What Action Drill & Blast does

Action Drill & Blast (ADB) is an Australian specialist drilling and blasting contractor serving the surface mining sector. Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Perth with a regional office in Brisbane, the company provides fully integrated drill and blast solutions to enterprise mining operators across coal, iron ore, lithium, gold, and base metals, as well as civil works within the resources sector. ADB operates one of the largest and most capable production drilling fleets in Australia, comprising rotary, down the hole hammer, and top hole hammer drills from manufacturers including Epiroc and REICHdrill, capable of delivering blast holes ranging from 64mm to 311mm in diameter. The fleet is supported by a preventative maintenance program that caps average equipment life at 15,000 hours to maintain high availability.

ADB's service offering spans the full drill and blast value chain: drill and blast design and optimisation, production drilling, explosives supply and storage management, down-the-hole services via Mobile Processing Units (MPUs) delivering ANFO, Heavy ANFO, and pumped emulsion blends, and complete load, stem, and initiate blasting operations. The company employs 500+ personnel with deep industry experience and is ISO 9001 and ISO 45001 certified. Proprietary technical capabilities include Seed Hole Analysis for vibration prediction and Velocity of Detonation (VoD) testing for blast optimisation. ADB is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NRW Holdings (ASX: NWH), a diversified mining and civil engineering contractor, and operates as an independent business unit within the group with its own leadership team.

ADB generates revenue through multi-year managed service contracts with large surface mining operators and mining contractors, won primarily via competitive tender processes. Business development is relationship-driven, with a strong history of repeat business—130+ contracts over 15 years—and long-tenured anchor relationships including continuous service at Talison Lithium's Greenbushes mine since 2011. The company targets enterprise customers directly, with no intermediary channels, leveraging its fleet scale, technical engineering capability, and safety track record as primary competitive levers.

Name

Action Drill & Blast

Legal name

Action Drill & Blast

Website

https://actiondb.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Action Drill & Blast is an Australian specialist contractor providing integrated drilling and blasting services to large surface mining operators across coal, iron ore, lithium, and gold. It operates one of the country's largest production drilling fleets and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NRW Holdings.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Brisbane

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Drilling Services: ADB provides production drilling services using its large and diverse drill fleet, delivering blast holes from 64mm to 311mm diameter. Services include rotary drilling, down hole hammer drilling, and top hole hammer drilling for surface mining operations. Revenue is generated through term contracts with mining operators and mining contractors, typically structured as multi-year agreements.
2. Blasting & Load Stem Initiate Services: ADB provides blasting services including shotfirers, blast crew, supervision, training, and expertise. The company can deliver optimal blasting solutions without product bias. Revenue earned through contracts where blasting activities are scoped.
3. Explosives Supply & Storage Management: ADB manages explosives procurement, delivery, magazine compounds, reload facilities, and licensing for clients. Personnel are knowledgeable of statutory requirements regarding use of explosives in Australia. This is an integrated service component of the broader drill and blast offering.
4. Down The Hole (MPU) Services: ADB operates a large fleet of Mobile Processing Units (MPUs) capable of delivering ANFO, Heavy ANFO and pumped emulsion blends. MPU operators conduct quality checks on every load delivered and are supported by region-based Advanced Blast Trainers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Action Drill & Blast (ADB) is an established specialist contractor providing integrated drill and blast services to the Australian resources sector. The company offers a fully integrated solution spanning drill and blast design and optimisation, production drilling using one of Australia's largest drill fleets, explosives supply and storage management, down-the-hole Mobile Processing Unit (MPU) services, and complete load, stem and initiate / blasting services. ADB serves clients across coal, iron ore, lithium, gold, and civil construction works.

Product overview

Action Drill & Blast (ADB) provides integrated drilling and blasting services to the Australian resources sector through a portfolio of five core service offerings: Drill & Blast Design & Optimisation (engineering, blast analysis and modeling), Drilling (production drilling with one of Australia's largest drill fleets), Explosive Supply & Storage (procurement, delivery and management of explosives), Down The Hole Service (Mobile Processing Units for ANFO and emulsion delivery), and Load Stem & Initiate/Blast (complete blasting process management). The company operates a diverse fleet of equipment including Epiroc and REICHdrill machines ranging from 64mm to 311mm hole diameter capabilities. ADB, a subsidiary of NRW Holdings, serves clients across coal, iron ore, lithium, gold, and civil construction projects throughout Australia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Drill & Blast Design & Optimisation Engineering and design service covering drill and blast design, blast analysis, blast modelling, and optimisation across multiple commodities for surface mining operators and contractors.
• Drilling Services Production drilling service using rotary, down hole hammer, and top hole hammer drills to deliver blast holes from 64mm to 311mm in diameter for surface mining operations.
• Explosive Supply & Storage End-to-end explosives procurement, delivery, magazine compounds, reload facilities, and licensing management for surface mining clients.
• Down The Hole Service (MPU) On-site delivery of ANFO, Heavy ANFO, and pumped emulsion explosives using Mobile Processing Units operated by trained ADB personnel who conduct quality checks on every load.
• Load, Stem & Initiate / Blast Blasting process management including provision of shotfirers, blast crew, supervision, and training to deliver the complete load, stem, and initiate activities at mine sites.

Quantifiable outcome

• 3,257 days LTI free at Greenbushes mine (as of May 2020)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• NRW HoldingscoreOthersADB is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the NRW Holdings Group. NRW Holdings is a diversified mining and civil engineering contractor. ADB operates as part of the NRW Group, benefiting from parent company resources, governance frameworks, and shared services including the OPAL employee self-service platform.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mastermyne Group: Mastermyne is an Australian mining services group providing drilling, blasting, and operational services primarily to underground coal and metalliferous mines. It overlaps with ADB in drilling services and Australian tier-one coal miner customers.
• Macmahon Holdings: Macmahon is a major Australian mining contractor providing drilling, blasting, and load-and-haul services. It directly competes with ADB for integrated drill and blast work, including on contract work performed for Rio Tinto (Cape Lambert) where ADB has also operated.
• Byrnecut Group: Byrnecut is an Australian-owned mining contractor with surface and underground drilling capabilities. While its core is underground, its surface drilling offering competes with ADB for specialist drill and blast contracts across the Australian resources sector.
• Boart Longyear: Boart Longyear is a global drilling services and equipment provider with active Australian operations. It competes with ADB in production drilling services and shares exposure to the same tier-one mining customers and drill fleet technology trends.
• DDH1 Drilling: DDH1 is an Australian drilling services contractor providing surface and underground drilling to the resources sector. It is a direct competitor to ADB for production drilling tenders across Australian mining regions.
• Downer EDI: Downer operates a mining services business offering drilling, blasting, and associated contract mining in Australia. It is a direct peer to ADB in tender processes for tier-one miner surface drill and blast work.
• Maca Mining Services: Maca is an Australian mining contractor offering drilling, blasting, and load-and-haul services. It directly competes with ADB for surface mining contracts, particularly in iron ore and other metalliferous commodities.
• Perenti Global (Ausdrill / Barminco): Perenti is a leading Australian mining services contractor with surface drilling, underground mining, and drill and blast capabilities. It directly competes with ADB for surface drill and blast tenders and serves many of the same tier-one mining customers.
• Emeco Holdings: Emeco is a major mining equipment rental provider in Australia, supplying heavy earthmoving and ancillary equipment including drill rigs. It is an adjacent peer whose fleet and customer base overlap materially with ADB's mining services footprint.
• Thiess (CIMIC Group): Thiess is one of the world's largest mining services contractors and a major Australian drill and blast competitor. Its integrated mining services portfolio directly overlaps with ADB's offering and customer base across coal and metalliferous mining.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ActionDrillandBlast
• LinkedInau.linkedin.com/company/action-drill-and-blast

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Action Drill & Blast