Duties, and Planning the Work

A safe system of work has three basic elements:

• 01Planning the work
• 02Detecting, identifying and marking underground services
• 03Safe excavation/safe digging practices

These key elements complement each other, and all three are essential when working near underground services.

Clients have a duty to make reasonable enquiries about underground services and pass relevant information to the designer(s) and contractor(s). Your own files and other records may contain information on underground services. If they do, remember that it may have been obtained for previous work and may be out of date. The most up-to-date information should be included in the tender information.

A client who is unable or unwilling to obtain this information must allow the contractor sufficient time and resource to do so instead.

Clients need to consider how contractors have addressed the risks from underground services.

Designers have a duty to reduce or 'design out' the risks arising from damage to underground services. Having reduced the risk to a level as low as reasonably practicable by design, information should be provided to those doing the work about the risks that remain. In most cases, the best way of informing contractors and individuals doing the work is by providing this on working drawings.

You will need to know if there are underground services present so that you can amend the design to avoid them where possible.

For building work, re-siting the services away from the work is often a reasonably practicable means of avoiding the risk. Ask the service owner/operator to do this and include adequate notice. Other options to re-siting the services may include:

• 01Repositioning or redesigning structures or parts of structures to ensure that services are avoided during the work.
• 02Arranging for the supply to be disconnected during the work.
• 03Choosing methods to avoid the services; for example, by using ground beams to bridge or span the services.

• 01Identify clearly the extent of the work area and find out what underground services are within the area before considering whether they are likely to be disturbed.
• 02Obtain service drawings from utilities companies and other organisations with relevant information about the site.
• 03Survey the site to identify the services and other underground structures. Record the location of any services.
• 04Review/assess the planned work to avoid disturbing services where possible.
• 05Allow sufficient time and provide sufficient resource to do the work safely.

This Technical Measure Document refers to permit to work systems required to control work in any area of work to prevent major incidents.

To identify what could cause injury or illness in your business (hazards), decide how likely it is that someone could be harmed and how seriously (the risk), take action to eliminate the hazard, or if this isn't possible, control the risk.