On 7 and 8 April, more than 400 participants from all over Europe came together for the second Driller Days event at the company of STÜWA in Rietberg/Germany. The Driller Days reflect a completely innovative way of staging an event and its occasion is already considered to be a highlight in the drilling sector. This event is held every two years and is hosted in turns by the companies Geotec Bohrtechnik and STÜWA.
All the visitors are able to look back on two days packed with a whole tableau of rich experiences thanks to live drilling demonstrations in the fields of well construction, geothermal energy, geotechnical engineering and HDD (horizontal directional drilling) with cutting-edge equipment technology. And all of this was enhanced by interesting specialist lectures and tours through the production facilities of the well construction company STÜWA.
This year’s convention also included accredited presentations as part of further training in line with W120 certification for well construction. In the area of such well construction (W120-1), the first day of the event focused on reports dealing with current topics: subjects like flood control by means of projects on large-scale wells and digitalisation in water retention and also the issue of ground water management. On the second day, talks were given on the subject of geothermal energy (W120-2). The focus here was the currently hugely increasing significance of tapping into geothermal heat to use it as an alternative source of energy in order to reduce our dependency on oil and gas or even to dispense with these completely, a hotly discussed topic at the moment. Possible repercussions for the drilling sector against the backcloth of such a scenario were also examined. Furthermore, a spotlight was shone on best practice approaches for the planning and implementing of geothermal energy projects. Likewise, a report was given on a deep geothermal energy project carried out in the city of Schwerin/Germany as an example of a C02-neutral heat supply. At the end of the presentations there followed lively discussions as everyone enjoyed talking shop about the interesting topics that had been highlighted.
During the numerous guided tours of the plant, visitors could not help but be impressed as they took in the ongoing production of the high level of vertical integration in operation at the STÜWA Konrad Stükerjürgen GmbH, a company steeped in tradition. With more than 135 years of experience, this family-run business today belongs to the leading manufacturers of high-quality, well construction technology. And that at a global level. In the highly automated manufacturing processes, engineering products of plastic, steel and stainless steel are produced to meet standards of the highest quality. But it is also possible to produce customer-specific, special items boasting the same precision and turned out by hand.
The products are mainly used in the fields of well construction technology, in geothermal energy, in civil engineering and also in irrigation and drainage. Thanks to all the in-house research carried out and the resulting innovative solutions, the company is constantly engaged in the further development of its expertise. The result is that the company holds innumerable patents and supports international projects with the help of its own specialist staff from a project’s first idea right up to the implementation thereof.
A long time ago STÜWA committed to working along environmentally friendly lines and to conserving both energy and resources. To this end, the company developed an innovative energy and environmental concept. This means that up to 95% of production residues that arise can be redirected back into the manufacturing cycle. The entire company premises are heated and cooled geothermally, the power supply is supported by means of a photovoltaic system and wastewater is processed in the company’s own plants.
At STÜWA everyone is well prepared for the future – every visitor could clearly and most impressively witness this first hand.
And yet another highlight that the event had in store for its guests: "Drink&Drill” - a convivial barbecue when the aficionados of the drilling sector could chat and exchange ideas in a relaxing atmosphere till late into the night.
We would like to thank the numerous participants and our staff!
