When it comes to safety, there is no room for error. Companies and organizations engaged in excavations and other ground-related projects must ensure that they file and address all 811 locate requests correctly and within the time limits imposed by the law.
Failure to do so can result in fines, penalties, and other serious consequences. In this blog post, we will discuss the time-sensitiveness of 811 locate requests, the potential effects of letting your ticket expire, and how to ensure that your request is handled correctly.
With just a few simple steps and a little preparation, you can ensure that your requests are completed on time and that your safety and those around you are never compromised.
So, what exactly is an 811 Locate Request?
Simply put, you make a call or online request to have underground utility lines marked before digging. This lets you know exactly where these lines are so you can work around them safely. It's an important step that helps prevent damage to gas, water, and other vital utility lines and minimize the risk of injury or other accidents.
Here's the catch: these requests are time-sensitive!
In most cases, you must make the request a few days before you start digging; the actual marking process can take some time. This means that it's crucial to plan and make the 811 locate request as early as possible to avoid delays or complications.
Submitting a locate request on time is crucial for many reasons. First and foremost, it helps ensure that your digging project is completed safely. By contacting 811, you can have the underground utilities in your area marked, so you can avoid hitting any underground pipelines or electrical wires that could cause harm to yourself, your crew, and your property.
In addition to safety, submitting your locate request promptly is also important from a legal perspective. According to the Common Ground Alliance, waiting too long to submit your locate request could result in fines and penalties. On top of that, it can also cause delays in your digging project, which may result in missed deadlines and increased costs.
Furthermore, submitting your locate request on time shows that you take your responsibility as a professional contractor or property owner seriously.
By contacting 811 before you start digging, you demonstrate to your clients, neighbors, and community that you are aware of the dangers of digging near underground utilities and that you are taking steps to ensure the safety of everyone involved.
The 811 locate request process should begin with mapping out where the work is to be done. This includes surveying the area to determine the project's scope and identify any underground utilities and structures that may pose a risk.
Once the survey is complete, the contractor will submit an 811 request to their local One Call center. The request should include the information gathered during the survey, the planned work, and the proposed completion date.
Submitting an 811 Locate Request is a straightforward process, but it's important to understand the steps involved so that you can be sure your request is handled promptly.
Here's a step-by-step guide to submitting an 811 Locate Request:
Plan Your Excavation: Before digging, you must clearly understand where underground utility lines are located. The 811 Locate Request system makes it easy to identify these lines, so you can avoid damaging them during your excavation.
Call 811: Contact the 811 hotlines and provide the necessary information about your excavation site, including the location and type of work you plan to do. This information will be passed on to the appropriate utility companies, who will then send a locator equipped with the right tools to mark the location of the underground lines.
Please wait for a Response: After you've submitted your 811 Locate Request, it's essential to wait for a response before starting any excavation work. The utility companies will need time to locate and mark the underground lines, so it's necessary to be patient and wait for their response.
Respect the Markings: Once the utility companies have marked the location of the underground lines, it's important to respect these markings and avoid digging in the marked areas. This will help ensure the safety of yourself and the underground utilities and help prevent costly repairs or fines.
By following these simple steps, you can be sure that your 811 Locate Request is handled quickly and effectively and that your excavation project is completed safely and efficiently.
Factors that can Delay the Processing of an 811 Locate Request
The first factor that can cause a delay in processing an 811 locate request is the availability of personnel. Some areas may not have enough personnel to process the request quickly. This can mean that the request has to be put on hold until the staff is available, thus causing a delay in the process.
The second factor that can delay 811 locate requests is the complexity of the request itself. Depending on its complexity, some requests may take longer to process than others. Thankfully, there are some best practices you can use to help avoid delays in your 811 locate requests.
To ensure your locate request is processed as quickly as possible, provide adequate information to 811. This includes the location of the job site, the type of work to be performed, and the estimated excavation start and end dates. This way, 811 can pass this information to the utility companies, who can ensure they send out locators as soon as possible.
Call 811 call centers reduce the risk of potential damage to underground utilities. By providing up-to-date information on the location of these utilities, the 811 call center helps to ensure that excavation projects are carried out safely with the utmost care and consideration.
This not only protects the infrastructure of the utility companies but also reduces the likelihood of costly repairs and downtime for those involved in the project.
Working with the 811 call center and utilizing tools such as BOSS811 can greatly benefit excavation projects by streamlining the request process, reducing delays, and promoting safety.
Thanks to tools like BOSS811, which helps the utilities manage and process locate requests promptly, contractors and excavators can dig safely and prevent damages. BOSS811
comes with many locate ticket screening capabilities to help utilities handle tickets efficiently in a short time. It also automatically closes tickets based on various parameters and gives optimal driving directions for locators based on tickets assigned to them.
Overall, the timely submission of 811 Locate requests is critical for the project's success and the safety of the underground assets and the public. BOSS811 is a powerful tool that helps the utilities handle the locate requests efficiently to ensure safe digging.
Preventing damages is a significant step toward public safety. Let us all play our part!
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