10 Athabasca students graduate from the Diamond Drill Helper Training Course

March 27, 2019 in News People
Explorer: Spring 2019

This fall, a Diamond Drill Helper Training Course was offered in Stony Rapids. The goal of the course was to prepare participants for potential upcoming jobs in the drilling industry.

The course was a joint effort between KCDA, Northlands College, Points Athabasca, Prince Albert Grand Council, Yáthi Néné, AB Medical, and Team Drilling. “It was a real team effort to put this training program together,” says Robert Fleming, CEO of Team Drilling. “The training started off with First AID/CPR training provided by Kathy Christmann at AB Medical, followed by some excellent Ready to Work life skills program training by Cara Greyeyes at KCDA. Other partners provided funding, facilities, in-kind donation, and assistance with organizing.” Team Drilling provided the driller training, with the course covering topics such as WHMIS, drill rig set up, core recovery, tripping rods, underground communication procedures, safety topics, and many more. “Lyle Rogers and Chris Marciniec from Team Drilling provided the training and I think they did a fantastic job covering what participants needed in the fourteen days,” says Fleming. “The training took place at the A&L facility in Stony Rapids. The building and yard were ideal for this training. The office was great for the first aid and ready to work programs, as well as the classroom training for the driller assistance. There was plenty of shop and yard space to provide the hands-on training.”

The trainees were from Fond du Lac, Wollaston, Hatchet Lake, Black Lake and Stony Rapids. Ten participants passed the course, with each receiving a certificate of completion. “From an employer perspective, we consider this program to be a success,” says Fleming, “and we are hoping to conduct another similar training session in early summer.”

For more information, please contact Robert Fleming at rfleming@teamdrilling.com