I
just returned from the National
Utility Contractors Association (NUCA) Expo 2009 in Phoenix, which was,
despite sparse attendance, an excellent event featuring two full days of
education sessions complementing the exhibition hall, which featured more than
120 display booths.
Similar
to previous events I’ve attended in the past several months, while the
exhibitors tended to be a bit tentative about what the near future held in store
for them, the attendees with whom I spoke were fairly positive in their
expectations…most feeling that the stimulus package would prove effective in
funding work.
News on
the floor ranged from projects to new equipment and practices, but perhaps the
largest buzz concerned a recent citation of a company by OSHA for what it
termed, “…willful
violations of federal workplace safety standards,” alleging the company had
amassed a total of 38 citations since 1982, several having to do with potential
cave-ins or with spoils piled too close to trenches. The penalties amounted to
$700,000.
The
message is that OSHA is sending a message to contractors performing underground
construction: The agency intends to come down hard on habitual
offenders.
Stating
on its Web site
that it recognizes excavating is as one of the most hazardous construction
operations, OSHA revised Subpart P, Excavations, of 29 CFR 1926.650, 29 CFR 1926.651, and 29 CFR 1926.652 to make the standard easier
to understand, to permit the use of performance criteria where possible, and to
provide construction employers with options when classifying soil and selecting
employee protection methods.
The
following questions link to information relevant to trenching and excavation in
the workplace:
* Standards and directives:
www.osha.gov/SLTC/trenchingexcavation/standards.html
* Alliances, eTools, etc.:
www.osha.gov/SLTC/trenchingexcavation/construction.html
* Trenching
hazards and possible solution:
www.osha.gov/SLTC/trenchingexcavation/recognition.html
* Additional information:
www.osha.gov/SLTC/trenchingexcavation/otherresources.html