Drilling rigs for the construction sector include machinery for pile foundations, geothermal drilling, well construction, micropiles and horizontal directional drilling. Unlike tunnelling machines, they operate predominantly vertically or at a shallow angle.
The main types are rotary drilling rigs (Kelly rigs) for large-diameter bored piles, piling rigs for sheet piling and driven piles, geothermal and well drilling rigs, horizontal drilling rigs (HDD) for underground pipe laying, and micropile drilling rigs for renovation work.
Common manufacturers include Bauer, Liebherr (LRB series), Soilmec, IMT, Casagrande, Sandvik, Atlas Copco, Vermeer (HDD) and Klemm Bohrtechnik.
Drilling rigs are used in specialist civil engineering, for pile foundations for high-rise buildings, bridges and wind turbines, in well construction, in geothermal energy development, for trenchless pipe laying, and for stabilisation and renovation work.