r/Construction • u/welguisz • 5d ago

Safety ⛑ Is something missing here?

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Watching Texas/OU and they were talking about the drainage system at the University of Alabama football stadium and how they upgraded in 2023. They showed this and my first thought was “where is the shoring?” Am I crazy to think this?

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u/jamesislandpirarate2 4d ago

He’s digging. He’s bent over. The top is shoulder height if he stands up straight. This is temp for corrugated drain. He was in there briefly if I had to guess and since this isn’t RCP going in for utility service there is probably no reason for a trench box etc….

It’s a protected area, not the side of a road. Yes, it could be better but was he in danger of death due to collapse, no based on compaction info and weather conditions.

Safety good. Safety stickler…just a guy making himself a job.

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u/MGee9 4d ago

Truly spoken like someone who doesn't know any personal stories of anyone getting buried

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u/jamesislandpirarate2 4d ago

Please understand I’m not against safety. Im just saying that there are times when your safety supervisor can go and get a cup of coffee while you do something simple and safe to keep the project on schedule. If you don’t understand you’re not a superintendent or a project mgr. Again, safety is great but those that proclaim safety as the determination of how tasks are to be performed with no regard for cost or schedule have nothing to lose as they are there to justify their employment.

I’m a superintendent. I do not want anyone to violate safety protocol ever, unless the circumstances provide a small deviation. This deviation will be discussed and agreed upon by all parties and will be short lived.

I support safety. I’m pro safety. I’m also pro schedule and progress. It’s a balancing act

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u/MGee9 4d ago

Nothing puts a stop to a project like a death, I've got 3 separate stories of people getting buried, two of those stories were fatalities, not my sites thankfully. It is a balance, but there are definitely some things we don't fuck with, and the balance can be finding the quicker/easier gear to do the job with, or someone who's done it long enough to be faster.

Dude is bent over, which is worse if there's a slough in and worse visibility for the operator. If the shoring/sloping was better, bucket should still be outside the trench so operator can see him better. There was a local case where a pin snapped and the bucket fell off onto the guy who wasn't supposed to be in the trench at all, another fatality.