With a couple clicks, excavation companies can access information about the latest technologies available to help them prevent damaging underground utilities. The online database, called VAULT, was developed by the Common Ground Alliance and is available at www.cga-vault.com.

Users can search the database to find what types of technologies are available along with product specifications, capabilities and contact information. Product search categories include such things as barriers, encroachment monitoring, locating and marking, mapping, etc. You can also search by best practices (i.e. compliance, excavation), root causes, and by various stakeholder groups such as gas distribution, public works and road builders.

“We are continually working to connect damage prevention stakeholders with all available resources for reducing the number of damages to underground facilities,” says CGA President Bob Kipp. “The VAULT database puts valuable information right at the fingertips of anyone hoping to better protect buried utility lines.”

CGA’s annual DIRT (Damage Information Reporting Tool) report for 2012 shows that using a “call before you dig” locating service is the best strategy, avoiding damage 99 percent of the time. There were 232,717 events submitted to DIRT in 2012, up nearly 25,000 from 2011. Insufficient excavation practices were listed as the root cause for 45 percent of the incidents. Failure to make a notification accounted for 25 percent, the lowest in six years, with two-thirds of those involving residents and farmers rather than professional excavators. Insufficient locating practices were the root cause in 17 percent of the incidents with “other” making up the remaining 13 percent.

The Common Ground Alliance was formed in 2000 in response to a Department of Transportation study to identify best practices that prevent damage to underground facilities. Since then, it has published a Best Practices Field Manual that contains best practices in nine categories:

• Planning & Design
• One Call Center
• Location & Marking
• Excavation
• Mapping
• Compliance
• Public Education
• Reporting & Evaluation
• Miscellaneous

There are also 4 appendices:

• Glossary of Terms and Definitions
• Uniform Color Code and Marking Guide
• Sample Forms, Reports, Releases
• Additional References

Version 11 of the Best Practices Field Manual was released in March 2013 and is available for viewing and download from CGA’s website at www.commongroundalliance.com. The online version also has a search function to help you find specific topics. The manual can be ordered in hardcopy at a cost of $1 for CGA members and $3 for nonmembers.