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Safety Concerns of Trenching You Should Know About from Melbourne Mini Diggers

28 July 2022

Trenching is an important step in the installation, maintenance, and inspection of cables and pipelines. Before commencing any trenching work, make sure that all the preventive measures are in to avoid exposing the workers to serious accidents and injuries. Ensuring preventive measures when undertaking a trenching project helps to maintain the health and safety of the workers. To achieve a safe and secure trenching process, here are the safety concerns of trenching you should know about.

Underground Pipes and Cables

Locating the underground utility cables, conduits, and pipes can be hard if not done by professionals. Thus, you must be mindful and cautious of these pipes and cables when undertaking trenching work These cables and pipes can cause potential electrocution which can be very dangerous for the workers. Therefore, the safest way to perform trenching is to hire a utility locator company to easily identify underground cables and pipes with the use of their special utility locator tools.

Falling Rocks and Debris

Trenching comes with a lot of risk factors, hence, laying down safety practices at the onset is very important. Implementing safety practices like wearing protective equipment, gloves, and safety helmets to protect your workers from falling rocks and debris is very crucial. A possible slip and fall accident are inevitable when undergoing a trenching project, which makes strict implementation of wearing of protective equipment highly recommended.

Safe Access to Exit

Informing your workers about the exit helps lessen their worry about where to escape when something unfortunate happens. Knowing the location of the exit before commencing the trenching project allows the workers to safely access it if anything serious happens. Therefore, before commencing with the trenching project, providing a safe means of access to exit for your workers is very critical.

Underground Obstructions

Another safety concern of trenching when undergoing a trenching project is the possible underground obstructions. Hence, it is very important to evaluate the excavation site before the excavation project to avoid structure damage in the long run. Locating any possible underground obstructions is one way to ensure that the excavation work will go smoothly as planned and without delay.

Perimeter Access

Safe perimeter access is also a safety concern for workers when undergoing a trenching project. Thus, ensuring an uncluttered perimeter to make sure the trenching project is done safely and without delay, is also very essential.

Possible Soil Collapse

The possible collapse of overlying soil and structure is inevitable when undergoing trenching unless preventive measures are done to specifically eliminate this issue. Eliminating all the risk of soil risks and hazards is very critical to reducing damage when undergoing a trenching project. Neglecting the importance of preventive measures and safety practices can lead to more costly trenching work and even jeopardises the safety of all the workers who will perform the trenching project. Trenching can be a dangerous process since it involves narrow excavation, so, make sure to take appropriate safety practices and preventive measures when undertaking this type of work.

To know more and if you need to hire mini diggers and Dingos for your next excavation project, contact Melbourne Mini Diggers. We offer our services from Metro Melbourne to Ballarat areas.