Construction damage to underground facilities is the number one risk in the natural gas industry. There are many components to a successful damage prevention program, beginning with the request for a mark-out that provides a timely and accurate locate. Mark-outs rely on locate equipment, installation records or potholing the facility to verify its location. Many utilities utilize their own employees to locate their facilities but an increasing number of utilities are using contractors.
When a request is made to locate facilities, the expectation is that the mark-out technician will perform this task in a timely manner in accordance with the state’s One Call statutes. How accurate are your locates? Do you audit or inspect completed locates? What metrics are in place to measure performance? When performance does not meet the company’s standards, what corrective actions are in place to address the deficiencies or the skills and qualifications of the mark-out technicians?
This webinar will focus on one company’s approach to managing a quality assurance program and overseeing the accuracy, timeliness and documentation of their facility locators. Metrics to assure that the mark-out has been completed accurately and on time will be discussed as well.
This webinar will be presented by Aaron Lint, Director of Field Operations at Heath Consultants Incorporated. Aaron is a 1997 graduate of Baldwin Wallace University ̶ Berea, OH. He entered the utility services/contract locating industry in 2005 and worked for USIC Locating Services for 12 years. He joined Heath Consultants in 2018 as Field Services Manager in the Northeast Region and was promoted to Operations Director in the Central Region in 2019. Aaron is responsible for utility locating, leak survey and meter service operations across an eight-state region.
