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WEST MIFFLIN, Pa., Aug. 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Aug. 11 is almost here, and with over 50 years of service to the Commonwealth, Pennsylvania One Call System hopes that the 8/11 date on the calendar will serve as a natural reminder for residents to contact 811 prior to any digging project to have underground utility lines marked. Every few minutes an underground utility line is damaged because someone decided to dig without first contacting 811.
When contacting 811, homeowners and contractors are connected to Pennsylvania One Call System, the local 811 center, which notifies the appropriate utility companies of their intent to dig. Professional locators then arrive at the dig site to mark the approximate locations of underground lines with flags, spray paint or both.
Striking a single line can cause injury, repair costs, inconvenient outages and fines. Every digging project, no matter how large or small, warrants contacting 811 by phone or online. Installing a mailbox, building a deck, planting a tree and laying a patio are just some examples of digging projects that require an 811 request at least three business days before breaking ground.
"On Aug. 11 and throughout the year, we remind homeowners and professional contractors alike to use the 811 service before digging to reduce the risk of striking an underground utility line," said Bill Kiger, President & CEO for Pennsylvania One Call System. "Calling 811 or visiting www.paonecall.org is really the only way to know which utilities are buried in your area so that you can dig safely."
The depth of utility lines can vary for a number of reasons, such as erosion, previous digging projects and uneven surfaces. Utility lines need to be properly marked because even when digging only a few inches or digging in a location that's previously been marked, the risk of striking an underground utility line still exists.
Visit www.pa1call.org/811Day for more information about 811 and safe digging practices.
June 25, 2024: The 6th Annual "811" Golf Classic was held at the Blue Ridge Trail Golf Club in Mountain Top, PA. Hosted by Blood Hound and UGI Utilities. All proceeds were donated to the John Malvizzi Foundation, a 501-(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to providing families and communities with the resources to increase mental health awareness and improve their quality of life.
At the same meeting, Stephen T. Krause, PPL Electric Utilities Corporation, was recognized by the board for his years of service (2021-2024) as a Board Member and his commitment to underground damage prevention. Best wishes to Debbie and Stephen!Pennsylvania One Call System says goodbye and good luck to a friend of the Corporation!
October 2024, Lancaster: Kevin German of Lehigh County Authority recently announced his retirement. Mr. German contributed to POCS in many roles for over 16 years, including as a Board Member, an Officer and Chair of the Board of Directors. We wish Kevin and his wife Robin good luck in the years to come. They will be missed.
Pennsylvania 811 is dedicated to providing the highest quality education in damage prevention and excavation safety. We are committed to bring the industry together by offering five conferences across the commonwealth with a consistent education track. We will provide a full-day of education where experts in their field can share their knowledge and experiences with attendees. The conference is full of opportunities to learn something new.
Pennsylvania 811 is pleased to announce our 2024 Keynote Speaker is Eric Giguere, Safety Awareness Solutions. Eric is a renowned national speaker who shares his inspiring story of surviving being buried alive in a preventable workplace accident. Eric shares how this event almost took his life and how it has changed his life.
Session Speaker, Sponsor, Exhibit and Advertising Opportunities Available
Pennsylvania 811 encourages participation at our conferences. You can choose to submit an abstract for consideration, sign up to sponsor, exhibit, and/or advertise during each conference. Deadline for Early Bird Rates is Friday, April 5, 2024.
Pennsylvania One Call System is pleased to announce the release of TICKET ATTACHMENTS on Tuesday, October 31, 2023 at 9:00 AM. This feature will allow users to attach documents to tickets created online.
As a result of this release, there are changes to the HTML redirects for members. The HTML link to respond in ticket deliveries and supplemental text messages will now direct users to Online Ticket Management, where members will be able to view the ticket, related attachments, and enter their response.
Web Ticket Response will still be available as an application on the website, but it will not support ticket attachments.
For assistance with using Online Ticket Management, click the Help Tab inside the application or watch the tutuorial on our YouTube channel.
April 2023 | West Mifflin, PA
To All PA One Call Communications and Broadband Members,
Request for Spatial Information needed to help expand the Pennsylvania's Fiber Broadband network for Rural and underserved areas in Pennsylvania.
The Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority (PBDA) is requesting that you share your information. Please contact Kyle Snyder, AICP - Kysnyder@pa.gov. 717-787-6500 with the Department of Community & Economic Development in order to share information. Thank you for your cooperation.
As this build-out has already begun with funding from the Pandemic Infrastructure Bill you may already been seeing the impact. We strongly recommend working together through "Coordinate PA" to Coordinate and Collaborate all Projects to make all the dollars go as far as possible towards reaching the goal of bringing affordable Broadband to all areas of the Commonwealth SAFELY! Please review the Coordinate PA (CPA) and Complex Project information.
We encourage the use of CPA and the Regional Coordinating Committees to advance Broadband communications and all excavation projects. More than 40,000 projects have been entered to facilitate the "Dig Once" philosophy promised by DOT and the PBDA. I should point out that there is aerial work involved in getting this message effort done. CPA can be used to communicate that work as a part of these projects, as well.
Broadband Projects have already caused damage to facilities in Pennsylvania. Contractors just getting into this business or coming into PA from other States need to be aware of Act 50 and "HDD Good Practices" Section 5.(11.2). For more information on the requirements of CPA, please contact your PA One Call Damage Prevention Liaison.
Again, please contact Kyle Snyder to share information with the PBDA.
In SAFETY,
William G. Kiger
President & Chief Executive Officer, Pennsylvania 811
March 2023 | West Mifflin, PA
The Pennsylvania 811 Board of Directors have mandated that effective April 21, 2023, all Preliminary and Final Design Notifications must be created in Pennsylvania 811's Coordinate PA (CPA) Application.
CPA is Pennsylvania 811's web-based project coordination software tool for utility and public works project planning, design, and construction within Pennsylvania. Before, designers would either call 811 or use Pennsylvania 811 Web Ticket Entry (WTE) to place their 811 design notifications. Now, using CPA, Designers still get the same functionality of WTE, but also will have the ability to collaborate, plan, and project manage with all underground stakeholders on large and/or complex underground projects, from conception through construction, to prevent underground damages throughout the life of the project. Once the design phase is completed, the CPA project can be continued into the construction phase by the project owner or contractor who can place Complex Project and Routine notifications on the project.
Section 4 of The Underground Utility Line Protection Act 287 as Amended requires that all Designers that are “preparing a drawing which requires excavation or demolition work within this Commonwealth: To request the line and facility information prescribed by Section 2(4) from the One Call System not less than ten nor more than ninety business days before final design is to be completed. This clause is not intended to prohibit designers from obtaining such information more than ninety days before final design is to be completed; however, they shall state in their requirements that such work is preliminary."
Not familiar with CPA? Have questions about Pennsylvania 811 Design process? Please contact the Pennsylvania 811 Damage Prevention Liaison in your area. Their contact information can be found at www.pa1call.org/liaisons.
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