Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Local company will help to make site digging safer

Any time digging has to be done on the road or footpath, or on commercial and private property, there's always a risk of damaging cables, pipes, and other infrastructure, writes Brian Byrne.

That can lead to disruption, time lost, and even danger to life and limb. But local company Murphy Surveys has teamed up with a specialist international expertise to help eliminate such misfortunes.

The specialist company is PelicanCorp, and the partnership relaunches the existing national ‘beforeUdig’ service, helping to safeguard underground infrastructure and raise the standards of safety.

The deal was announced at the Utility Week Ireland Power Conference in Dublin, and will expand the coverage of the existing service. This will make it easier for asset owners to be aware of digging activity near their assets, and for contractors to locate and identify buried utilities prior to digging.

Niall Murphy, Managing Director of Murphy Surveys that repercussions of damage to services can be 'disastrous' and could cause serious injury. "For a utility company, the resulting financial and reputational impact of costly repairs, delays and interruption in service can be avoidable," he adds. "The increased awareness of planned digging activity provided by the service will help asset owners plan measures to protect their assets.”

Updates to the beforeUdig service will be developed jointly by Murphy Surveys and PelicanCorp with consultation from utility companies and local authorities. It is anticipated that the improved service will be available from Q4 2018.

Pictured are Niall Murphy with Duane Rodgers, CEO of PelicanCorp, signing the contract.