NEW research has revealed that the UK’s construction sector is more aware than ever before when it comes to performing underground asset searches.
The annual report by LSBUD revealed construction workers, companies and contractors all played a part in the UK’s safest digging year in history, which saw a record 3.92 million search enquiries placed in 2023. This means more people are searching for underground pipes and cables before they put a digger bucket, fence post or spade in the ground.
The research found that 164,642 more searches were placed in 2023 than the previous year – 4.4% increase. Part of this has been attributed to a rise in ‘planned works’, which grew by 3.3% across 2023. This means more considered, projected digging work is being conducted.
Complementary to this, LSBUD’s search data shows a 1.1% drop in ‘emergency enquiries’. Not only has the number of emergency enquiries dropped, but it also only accounted for 5.1% of all enquiries this year. This is in part due to emergency searches being viewed differently, but also because more people are understanding the importance of conducting a search before commencing any work.
Richard Broome, MD at LSBUD, said, “Construction workers and contractors really seem to have got the message that they need to search before they dig, which is fantastic. The summer period, between July and August is the busiest time for new Users signing up to our portal, partially thanks to the longer working hours. Indeed, in August 2023 we witnessed 4,133 new Users alone, which given the volume of searches already being placed, is really significant.”
15 asset owners now share their data with LSBUD. These companies include TfL, Spring Fibre, National Grid Ventures, and Trojan Energy, which means more than 1.9 million km of underground networks are present when people search before they dig.
Richard Broome added, “2023 was the safest year ever for the digging community. With so much progress made, performing a digging project has never been safer, so we wanted to extend a thank you to every construction worker and contractor for putting safety first. That being said, we mustn’t rest on our laurels, because there is still so much more that can be done. Remember, safe digging is for all, not the few.”
You can download a copy of Digging up Britain 2024 here.
