Meeting Middle Eastern demand

Although construction projects in Dubai and Abu Dhabi demand large volumes of aggregates, many quarries in those regions are being closed by authorities. Much of the demand is being met by quarries in the Emirate of Fujairah which are fast becoming the regions' 'bread basket' for gabbro aggregates.
February 13, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Technical Drilling and Blasting now uses Sandvik top hammer rock tools across its whole drill rig fleet
Although construction projects in Dubai and Abu Dhabi demand large volumes of aggregates, many quarries in those regions are being closed by authorities. Much of the demand is being met by quarries in the Emirate of Fujairah which are fast becoming the regions' 'bread basket' for gabbro aggregates.

Meeting this demand is a challenge for these quarries and contract drilling and blasting teams are proving essential, as is investment in productivity-enhancing technology. Fujairah-based Technical Drilling and Blasting Company is one of the contractors gaining from this demand and has just standardised its operations to improve its productivity.

Despite the economic slowdown, the contractor reports that demand for drilling and blasting services remains high and it is one of five organisations operating in Fujairah. The company attributes the demand to the quality of the gabbro in the region with a typical density of 3tonnes per m³ and a 61% silica content. The Technical Drilling and Blasting Company has said that there is currently an almost continuous stream of trucks carrying aggregates travelling over the Hajjar Mountains from Fujairah to other UAE regions.

To help meet this high demand, the company now uses Sandvik top hammer rock tools across all of its operations, which includes contracts for around 24 quarries in Fujairah. Technical Drilling and Blasting Company technical manager Bill Armstrong said that the company has a fleet of 16 surface top hammer drills and two down the hole rigs, of which nine are 325 Sandvik units. "These are proving ideal in development and difficult to access areas of the quarry," he said.
Earthmoving & soil compaction

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Helsinki's tunnel project
    May 9, 2012
    A novel approach to utilities installation will lengthen the life of Helsinki's streets, reports Mike Woof. A major utilities project in Finnish capital Helsinki will offer huge benefits for the city's streets and traffic flow rates in years to come. A new tunnel system is being excavated under Helsinki for the power company Helsingin Energia, although this will be co-owned by the city. Called the Common Utility Tunnel (Meilahti-Pasilak-Käpylä LU2), the excavations form an extensive network spreading out un
    Read More
  • Sandvik’s Turkish delight at groundbreaking tunnel vision
    May 20, 2014
    Turkey’s longest, and what will be the world’s fourth longest, highway tunnel is being built under Mount Ovit in the northeast of the country. Sandvik Construction is playing a vital role in the construction of the giant new structure, which will enable all-year-round access to what is a relatively remote and often snow-blocked part of Anatolia Having had their freedom of movement blighted for many years by wintertime snow blocking the D925 highway, along with narrower roads and passes, at Mount Ovit, resi
    Read More
  • Tampere road tunnel - a strategic link for central Finland
    April 4, 2016
    Progress has been good for an important underground road link in Finland reports Adrian Greeman. Assuming all goes well, the new Ranta, or Lakeside, tunnel in Tampere will open in full six months early; traffic could be running by the end of this year. Work on transforming the rundown city centre with new developments will get a major boost. It is a major achievement on a four-year-long project bringing significant benefits to one of Finland's largest cities. From the government's point of view the scheme w
    Read More
  • Sandvik’s DT1131i jumbo and iSURE software in Iceland and Norway
    August 14, 2019
    Sandvik’s DT1131i three-boom, electro-hydraulic jumbo, iSURE tunnel management software and the latest drill bit hardware were recently put to the test in Iceland and Norway* Czech contractor Metrostav recently achieved 105m of tunnel excavation in a record-breaking six days. But it will be consistent performance and progress that will see Iceland’s Dyrafjordurgong Tunnel in the remote Westfjords region open on time and on budget. The 5.3km Dyrafjordurgong Tunnel is costing around €69 million and due
    Read More

Highlighted Content