Excavation Competent Person Training in Ohio.
For the people who will be on site whenever your crews dig, deciding whether an excavation is safe to enter. This in-person class covers soil classification, protective systems, inspections, and the conditions that mean everyone comes out of the trench.
Reading the Ground and Protecting the Crew
The excavation competent person's job comes down to judgment: looking at the soil, the walls, the spoil pile, the weather, and the equipment nearby, and deciding what that means for the people in the hole. The class builds that judgment with the tests, the protective systems, and the inspection routine that go with it.
- Soil analysis and classification, and the tests used to decide it
- Protective systems: sloping, benching, shoring, and shields
- Recognizing conditions that can lead to a cave-in or a protective system failure
- Hazardous atmospheres in excavations, and when to test the air
- Access and egress, spoil placement, and water in the excavation
- Daily inspections, documentation, and stopping work when it isn't safe
Excavation Competent Person Training
Price
$300 per person.
Class Length
4.5 hours
Where
Taught in person, at your site or another predetermined location, and scheduled around your crew.
The Excavation Competent Person in EM 385-1-1
The 2024 manual asks that the excavation competent person have training, knowledge, and experience in soil analysis, the use of protective systems, and the requirements of its excavation chapter and 29 CFR 1926 Subpart P; be able to show they can detect conditions that could lead to cave-ins, protective system failures, hazardous atmospheres, and other hazards; and have the authority to stop work (paragraph 25-3.a).
On the job, the competent person develops the Excavation and Trenching Plan and the AHA, performs soil classification testing, and must always be on site when excavation work is going on (paragraph 25-4.a). They inspect each excavation, the adjacent areas, and the protective systems before each shift, after rain or any event that could increase the hazards, and whenever conditions such as fissures, sloughing, or water seepage show up (paragraph 25-5.a). An Excavation and Trenching Plan is required for excavations 5 feet or more in depth (paragraph 25-7).
The competent person is designated in writing by the employer (paragraph 25-2.d), and the AHA for the work identifies them and their credentials (paragraph 25-6.c).
At Your Site
We teach the class at your site or another predetermined location, and we're based in Ohio and travel to where the work is. Send us your headcount and timing and we'll confirm a date.
Excavations can become confined spaces; see our Confined Space Competent Person Training, or the full list of training courses.
Tell Us About Your Project
Send us your scope and schedule and we'll get back to you within one business day.