When Fiber Construction Goes Wrong

The Common Ground Alliance (CGA) recently issued its 2021 Damage Information Reporting Tool (DIRT). The goal of the CGA is to highlight and reduce damages done to all utilities when working underground. Here are the current trends discussed in the DIRT report:

• CGA used statistical models that show that there has been a plateau, or perhaps a tiny decrease in the frequency of damages caused by underground construction since 2019.
• Calls to locate services increased by 8% in 2021, which CGA believes is a precursor to the construction that will result from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). In past years the frequency of damages has correlated to the overall volume of construction work, so the expectation is that damages due to construction will increase over the next few years.
• The most common source of damages (almost half) is work done by a backhoe.
• The most commonly damaged infrastructure is natural gas and telecom infrastructure.
• The most prevalent cause of the damage (25%) occurs when work is done without first calling to locate other utilities. CGA research says that professional awareness of the need for locating services is high, but 60% of all damages due to no notification are attributed to professional excavators.
• The next two primary reasons for damages are excavators failing to pothole, failing to maintain sufficient clearance between digging equipment and buried facilities, and facilities not being marked or being marked inaccurately due to locator error and/or incorrect facility records/maps.

This report is an interesting reminder that good work practices can make a big difference in avoiding damage. Fiber construction projects are often brought to a screeching halt when damage is done to existing utilities, particularly gas and water lines. This is well worth reading for anybody associated with construction.