Utility Records Are Useful When Preparing To Dig, But Must Only Be Used As A Guide

Accidentally striking an underground service when carrying out any form of excavation work can have a huge impact on both the workers doing the digging and the owner of the utility. It is estimated that there are around 4 million excavations of one sort or another carried out every year in Britain, and they result in some 60,000 strikes of cables, gas pipes, telecoms, and so on.

Carrying Out Excavation Work Of Any Sort Can Be Dangerous

Probably the biggest danger to anyone involved in the construction industry where there is a need to carry out any sort of ground excavation work is the chance of hitting something underground such as an electricity cable, gas pipe, sewage pipe, and so on. The problem is that these underground services can be just about anywhere, including in some of the most unlikely situations.

HSG47: What You Need To Know About Excavations

Avoiding Danger From Underground Services HSG47 is a guide produced by the Health and Safety Executive and it does what it says on the tin. It is designed for people involved in “commissioning, planning, managing, and carrying out work on or near underground services”. It is also of use to owners and operators of such services. This is the latest (third) edition and was updated in 2014.

Any Form Of Excavation Work Can Be Dangerous

Undertaking any form of excavation work in the UK can be fraught with danger. This is because there are huge amounts of services that we use every day, and in some cases all day, and they can be anywhere. We all use telecoms. We all need water. We all need electricity. And we all use sewage pipes. Quite a lot of people use gas. There are also fibreoptics, fluids under pressure, flammable liquids, toxic liquids, LPG, and more.

Location And Identification Of Underground Services: What You Need To Know

If you are engaged in any sort of work which involves excavation of the ground, there is always the risk of striking some form of underground service. This could be electricity cables, gas pipes, water pipes, telecoms, sewage pipes, fibreoptics, and more, and what’s more is that they can be found almost anywhere, not just in the obvious places.

PAS128 Utility Surveyor Training From Sygma Solutions

The Health and Safety Executive produces a guidance book known as HSG47 which is aimed at people involved in commissioning, planning, managing and carrying out work on or near underground services. The purpose of the guidance is primarily concerned with health and safety of those engaged directly in any type of excavation work rather than being concerned with damage to any underground services.

It Is Essential To Carry Out A Survey Before Undertaking Any Excavation

Every day in the UK there are over 12,000 street works taking place, virtually all of which involve digging to some depth, and some of these result in striking underground services of one sort or another.

The reasons for striking underground services can be many, but overall, the main reason is insufficient knowledge of the likelihood of services being present at a site before any work was commenced. This is partly due to there being little or no record of underground services at a site and partly due to lack of a thorough survey of the site before work began.

It Is Always Necessary To Obtain Plans From Utilities Before Doing Any Form Of Excavation

When carrying out any sort of construction work that involves an excavation, it is essential to conduct a thorough survey of the site before commencing work.

Certainly, the first thing to do is to obtain plans or other suitable information about all underground services in the area in which you are going to work. That means that you need to contact the owners and operators wherever possible, and also remember that some services may have more than one owner or operator.

Striking An Underground Utility Can Be Life-Threatening

One of the biggest issues that construction workers can suffer from is that of striking underground services in the course of a project. If you are constructing anything much larger than a garden shed which can sit on the ground surface, then it will involve digging in order to install the foundations. If you are a worker who works for a utility, then you have to dig in order to lay pipes and cables or repair or restore old ones or replace them with new. Practically every sort of construction project begins with digging.

Advice From The HSE On Avoiding Dangers From Excavation Works

HSG47 is a guide issued by the Health and Safety Executive that provides advice on the dangers of striking underground services when carrying out excavation work and how to avoid doing so. At Sygma Solutions, our HSG47 course goes into great detail about this because it is critically important to avoid striking underground services.