Trenching & Excavation: Your Daily Competent-Person Checklist

A cubic yard of soil weighs as much as a small car. When a trench wall fails, there is no time to react. That's why excavation carries its own OSHA emphasis and why a competent person must inspect the trench before every shift and after every change in conditions — rain, vibration, a new spoil pile.

Protective system first

Any trench five feet deep or more generally needs a protective system unless it's cut entirely in stable rock. Your competent person picks the method based on soil and conditions.

• Sloping or benching the walls back to a safe angle

• Shoring with hydraulic or timber supports

• A trench shield or box to protect workers inside

• Access: a ladder or ramp within 25 feet of every worker in a trench 4+ feet deep

The daily inspection points

Before anyone enters, the competent person walks the excavation and confirms each of these. If any fails, workers stay out until it's corrected.

• Spoil piles and equipment set back at least 2 feet from the edge

• No standing water or signs of water accumulation

• No cracks, tension fissures, or sloughing on the walls

• Utilities located, marked, and protected

• Atmospheric testing where a hazardous atmosphere could exist

• Safe entry and exit within reach of every worker

The trench that was safe yesterday is a new hazard today. That's why the inspection is daily — and why it's signed.

Document the walk

The inspection only counts if it's recorded. A dated, signed daily excavation checklist — tied to the specific trench and competent person — is what proves the walk happened. Capture it on a phone at the edge of the trench and the record is done before the first worker steps in.