Geotechnical Drilling Services
Comprehensive SPT soil boring, rock coring & foundation investigation for construction, engineering & site development. CME, Schramm, AMS & Geoprobe rigs available nationwide. Get a free geotechnical drilling quote.
Our geotechnical drilling services provide critical subsurface data for engineering design and construction projects. We conduct thorough soil and rock investigations to assess site conditions.
Using advanced drilling techniques and equipment, we deliver accurate geotechnical data that engineers rely on for foundation design, slope stability analysis, and construction planning.
IET operates a diverse fleet of rigs to match every site condition:
- CME— Heavy-duty track & truck rigs for deep borings and SPT in challenging terrain
- Schramm— Versatile rotary drilling for rock coring and hard formation work
- AMS— Compact, all-terrain rigs ideal for limited-access and sensitive sites
- Geoprobe— Direct-push technology for fast soil sampling and shallow geotechnical investigation
Geotechnical Drilling Techniques
IET deploys the full range of geotechnical drilling methods to match every formation, depth, and project requirement.
Direct Push Technology (DPT)
Geoprobe and AMS direct push rigs advance small-diameter probes into the subsurface hydraulically — no cuttings, fast data collection. Ideal for shallow geotechnical investigations, soil profiling, and subsurface characterization where speed and minimal site disturbance are priorities.
Hollow-Stem Auger (HSA) Drilling
IET's CME and AMS hollow-stem auger rigs drill through unconsolidated soils and sediments to collect undisturbed split-spoon and Shelby tube samples for SPT testing, soil classification, and foundation design. HSA is the standard method for most geotechnical site investigations in soft to medium soils.
DTH Air-Hammer Rock Drilling
IET's Schramm T-450T and CME track rigs use down-the-hole (DTH) air-hammer systems to drill through hard rock formations for rock coring, rock sampling, overburden penetration, and bedrock anchor installations. DTH drilling delivers superior penetration rates in limestone, granite, and consolidated rock.
Mud Rotary Drilling
Mud rotary drilling uses a circulating drilling fluid to remove cuttings and maintain borehole stability in unstable formations, deep borings, and gravel/cobble conditions where auger methods are impractical. IET's mud rotary capabilities support deep geotechnical borings and water well construction.
Rock Coring (NQ / HQ / PQ)
IET recovers continuous rock core using diamond core barrels (NQ, HQ, PQ) to determine rock quality designation (RQD), joint characterization, and rock strength for foundation design, tunnel projects, dam investigations, and slope stability analyses. Core samples are logged, photographed, and preserved per ASTM standards.
Standard Penetration Testing (SPT)
Standard penetration tests (SPT) are conducted in HSA and mud rotary borings to measure blow counts (N-values) for soil density and strength classification. IET's CME rigs are equipped for automatic hammer SPT testing per ASTM D1586, providing data that engineers use for bearing capacity, liquefaction, and settlement analyses.
