Generally,
the seismic crews create small earthquakes in the
ground using explosives to make vibrations through
the earth, and then measure these vibrations or
waves using special equipment. The data collected
creates a map of the rock formations, which a
geophysicist can interpret. Many different jobs are
available with a seismic crew. A seismic helper is
part of the layout crew. They are more commonly
called a jughound or jug hustler because the
machines they are using look like jugs. This is an
extremely physical job, which involves carrying and
positioning seismic cables and geophones. The
jughound has to work in all weather and any terrain,
even up the sides of mountains. Many times the
locations are extremely isolated where the crew can
only come in and out of the area in helicopters. The
supervisor of the jughounds is the crew chief, who
is also a jughound.
Another job the jughounds have is as a
troubleshooter as they are responsible for any
problems with the equipment. They also can be
shooters or blasters. They use radio controllers to detonate the
dynamite in the shot holes. This hazardous job is
conducted in a safe and efficient manner by trained
professionals and requires a blasting ticket. The
shooter is assisted by an operator who handles all
the filed data and is responsible for the entire
crew, as well as any problems with the readings or equipment.
The bag runners also have a hazardous job. They
connect bags of seismic equipment to hooks on a
carousel hanging below the helicopter, which is then
transported to the layout crew. Veritas DGC Inc. has
developed an automated retrieval system, which may
replace this position. At the top is the party
manager who is responsible for the operation, reports to the head office, and
serves as the client’s
representative in the field.
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