BQ / NQ / HQ)1,600 / 1,300 / 800 m

Motor380 V, 110 kW, 1,480 rpm

Hole dia.60 – 96 mm hole (BQ – HQ)

Full specifications

BEFORE YOU SPECIFY

What we need from the mine

Four numbers decide the quotation. Without them any price is a guess.

Drift or station size

Height and width at the collar, plus the narrowest point on the route in. The mast and frame have to pass it.

Depth and hole size

Target depth in NQ or HQ, and whether the first metres are HQ and then reduce. Mixed strings change the torque requirement.

Power supply

Voltage, phase and available kVA at the station. 380 V is standard; 660 V and 440 V are built on request.

Water and returns

Flow available at the collar and where the returns go. Underground work usually needs a settling arrangement before the pump.

Approval requirements

Some coal and gassy mines require flameproof (MA / ATEX) equipment. That is a different build — tell us the approval standard at enquiry stage, not after.

UNDERGROUND RIG QUESTIONS

Questions from mining and tunnelling contractors

A rig built as separate modules — drill frame, hydraulic power pack and control console — instead of one chassis. Each module fits through a drift, a shaft cage or a raise, and the rig is assembled and aligned at the drilling station. It is the standard configuration for in-mine coring because a truck- or crawler-mounted rig cannot get to the face.

The feed stroke is 1,800 mm across the UG range and the mast is low-profile, so the rig works in drifts where a 3 m rod cannot be stood upright. Send the drift height and we will confirm the working envelope before the order, not after delivery.

Yes. All four models index from 0° to 180°, so up-holes, down-holes, horizontal and fan patterns are drilled with the same head. That is what makes the rig usable for both exploration and grade control in the same mine.

Electric is standard: 45 kW to 110 kW at 380 V (660 V and 440 V on request). It removes exhaust from the heading and removes fuel handling from the level. Diesel power packs are available where the mine has no suitable supply.

Flameproof builds for gassy coal mines are a separate engineering package and are not the standard UG configuration. Tell us the approval standard (MA, ATEX or the mine's own specification) at enquiry stage and we will confirm what can be supplied and what cannot. We do not claim certifications we do not hold.

1.5 m and 3 m wireline rods in BQ, NQ and HQ with Q or RQ threads, matching double-tube barrels, and impregnated bits for the rock at the face. Rods, barrels and bits are quoted with the rig so the string arrives matched.

Keep reading

Mid-depth coring rigs (300 – 1,000 m)

Surface machines in the same depth class.

Portable core drilling rigs

For adits, trenches and no-road access.

Wireline rods, barrels and bits

BQ to HQ tooling to match the rig.

Underground and tunnel applications

How the rig is used at the face.

Send the drift size and the target depth

Mine, depth, hole size, power at the station and the approval standard — with those five facts we can quote a UG rig that will actually fit.

Request a UG rig quote See surface rigs