From the beginning of our wick drain operations, Nilex determined that the way to be successful the wick drain business was to install drain faster than the competition. In the 1980's, Nilex began designing our own equipment and realized that we could fabricate equipment which was superior to much of the equipment our competitors still use today. In the last 20 years, Nilex has continued to pioneer the development of faster and more powerful wick drain equipment, and many of our innovations can now be seen in the equipment of our competitors.  We continue to use our knowledge and experience of field requirements to overcome the issues of soil penetration, and operate the most powerful equipment in North America today.

Since different site conditions have unique requirements, no single type of installation rig is perfect for every project. For this reason, Nilex has developed and maintains a full stable of machines suitable for any project requirement or soil condition.

Conventional Installation

Three conventional installation rigs - Yorba Linda, June 2004

Low Ground Pressure St. George Utah, May 2004 Nilex has small excavators specially outfitted with extra wide pads to allow access onto sites with extremely soft soils, or capped sites that have been covered with a geotextile and working pad. The equipment can be set up to disperse its weight to less than 3 psi track pressure.

Track Barge Montana Tunnels, November 1993 Nilex has two track barge "swamp buggies" developed in the Louisiana bayou capable of operating in full flotation, on solid ground, or anywhere in between. These rigs are ideally suited to working in mine tailings ponds or similar conditions.

Offshore Kake Alaska, November 1998 If land operation is not an option, such as creating a new breakwater, Nilex is the only company in North America with experience installing wick drains from a barge, with millions of feet installed to depths up to 120 feet on multiple projects.

Low Overhead Chicago, June 2005 Nilex has designed a wick drain machine that can install drains up to 30 ft., with less than 20 ft. of clearance quickly and economically. Perfectly suited to those projects under an existing roadway overpass or causeway.

Vibratory Hammer Salt Lake City, 1998 Many of Nilex's rigs can be fitted with a vibratory hammer, with 500 in.lbs. of rated energy or more. Vibratory energy is effective to loosen dense sands/gravels layers.

Pre-Augering & Pre-Drilling Baltimore, 1997 Nilex has pre-auger rigs to penetrate stiff silts, clays, sand, and gravel layers. Should more formidable obstructions such as brick, concrete, or other fill materials be present, Nilex can coordinate drilling operations.