Trench Protection Equipment, Services, and Professional Training

In addition to accepted standards in trench protection, such as the trench box, trench equipment companies may also include safety training, along with the products and services that they provide. In this concluding segment to his feature article, “A Life or Death Matter,” author Daniel C. Brown highlights available shield, trench box, and shoring systems with a focus upon OSHA excavation standards and a variety of trench protection equipment offerings.

A Life or Death Matter (Part 4, Conclusion) By Daniel C. Brown

Available Equipment, continued

Trench protection and safety stands on the top step of United Rental (UR) offerings, with more than 50 stores dedicated stores and a support program manned by registered professional engineers to assist with all aspects of a shoring project from initial planning through to job completion. Available products include trench shoring and shielding, slide rail systems, and bedding containers.
In addition, UR offers a variety of professional training courses on subjects, including excavation instruction, confined space entry, safety and fall protection, regulatory compliance, and operator equipment certifications.

UR trains 20,000 contractors a year in the OSHA excavation standard and plans to double that number over the next several years by offering standardized monthly training classes at all its trench safety locations in North America. UR also trains OSHA inspectors; its customers, who receive product- and project-specific instruction; and company employees who assist customers through their branch network.

Credit: Mabey Inc.
Vertical shoring requires high-strength steel.

A Life or Death Matter (Part 4, Conclusion) By Daniel C. Brown

Available Equipment, continued Trench protection and safety stands on the top step of United Rental (UR) offerings, with more than 50 stores dedicated stores and a support program manned by registered professional engineers to assist with all aspects of a shoring project from initial planning through to job completion. Available products include trench shoring and shielding, slide rail systems, and bedding containers. In addition, UR offers a variety of professional training courses on subjects, including excavation instruction, confined space entry, safety and fall protection, regulatory compliance, and operator equipment certifications. UR trains 20,000 contractors a year in the OSHA excavation standard and plans to double that number over the next several years by offering standardized monthly training classes at all its trench safety locations in North America. UR also trains OSHA inspectors; its customers, who receive product- and project-specific instruction; and company employees who assist customers through their branch network. [caption id="attachment_1886" align="alignright" width="270"]

Credit: Mabey Inc.Vertical shoring requires high-strength steel.[/caption] [text_ad] Sunbelt Rentals offers a wide variety of trench shoring equipment, including steel trench boxes and road plates, aluminum trench boxes, hydraulic shoring shields and vertical shores, aluminum light-shield systems, square and round manhole boxes, water tap boxes, steel bedding/rock boxes and a full line of complementary equipment. Sunbelt also offers a variety of training courses, including one entitled “Competent Person: Excavation and Trench.” The course provides instruction on OSHA regulations and covers a variety of topics:

Conducting a workplace inspection
Soil testing and classification
Various types of protective systems
Selecting the appropriate protective system
Preventing accidents and eliminating hazards

Mabey Inc. offers a full line of trench protection equipment, including sheet and frame, slide rail, steel and aluminum trench boxes, hydraulic vertical shores, manhole boxes, and high-arch trench boxes. Mabey’s trench protection equipment is rated for depths greater than 30 feet in Type C60 soil—and deeper in OSHA’s Type A and B soils. Mabey’s equipment is made of high-strength steel, which makes it possible to design for most soil conditions, even if groundwater is present. Highlights of Mabey’s equipment include the following:

A hydraulic Super Powerbrace System that eliminates the need to purchase, cut, and weld steel frames
A quick-release piling shackle, with a pin capacity of 8.25 tons, allowing crews to quickly hoist sheets into place
The excavator-mounted vibrator piling unit, which has a unique design that attaches directly to an excavator to drive sheets, saving time and money

Pro-Tec Equipment offers a wide range of trench shoring and shielding equipment, including hydraulic shoring, aluminum trench shields, light-weight steel trench shields, a main line of trench shields and the Pro HD line of trench shields for use on those projects that require an exceptional depth rating. [caption id="attachment_1887" align="alignleft" width="270"]

Credit: GMEA hydraulic shoring system holds fast.[/caption] The company says its trench shields or boxes are known as the strongest in the industry. Each Pro-Series trench shield includes the industry’s first standard four-point lift system, a full-length double top rail, recessed collar assemblies and a strong cutting edge built from thicker material than the rest of the shield. The Pro-Tec Equipment slide rail system is the only slide rail system that can provide users with a true clear-span system, the company says. Using external walers with tieback along with sacrificial beams, the Pro-Tec slide rail system is designed to allow contractors to dig the smallest excavation possible while not having to incur the cost of excessive backfill needed with a non-true clear span slide rail pit. GME offers a complete line of trench shoring and shielding equipment. The range of products includes single hydraulic shores, an aluminum panel trench shield system for light-duty equipment, a 2-inch thick aluminum static trench shield, a 4-inch thick aluminum static trench shield and a range of steel trench shields. The 8-inch steel trench shield is engineered to be best used by excavators weighing between 80,000 and 100,000 pounds. The GME E+S slide rail system has panels that pivot into place instead of having to be lifted up and over the post to place them, which reduces installation time and enables contractors to use smaller excavators. Also the GME E+S slide rail system can be used in vibration-sensitive areas such as near hospitals. The GME MD brace system is the only sheeting and brace system produced in the United States, the company says. It is designed to be used with a variety of sheet piles, and contractors can use their own stock of sheet piles. GME says the MD brace saves money compared to traditional weld and cut systems. And it can be used in conjunction with traditional weld and cut systems for projects that require phasing. Sunbelt Rentals offers a wide variety of trench shoring equipment, including steel trench boxes and road plates, aluminum trench boxes, hydraulic shoring shields and vertical shores, aluminum light-shield systems, square and round manhole boxes, water tap boxes, steel bedding/rock boxes and a full line of complementary equipment. Sunbelt also offers a variety of training courses, including one entitled “Competent Person: Excavation and Trench.” The course provides instruction on OSHA regulations and covers a variety of topics:

Conducting a workplace inspection
Soil testing and classification
Various types of protective systems
Selecting the appropriate protective system
Preventing accidents and eliminating hazards

Mabey’s trench protection equipment is rated for depths greater than 30 feet in Type C60 soil—and deeper in OSHA’s Type A and B soils.

Mabey’s equipment is made of high-strength steel, which makes it possible to design for most soil conditions, even if groundwater is present.

Highlights of Mabey’s equipment include the following:

A hydraulic Super Powerbrace System that eliminates the need to purchase, cut, and weld steel frames
A quick-release piling shackle, with a pin capacity of 8.25 tons, allowing crews to quickly hoist sheets into place
The excavator-mounted vibrator piling unit, which has a unique design that attaches directly to an excavator to drive sheets, saving time and money

Credit: GME
A hydraulic shoring system holds fast.

The company says its trench shields or boxes are known as the strongest in the industry. Each Pro-Series trench shield includes the industry’s first standard four-point lift system, a full-length double top rail, recessed collar assemblies and a strong cutting edge built from thicker material than the rest of the shield.

The Pro-Tec Equipment slide rail system is the only slide rail system that can provide users with a true clear-span system, the company says. Using external walers with tieback along with sacrificial beams, the Pro-Tec slide rail system is designed to allow contractors to dig the smallest excavation possible while not having to incur the cost of excessive backfill needed with a non-true clear span slide rail pit.

GME offers a complete line of trench shoring and shielding equipment. The range of products includes single hydraulic shores, an aluminum panel trench shield system for light-duty equipment, a 2-inch thick aluminum static trench shield, a 4-inch thick aluminum static trench shield and a range of steel trench shields. The 8-inch steel trench shield is engineered to be best used by excavators weighing between 80,000 and 100,000 pounds.

The GME E+S slide rail system has panels that pivot into place instead of having to be lifted up and over the post to place them, which reduces installation time and enables contractors to use smaller excavators.

Also the GME E+S slide rail system can be used in vibration-sensitive areas such as near hospitals.

The GME MD brace system is the only sheeting and brace system produced in the United States, the company says. It is designed to be used with a variety of sheet piles, and contractors can use their own stock of sheet piles. GME says the MD brace saves money compared to traditional weld and cut systems. And it can be used in conjunction with traditional weld and cut systems for projects that require phasing.