Challenge:

The manual processing of excavation inquiries potentially near underground council assets has been a time consuming practice for Mackay Regional Council – until now.

Solutions:

Mackay Regional Council’s commitment to improving the work, health and safety standards of the region’s construction sites takes a step forward with the recent implementation of an automated Dial Before You Dig enquiry system.

Result:

Mackay Regional Council now has more visibility and control in relation to excavation works being conducted near its fibre optics assets, storm water and sewerage pipelines. They can also now see what types of excavations are being carried out, identify location hotspots and analyse frequencies which will assist with resource planning and proactive asset management.

Mackay Regional Council

Dial Before You Dig automation enables council to get on with the job

Council owns and maintains a series of underground fibre optic, stormwater and sewerage pipeline assets.

Dial Before You Dig (DBYD) enquiries are submitted to the DBYD national call centre (1100.com.au) and are then distributed to underground asset owners such as Mackay Regional Council.

By implementing the Mipela GeoSolutions automated X-Info DBYD suite online response system; enquiries submitted to the DBYD call centre now require little or no human intervention. The system automatically receives and processes the request, creates a map and written response in PDF format and then automatically generates the response, ready to be sent directly to the enquirer.

The enquirer response is based on a series of predetermined factors added to the system settings that highlight if the proposed excavations are Affected or Not Affected and include relevant information applicable to council operations. The process is fully automated and takes a matter of minutes, ensuring improved response times and saving the council both time and costs.

“Damaging underground infrastructure can cause widespread disruption and, in some cases, isolate entire communities from essential basic services. This has the potential to result in personal injury and/or financial penalties,” said Water and Sewerage portfolio councilor Frank Gilbert.

In 2015, Mipela GeoSolutions X-Info DBYD suite was implemented to mitigate the risk associated with asset management. The system also freed up staff time currently consumed in repetitive search functions and allows them to better focus on their core roles.

“We now have a very clear insight into what type of excavations are being carried out, identify location hotspots and analyse frequencies which assist with resource planning and proactive asset management. The process brings efficiency and control in protecting Mackay Regional Council’s underground assets”, said David Brooker, Chief Operations Officer, Water and Waste Services at Mackay Regional Council.

The X-Info DBYD suite process brings efficiency and control in protecting Mackay Regional Council’s underground assets.