Excavations is among the most dangerous occupations in the construction sector, and you need take precautions to ensure the safety of your employees. Failure to protect a site adequately can have severe consequences for both workers and supervisors.
Before beginning, the job should be meticulously planned and arranged, with all necessary materials and equipment on hand. Every location and its progress should be overseen by a construction supervisor or manager, who will conduct regular checks to ensure the facility’s safety.
Even before work is done, it is necessary to do regular evaluations and checks on-site. This will greatly reduce the chance of harm and enable for the hazard identification, allowing for the implementation of precautionary measures. Pre, post, or even during rain and thunderstorms, weather patterns should be evaluated to avoid unnecessary mishaps or challenging working settings.
The project supervisor or manager should have a clear grasp of the risks associated with excavations and the relevant knowledge and skills to take the necessary safeguards.
Put on your safety gear
Building sites are full with dangers, so it’s critical to ensure that your workers are properly protected. This eliminates the possibility of traumatic accident, fatality, or legal action from employees. Allowing employees to access a site without the required protective gear is not a good idea.
Hard helmets, eye protection, ear defenders, gloves, and safety shoes, such as steel-toed shoes and neon jackets, are all examples of protective gear. To account for tear and wear or corrosion, this protective gear should be evaluated on a regular basis. Broken gear should be replaced right away, but it should not be allowed on the job site.
Safety Precautions
Project managers must install a variety of security measures to ensure the site’s stability.
Employees should have secure and adequate access to the property when operating on trench or vacuum excavations, such as ramps, steps, ladders, and other ways. To avoid cave-ins, the sides of excavations and trenches should be reinforced, and barriers, such as mesh netting, sheets, or wood, should be constructed to keep loosened soil, rocks, and other materials from damaging workers.
To prevent persons or equipment from sliding or tumbling into the pit, obstacles or restricting equipment should be placed around it. These barriers must also be able to support the load of a passenger or vehicle.
For danger communications, appropriate illumination and alarm systems should be put within or within close proximity, and local healthcare centres should be easily available and accessible.
Perform Atmosphere Testing
Because poisonous vapours or gases denser than air may be unearthed or trapped, atmospheric testing are required before accessing an excavation site. If you don’t, you risk suffocation or toxicity from gases like exhaust fumes. Workers must not enter the dig site if hazardous fumes are present, or they must be equipped with a ventilation system.
Utilities’ Location
Pipe and cable locators must be used to detect the position of subsurface utilities to avoid a utility hit during the excavation process. Once discovered, these utilities must be supported and labelled above ground with markers and tape to determine their type of product or service and level. This will aid in the entire development and coordination of your project, resulting in increased efficiency and site safety.
