Together with Ausdrill, Secoroc Australia monitors the performance of its products in the Super Pit to determine where it should focus its R&D efforts. As soon as the DTH supply contract was signed, a site-specific R&D programme to lower overall cost per drillmetre got under way.

With the introduction of the latest Secoroc COP 64 Gold hammers, spline wear has been reduced by increasing splines from eight to twelve, which has increased bearing surface for the transfer of rotation to the bit.

Bits with 18 mm buttons from the Premium range have also been evaluated, which has added to increased reliability and longevity. It was found that the bit's three flushing holes performed better than the two flushing holes. Drill cuttings cleared faster and cleaner which increased bit life.
The hammer featured some minor design improvements to the control tube, buffer and compression rings, which added to increase service life. Penetration rates and clearances have also improved. The new hammers and bits are also being extended to the other rigs in the fleet.
With the new Secoroc COP 64 Gold hammers, Ausdrill expects to get to a further 6% increase in penetration and up to 20,000 metres per hammer life. In addition, at its facility in Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Secoroc Australia has two Grind Matic air and electric bit grinding machines designed for DTH bits, and a new all-air Grind Matic Manual B-DTH which reproduce the original button profiles.

Matt Harris, contract supervisor at the Super Pit, who visits the site daily, reports that the bits with 18 mm buttons are averaging six to seven regrinds which is 250-260 m per resharp, giving an average bit life of 1,800 m.

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