Excavations - are your procedures up to date?

1. Health, Safety and Environment
Weekly Safety Review 9 SIMS awaiting
First Aid Recordable
Managers Comments
No. injuries ytd 15 2
Injury rate ytd 0 0
No. days worked since last 214 Injury
Performance
Issue Date : 25 / 9 / 2012 OSHA recordable (11/2/12)
No. days worked since last 214 1
INJURY
First Aid Injury – a contractor was hurt when a RIDDOR injury (11/2/12)
THIS
packing case nail cut his leg WEEK
Excavations
We are communicating on this topic because Management Procedure 1308 has
been updated this year, and to remind and inform all our staff and contractors about
why and when an Excavation Certificate needs to be used and complied with.
Health & Safety Guidance document 47 (HSG 47) identifies
how to avoid danger from underground services.
Our MP has been written to identify the steps we have in
place to ensure we comply with it’s requirements.
The Key Bits from the updated procedure that you
need to know are …….
• An Excavation Certificate needs to be applied for by anyone who is in charge of
a task which involves digging, drilling, pile driving, boring, or any other task
which involves breaking the surface of the ground
(other than digging to spade depth in a shrub bed, or scraping tarmac off
an existing road as part of road repairs – if you are in doubt – ask the
permit issuer or read the MP).
• Checks are carried out to ensure the area and task are free from hazard posed
by underground Electrical cables, Drains and Process services such as steam
or gas pipes.
• Blank Excavation Certificates can be obtained from the Permit Issuer, but it is
the Permit Requestors job to get it completed by the relevant people and hand
it back to the Permit Issuer.
• Precautions to be followed are identified on the Excavation Certificate, and
must be complied with by people carrying out the excavation work.
• Training in Excavation Certificates is available from the Safety Team – Contact
the Training Dept. on tel. (01642) 212030.
Historically when Excavating we have had Issues involving Auger Boring and Over
Head Power Lines Be Aware – Take Care