Big Stan (drill rig)

Notably, Big Stan was used in the construction of the First National Bank Tower in Omaha, the Benicia-Martinez bridge near San Francisco, and on expansions to the I-15/215 Beltway in Las Vegas.

Big Stan features a two-piece design, significantly lowering the time and manpower needed to assemble it compared to contemporary rigs.

Big Stan employs a screw conveyor capable of exerting 534,000 pound-feet (724,000 N⋅m) of torque and 75,000 pounds (34,000 kg) of downward force to a maximum depth of 260 feet (79 m).

The machine cost $1.5 million to construct and was named after the company president at the time, Stan Anderson, who was given a similar nickname due to his height of 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m).

[4] In 2004, while working on an expansion to the Benicia-Martinez bridge near San Francisco, Big Stan was filmed by Discovery Channel's Canadian outlet for the show “Monster Machines”.

Big Stan was selected for its ability to achieve depths of 190 feet (58 m); conventional rigs were not capable of tunneling deep enough into the soft riverbed soil to earthquake proof the structure.

The drill was contracted due to the lack of machines capable of breaking up the caliche-laden sedimentary rock present in the region.

[1] When made fully operational, the top of the drill (the boom arm) can extend to 93 feet (28 m) in height when leveled with the ground.

[2][6] The truck Big Stan is normally mounted to is equipped with 5 hydraulic jacks designed to lift, tilt, and lower the drill.