damage prevention Tag

How Excavation Damage Harms the Vulnerable

09 Aug 2023, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

The world beneath our feet is vibrant and complex. Although we cannot see it and often do not think about it, tens of millions of miles of pipelines, cables, and wires run across the country just underfoot. Every time a shovel or power tool makes contact with the dirt to…

Pipeline Safety Agency Highlights Innovative Technology

05 Apr 2023, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

Every year, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) provides funding opportunities to states and stakeholders to improve and protect pipeline safety. One way that is done is by promoting the “damage prevention” process – known by many as the “Call Before You Dig” program. Through a number of…

How to Halve Excavation Damages in Five Years

08 Mar 2023, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

Construction and excavation activity that damages buried infrastructure in the United States is on the rise. For over 10 years, damage numbers have risen – now exceeding 500,000 annual incidents of striking pipelines, cables, and wires below the surface. It is estimated that this leads to economic harm of over…

More Damage, Most Costs, Less Clarity

17 Jan 2023, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

The Damage Information Reporting Tool (DIRT) Report from the Common Ground Alliance (CGA) is the definitive word on excavation damage to underground facilities. Stakeholders and policymakers alike go to this resource to understand the level of damage, estimate the costs imposed on society, and peer inside the root causes in…

What Does Damage Prevention Leadership Look Like?

27 Oct 2022, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

The damage prevention process is tried and true. Notifying a One-Call center through 811 has worked for over a decade, and for at least 30 years prior, other phone numbers and communication methods did the trick. With so firm a foundation and such an established system, how can innovation and…

An Embarrassment of Riches Unspent While Costs Soar

27 Jul 2022, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

If there is one thing the latest Common Ground Alliance (CGA) Technology Report makes clear, it is that the damage prevention ecosystem has an embarrassment of riches on its hands in terms of technological innovation. Indeed, a review of other CGA studies and publications along with reports by various regulatory…

Think Tank Releases New Report on The Consensus Technologies Needed For Improving Excavation Damage Prevention

27 Jul 2022, Posted by John Cassibry in All Posts, Press Releases

PRESS RELEASE For Immediate Release: Wednesday, July 27, 2022 CONTACT: John Cassibry, jcassibry@aii.org   Washington, D.C, July 27, 2022 — The Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure (Aii) released its latest white paper, Consensus Around Technologies: The Key Communications Technologies that Need to be Adopted to Improve Efficiency and Reduce Excavation…

FEATURE: Making a Homeowner Locate Request

14 Jul 2022, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

I have studied damage prevention for several years. From reading reports and best practice guides to ride alongs with locators and even calling in an 811 locate request, I felt like I had a good understanding. But it was this summer when I made an online homeowner locate request that…

It’s Time for Nationwide Adoption of Electronic White-Lining

24 May 2022, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

Looking ahead to the year 2030, we hope to see technology integrated into virtually every activity we do. For damage prevention, this is not merely aspirational, it is a necessity. Fortunately, industry groups have already cast this vision, stating in the latest Common Ground Alliance (CGA) Technology Report that the…

Safer Digging Part 4: Saving Time Saving Money

12 May 2022, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

There is a clear connection between effective damage prevention and cost saving – when you avoid a damage, you avoid all of the direct and indirect costs that come from it. But the use of innovative technology in the damage prevention process can also help stakeholders in saving time and…

Safer Digging Part 3: Keep it in Park

10 May 2022, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

This blog series is laser-focused on innovative technology that can improve the damage prevention process. While this particular series only discusses one technology – Electronic white-lining (EWL)– we have covered its manifold benefits, including public safety, damage reduction, and communications value. Electronic white-lining has multiple advantages, but here we focus…

Safer Digging Part 2: Click Don’t Call

05 May 2022, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

In March, Aii ran its original damage prevention campaign Modern Roots March to help raise America’s infrastructure IQ about the critical roots of modern life below our feet. In April, Aii joined national groups, agencies, and nonprofits to elevate National Safe Digging Month to improve excavation safety. Now as we enter…

Safer Digging Part 1: Before the Shovel

03 May 2022, Posted by bdierker in All Posts, Blog Posts

The first step for safer digging happens long before the shovel hits the ground. Damage prevention relies on communication and collaboration between parties through One-Call centers. The notice of proposed excavation is the first step in this process, but it is more than just making a call. Error and miscommunication…

Safe Digging Month Wraps, But Safe Digging Continues

27 Apr 2022, Posted by John Cassibry in All Posts, Blog Posts

April is recognized across the U.S. as National Safe Digging Month. As the April showers wind down and the May flowers sprout up, it is important to keep in mind the lessons learned from National Safe Digging Month. While spring can be a great time for gardening and backyard projects,…