From left, Rita Brown, editor, Energy Voice; Mike Churchill, CEO, Churchill Drilling Tools; and Steph McGovern, host (photo: Churchill Drilling Tools)

Churchill Drilling Tools, an oil and gas engineering company specialising in dart activated string technology, is celebrating after winning the acclaimed Innovation Award at the recent Press and Journal Gold Awards.

Churchill won the award for its innovative approach to technology within the drilling sector. The company’s flagship products, the DAV MX™ CircSub and the HyPR HoleSaver™ have been recognised for their versatility, performance and reliability in challenging environments.

This is the second award for innovation the company has won in the last six months, having scooped the Grampian Award for Innovation at the 2016 Elevator Awards in July.

It has been a standout year for the DAV MX™ CircSub which saw Churchill Drilling Tools implement a number of innovative improvements to the performance and reliability of the tool. The introduction of the Ultra-Series Dart (USD) increased the potential speed of activation by up to 25% and the 75% lower shear out pressure enables the tool to be used in wells with compromised hydraulics. A major operator has already put these new capabilities to use in a challenging high deviation well in the Norwegian sector where the USD was used on a hole cleaning, displacement and mud screening operations.

Churchill was also pleased to present a world’s first with the Emergency Shut-Off Dart. This new dart makes the DAV MX™ the first circulation valve with a proven back-up closing mechanism. This was of recent use to a major operator in the North Sea where a 17-hour milling section was completed without having to trip out to replace an over-stressed valve.

Additionally, the HyPR HoleSaver™ has also been recognised as an innovative contingency technology for drilling operations and has been employed as an insurance against stuck pipe in several territories, including the North Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the Middle East.

Making use of ordinary drilling mud, the user-operated HyPR™ jetting dart can cut through a full strength sub in under two hours. Drilling engineers have the option of using either a Cementing Dart which allows for rapid side-tracking after cementing operations or, if an attempt to fish the BHA is preferred, a Fishing Dart can be pumped down, leaving a clean box to fish once the dart has cut the string free; the dart is then carried back to the surface as the cut pipe is withdrawn.

Mike Churchill, CEO, says of the award, “It is an honor for Churchill Drilling Tools to win the Innovation Award at the second P&J Gold Awards. It is a recognition of our team’s continued commitment to innovation and technical excellence – coinciding at a time where the industry is being urged to adopt new methods and support new technology.”

“With our performance improvements to the DAV MX™ already being of value to major operators and our HyPR HoleSaver™ tool reflecting the demands of the industry for cost effective answers to its challenges – the Innovation Award is further evidence of our commitment to developing specialist tools which save operators time and money in new and exciting ways,” adds Churchill.

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