Damage to treesĭamage to trees, including root severance and root damage, can result in harm from trees falling over. Designers will need to consider these issues. Water entering the excavation needs to be channelled to sumps from where it can be pumped out however, the effect of pumping from sumps on the stability of the excavation should be considered.Īlternative techniques for de-watering (such as ground freezing and grout injection) could also be used. Particular attention should be given to areas close to lakes, rivers and the sea. The supports to the side of the excavation should be designed to control the entry of groundwater and the design should take any additional water loading into account. Inflow of ground and surface waterĭepending on the permeability of the ground, water may flow into any excavation below the natural groundwater level. The need to undertake excavation work close to or below such lines should be very carefully considered and avoided where possible. There is a risk to all those close to the item of plant which becomes live, as well as to the operator. Escaping gas which ignites can cause serious injury and/or property damage as a result of fire and explosion.Įxcavation work should not start until steps have been taken to identify and prevent any risk of injury arising from underground servicesīurns and electrocution can result if raised tipper truck bodies or excavators touch or come close enough to overhead power lines to cause arcing. Many serious accidents have occurred when buried services have been damaged during excavation work.Ĭontact with any electricity cables can result in explosion and burns to those in the vicinity. Surveys of the foundations and the advice of a structural engineer may be required. Many garden or boundary walls have very shallow foundations which are easily undermined by even small trenches, causing the wall to collapse onto those working in the trench.īefore digging starts, decide if extra support for the structure is needed. Make sure excavations do not undermine the scaffold footings, buried services or the foundations of nearby buildings or walls. the support system itself, eg using trench box extensions or trench sheets longer than the trench depth.Guard rails and toe boards inserted into the ground immediately next to the supported excavation side or fabricated guard rail assemblies that connect to the sides of the trench box.Prevent people from falling - Edges of excavations should be protected with substantial barriers where people are liable to fall into them. The extra loadings can make the sides of excavations more likely to collapse. Head protection should be worn.Įffect of plant and vehicles - Do not park plant and vehicles close to the sides of excavations. Edge protection should include toeboards or other means, such as projecting trench sheets or box sides to protect against falling materials. Loose materials - may fall from spoil heaps into the excavation. In wet ground a considerably flatter slope will be required. In granular soils, the angle of slope should be less than the natural angle of repose of the material being excavated. Make sure the equipment and precautions needed (trench sheets, props, baulks etc) are available on site before work starts.īattering the excavation sides - Battering the excavation sides to a safe angle of repose may also make the excavation safer. Temporary support - Before digging any trench pit, tunnel, or other excavations, decide what temporary support will be required and plan the precautions to be taken. Trenchless techniques should always be considered at the design stage as they replace the need for major excavations. Depending on conditions, a cubic metre of soil can weigh in excess of 1.5 tonnes.No ground can be relied upon to stand unsupported in all circumstances.people or plant falling into excavations.material falling from the sides into any excavation and.Excavations collapsing and burying or injuring people working in them.This information should be used during the planning and preparation for excavation work.Įvery year people are killed or seriously injured by collapses and falling materials while working in excavations. underground structures or water courses and.This should include relevant information on: No work should take place until the excavation is safe.Ĭommercial clients must provide certain information to contractors before work begins. To maintain the required precautions, a competent person must inspect excavation supports or battering at the start of the working shift and at other specified times. The law says you must prevent danger to workers in or near excavations. Controlling physical ill health risks - Key points.Controlling physical ill health risks overview.Controlling hazardous substances - Key points.Controlling hazardous substances overview.
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