If you’re reading this blog you probably already have a sense of how important accurate mapping of underground pipes and cables is. As well as the sheer danger to life, damage caused by undertaking excavations where cables are not sufficiently detected can lead to serious project delays and loss of huge sums of money as construction is stalled.

To support the millions of highway excavations and utility maintenance projects that take place each year, one initiative to improve standards across the sector is the PAS 128. While Utility Detection Surveys completed to a PAS 128 standard are not legally compulsory, they have become widely desired in recent years.

Surveyors who have been trained to PAS128 standards can provide a higher standard and a safer environment while giving employers and those commissioning surveys greater confidence that the task at hand is carried out with diligence and best-practice methods.

What Does the PAS 128 Cover?

British Standards Institution (BSI) PAS 128 is the current specification for underground utility detection, verification and location, which is the result of a collaboration between BSI and the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE).

The document outlines the need for accurate, quality information to be recorded to a consistent standard with regards to the location of underground utilities. PAS 128 sets out the accuracy for capturing data during utility tracing or mapping, which should take place before any construction work commences, including ground investigation, boreholes and trial pits.

These surveys are crucial in aiding designers and project planners in the earlier stages of projects and by detecting utilities beneath the ground, accurate mapping minimises costly and potentially dangerous threats to human life when construction commences.

Why Is This Important?

The UK has a vast network of utility and local authority infrastructure. To repair, maintain and upgrade this, the utility industry and the Local Highways Authorities collectively undertake countless underground excavation works. However, with more congestion, there is a greater risk of accidents occurring.

The PAS 128 is one effort that has been made to improve the administrative procedures for street works and to encourage intelligent project planning so that they lead to fewer accidents and harm to human life.

Improving the availability and exchange of underground asset information, together with more effective and collaborative planning, will no doubt lead to better planned underground excavations and road works that will benefit everyone.

Who is this PAS for?

This PAS is for use by operatives (usually a surveyor or subsurface utility engineer). However, those who commission and manage the underground excavation of sites prior to developments or construction will also benefit from the PAS. Designers and those involved in early-stage project planning will also greatly benefit from the standards set out in the PAS.

In fact, anyone who is responsible for recording information about underground utilities can gain important guidance and knowledge about essential detection processes from this resource.

It will therefore be used by organisations that own buried assets, those that require asset records for planning and design purposes, and those that carry out work themselves which are deemed to be close to buried assets.  However, the actual surveying itself is typically handled by designated surveyors or utility engineers.

Learn More

The PAS continues to offer guidance and instruction to the utilities and cable avoidance sector so that accidents can be reduced and millions of UK-wide operations can be conducted without delay. If you are interested in arranging a course for you or one of your employees, contact us at Sygma Solutions for more information about the PAS and to learn about our PAS 128 training options for UK surveyors.