Excavation safety is a must for any project. Whether you’re digging up your driveway, a basement, or a utility trench, it’s important to follow safe procedures.
Protective systems like benching, sloping, shoring, and shielding can help prevent injuries or fatalities. However, they don’t eliminate all excavation hazards.
Do’s
Digging and trenching are some of the most dangerous construction activities. They can cause cave-ins, falling loads, hazardous atmospheres and other hazards that can result in injury or death.
There are some basic things contractors can do to protect themselves and their workers. First, understand the soil mechanics – the type of rock or soil that you are working on is important.
Depending on the soil, you may need to use shoring or other engineering controls. Generally speaking, stable rock is the safest material for digging.
If you are excavating in a public area, be sure to contact 811 before starting your work so you can mark all critical utility lines. This is the best way to keep your crew and equipment safe while digging. It will also help avoid damage to the utilities that are located underground, which can be expensive.
Don’ts
The do’s and don’ts of excavation are the basic guidelines that workers, employers, and supervisors need to follow. These guidelines can help them identify and eliminate many hazards associated with excavation work, reducing the chance of injury to people and property.
The shoring of nearby structures and utilities is crucial when excavating. It prevents underground utility lines from getting accidentally hit by excavation equipment, which can cause catastrophic injuries or damage to the utilities themselves.
Avoid putting the temporary spoil heaps close to the sides of the excavation. The additional weight of the load, mainly from plant and vehicles, can make the sides more likely to collapse.
The zone of influence should be determined and the angle taken into consideration before any protective methods are used. This can be done by measuring how far any external loads affect the ground around the excavation, such as plant and vehicles.
Equipment
The right equipment is essential for excavation work. It can shave time off the job and increase productivity.
The type of soil you are working with will determine the level of protection you need, as well as how safe you can be. You should reassess the soil before starting work and if the ground conditions change during construction (eg different soils, heavy rain/flooding) take immediate action to protect workers and other people.
Alternatively, use trench shields or ground anchors instead of shoring for a lower risk of a cave-in. They can be used to support an excavation or a sloped face, depending on the conditions.
Ensure underground services are known and mapped, particularly around areas where you will be digging mechanically or using hand-held tools. It is important to follow plans, mark-outs and safe digging practices when approaching buried services, and to work with the service owner to get permission to approach them.
Safety
Excavation and trenching work is among the most dangerous jobs in construction. The most common risk is ground collapse, a deadly hazard that can result in worker death and serious injury.
To minimise this hazard, excavation work must be carefully planned and all hazards eliminated or controlled so that workers are not harmed in or around the excavation. The designated competent person responsible for the operation should take a central role in identifying and managing risks.
A competent person also needs to inspect the condition of shoring, benching and battering as well as excavation faces before and during work. Ideally, these inspections should be conducted before the start of the shift and at other times as required.
