How Drillspec Delivered a Sandvik Leopard Fleet Rebuild on Schedule.
Major fleet work has to fit the shutdown window. A group of Sandvik Leopard surface drills needed boom and mast rebuilds, engine mid-life work and the mechanical tasks in between. The schedule left no room for the program to drift.
Drillspec Mechanical delivered the scope across the fleet and handed every Leopard back on time. The program covered full strip-downs and refurbishments, with feed rails, chains and wear components renewed before the rigs were rebuilt and returned to drilling.
A fleet scope with a fixed handback
A single-machine rebuild can be sequenced around one asset. A fleet program is different. Components, lifting work, labour and reassembly all have to be coordinated across several drills while the handback date remains fixed.
The Leopard fleet entered the shut program with booms, masts and engines at the end of their planned interval. Drillspec organised the work around the shutdown schedule so the strip, refurbishment and rebuild stages could move without losing control of the overall program.
Boom and mast refurbishment
The work included complete boom and mast strip-downs. Feed beams were placed on stands, chains and worn components were removed, and wear strips were renewed before reassembly.
Crane lifts formed part of the sequence, including boom removal and installation. Each stage had to be prepared so the next trade activity or component movement could happen safely and without avoidable delay.
Engine mid-life work and the jobs between
Alongside the boom and mast scope, the fleet received engine mid-life rebuilds and the mechanical work that sits between the major headline items. These supporting jobs matter because the rig has to return as a complete working machine.
The program was not finished when the largest component went back on. It was finished when the Leopard could be handed over with its systems reassembled and its mast raised, ready to make metres again.
Every rig returned on schedule
All Leopards in the program were delivered on time. That is the result a shutdown is measured by: the planned scope completed and the fleet returned when the operation expects it.
Drillspec supports major shutdowns and availability projects across Western Australia. The team brings hands-on drill experience, trade depth and field leadership to programs where the quality of the rebuild and the timing of the handback carry equal weight.
Drillspec Mechanical delivers multiple shut programs for drilling clients across Western Australia.