CONSTRUCTION SAFETY

TRAINING
Module 7 – Excavation

BANYU URIP PROJECT

EPC1 - Production Processing Facilities
Contract No. C-3207067
Excavation

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1. Objectives
 Understand excavation hazards and risks

 Understand the forces at work in an excavation

 Name 5 OSHA requirements for excavations

 Describe the 3 general protective systems used in the

construction of the excavation

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2. Excavation Hazards
In depth planning of all excavation activity is vital for project
success.

Principal hazards associated with excavation include:

 Risk of cave ins from loose soil or moving machinery
near edge
 Vehicle traffic across excavation area
 Asphyxiation due to lack of oxygen
 Inhalation of toxic materials
 Falls
 Accidental severing of underground utilities (piping,
elec., instrument) lines
 Access / egress for emergency response

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3. Excavation Cave-In Deaths
Cave-ins are predictable and should be expected.
The US numbers...
10,000 entrapments per year
1000-2000 lost time injuries per year
100-400 deaths per year

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 It’s just dirt. Right?

• A cubic foot of soil can

weigh 50kg - 63kg or more
(about the same as a small
person)
• One cubic meter of soil can
weigh more than 1300 kg
which is as much as a small
car, but it only occupies the
area the size of an average
office desk
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4. What is an excavation?
• An excavation is a cut in the earth’s surface

• But, it immediately begins to close due to a

variety of forces.

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 What forces?
• The excavation WILL close (cave-in), the only
question is when.

• How fast the cut closes depends mainly on

two factors, soil type and the amount of
moisture.
Soil Type Pressure and downward forces
Moisture content Vibration
Gravity Water table
Depth Weather, Ice, snow, rain

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5. Soil Types
Classification of soil and rock deposits shall be made by a
competent person based on the results of at least one visual and
at least one manual analysis.

Test shall be conducted in accordance with local governing

agency.

Most stable Rock

Cemented soils
Cohesive soils
Granular soils
Least stable Loams

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6. OSHA Requirements

1. Protect Yourself
2. Protective Systems
3. Inspection by Competent Person
4. Safe Access and Egress to all excavations
5. General Trenching and Excavation Rules

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7. Protect Yourself
• Employers must instruct workers to recognize and
avoid unsafe conditions associated with their work.

• Sides of trenches in unstable or soft material must

be sloped, shored, shielded, or otherwise
supported based on Type of soil

• Workers in trenches must wear personal protective

equipment.
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8. Protective Systems
Protective system must be either
1. sloped,
2. shored, or
3. shielded
to protect the workers.
However…………
Workers in a stooped or kneeling positions may
require protection in shallow trenches 1,5 meter
with bad soil.
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9. Sloping / Benching
• Trench sloping involves cutting back the
trench walls to an appropriate maximum
allowable slope.

• Soil conditions will determine the amount

of material to be removed and at what
angle the walls should be.

Remove
Remove

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10. Sloping - Golden Pass Project 4Q07

Classic sloping /
benching

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11. Shoring
• Shoring prevents the soil from caving in.

• The shoring of a trench can be

accomplished with the use of wood
timbers, screw jacks, hydraulic rams, or
combinations of all of these methods.

• The soil conditions will determine the

type and amount of shoring.

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12. Shielding

• Shields protect the workers

inside the shields in the
event of a Trench Shields
cave-in.

• Shields do not prevent cave-

ins

• Shield systems must be

engineered for the specific
situation
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13. Inspection by Competent Person

• OSHA standards require that trenches be

inspected daily and as conditions change by
a competent person prior to worker entry

• A competent person is capable of

identifying existing and predictable hazards
or working conditions that are hazardous,
unsanitary, or dangerous to employees and
is authorized to take prompt corrective
measures • 17
14. What means of access and
egress are you required to provide?
• OSHA requires you to provide safe access and egress to all
excavations, including ladders, steps, ramps, or other safe
means of exit for employees working in trench excavations 1.2
meters or deeper. These devices must be located in the
excavation within 7.62 meters of all workers.
• Any structural ramps you use in your operation must be
designed by a competent person if they are used for employee
access or egress, or by a competent person qualified in
structural design if they are used for vehicles. Also, structural
members used for ramps or runways must be uniform in
thickness and joined in a manner to prevent tripping or
displacement.
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15. How can you protect workers against
hazardous atmospheres inside excavations
• A competent person must test any excavation deeper than 1.2
meters) or where an oxygen deficiency or a hazardous
atmosphere is present or could reasonably be expected, such as a
landfill or where hazardous substances are stored nearby, before an
employee enters it. If there are any hazardous conditions, you must
provide the employee controls such as proper respiratory
protection or ventilation. In addition, you are responsible for
regularly testing all controls used to reduce atmospheric
contaminants to acceptable levels.
• Any excavation / trenches more than 1.2 meter depth shall be
considered as Confined space and safety precautions as per
confined space entry procedure shall be followed.
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15. General Trenching and Excavation Rules
Before beginning any excavation:

• Evaluate soil conditions (soil type, moisture, contamination,…)

• Evaluate excavation interferences with existing foundations and site traffic
• Design protective systems
• Identify and plan for undergrounds
– Especially critical for a Brownfield environment, allow sufficient time and
resource to make sure that all undergrounds have been identified (Plant
archives, drawings, field locators, hand probing,….), and mitigations
measures are in place.
• Test for low oxygen, hazardous fumes, and toxic gases
• Provide safe in and out access
• Determine the safety equipment needed
• Evaluate need to implement a confined space entry process
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5. General Trenching and Excavation Rules
During Excavation:

• Keep excavated materials at least 1 meter away from the edge

• Take additional precautions to prevent cave-ins for excavations subjected to

vibrations from highway traffic

• Barricade to ensure unauthorized personnel and equipment do not enter the

excavation

• Test the atmosphere prior to entry where there is a potential for oxygen
deficiency hazardous fumes and toxic gases in any excavation greater than 1.2
meter in depth

• Set appropriate accesses and have appropriate emergency rescue equipment

readily available

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 Recognize the Risk?

The trench wall collapsed burying the tester to approximately 1 meter of clay above his
head

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 Excavation Summary
• Recognize the hazards around excavation sites…
Soil type, moisture, traffic vibrations, existing
foundations, underground utilities, …..

The 3 protective systems for excavations are:

1. Slope or Bench the soil
2. Shore the sides to prevent caving
3. Shield the workers from a cave in

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What’s wrong?

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What’s wrong?

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What’s wrong?

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Singapore Parallel Train Entry and exit point sealed off.
IC&T C12A Trench Leaving workers at risk in
case of emergencies.

Poor shoring practice

w/ scaffold poles &
thin plywood
Poor shoring practice Point loading
w/ scaffold poles &
thin plywood

Signs of load pressure

Singapore Parallel Train

IC&T C12A Trench
After intervention, contractor admitted that work method they used
not correct. Job was immediately stopped

Singapore Parallel Train

IC&T C12A Trench • 29
Singapore Parallel Train

Condition after strong

heavy rain on 1st July 2009.
Intervened with Contractor
stopped work due to poor
shoring practices, soil sluffing,
poor access & dewatering

SPT constructed on reclaimed

sand with high water table • 30
 Singapore Parallel Train
IC&T C12A Trench

Condition after strong

heavy rain on 1st July 2009.
Poor shoring practices, soil sluffing,
poor access & dewatering

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Singapore Parallel Train

Condition after
strong heavy rain
on 1st July 2009.
Poor shoring practices,
soil sluffing, poor
access & dewatering

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Singapore Parallel Train AFTER CORRECTION

Shoring improved
Better access
Dewatering improved • 33
 THANK YOU
“FOLLOW THE SAFETY RULE
AND BE SAFE”

“NOBODY GETS HURT”

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