Excavation Task Analysis Template (New Zealand)
Plan an excavation around the ground, services, people and plant at that precise location. This New Zealand template gives a site supervisor and crew a sequence for identifying hazards, selecting controls and checking changes. It does not specify a safe unsupported depth or certify a trench. A competent person must decide whether to shore, batter, bench, shield or otherwise support the ground, taking account of soil, water, surcharge, vibration, nearby structures and the work method. WorkSafe's excavation safety guidance explicitly describes task analysis as one hazard-identification method and calls for risk review before changes that could defeat the control.
Task details
| Field | Site-specific answer |
|---|---|
| Exact excavation location, purpose and plan/drawing | |
| PCBU, principal contractor and supervisor | |
| Competent ground/temporary-works designer or adviser | |
| Expected dimensions, ground conditions, groundwater and nearby loads | |
| Underground/overhead service plans, owner contacts, locate/permit evidence | |
| Plant, spoil location, lifting and traffic arrangements | |
| Chosen support method, design/reference and inspection owner | |
| Access/egress and rescue plan | |
| WorkSafe notification trigger checked and by whom | |
| Adjacent PCBUs, public and property protection |
Copyable step table
| Step | Main risk | Control and release condition | Named owner / evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Survey and mark out | Striking a service; unexpected ground/structure | Obtain plans, locate and mark services, walk the area, verify ground and adjacent foundations. Hold if service location is uncertain. | |
| 2. Agree work zone | Plant/person collision; public entry; unstable edge | Separate pedestrian and plant routes, barrier the edge and exclusion zone, agree spotter/communications where needed. | |
| 3. Establish support and access | Collapse or fall into excavation | Competent person approves support/bench/batter/shield and safe access before entry. Keep spoil and plant loading away according to the design. | |
| 4. Excavate in planned stages | Ground movement, water ingress, service strike | Follow stage sequence; use suitable methods near services; monitor cracks, slumping, water and vibration. Stop on change. | |
| 5. Work inside | Collapse, atmosphere, restricted escape, falling loads | Verify ground support, access and emergency arrangements before anyone enters; do not place people under suspended loads. | |
| 6. Backfill and reopen | Unprotected service, void, unsafe traffic surface | Inspect completed work, protect services, backfill/compact per design and remove barriers only when safe. |
Service and ground checks
Use the WorkSafe underground services guide with current utility-owner information. A plan can be incomplete or imprecise. If a service is found that was not expected, stop, protect it and ask the owner or competent specialist to agree the next method. Mark which services are known, presumed, isolated or live. Do not call a cable safe merely because it is not on a drawing.
WorkSafe identifies collapse, falls, moving plant, contaminated ground and hazardous atmospheres as possible excavation risks. Ground strength can change after rain, dewatering, traffic vibration or adjacent work. Check the conditions at the start of a shift and after an event likely to affect stability; use the inspection and support frequency required by the competent design and site conditions rather than a made-up universal interval. WorkSafe excavation safety.
Is this work notifiable?
The WorkSafe particular hazardous work list includes specific excavation types, including some work beneath overhead ground, certain faces over five metres and certain narrow/deep pits, shafts or trenches. The list has precise dimensions and conditions; not every 1.5 m excavation is automatically notifiable. Check the exact current wording and submit any required notice through WorkSafe's current channel before work starts. Notification does not approve entry or the shoring design.
Stop and reassess triggers
Stop entry and keep people clear if support moves or is damaged; the face slumps or cracks; groundwater appears or rises; a service is exposed unexpectedly; nearby plant, spoil or structures add load; or the work method changes. Record time, location, immediate exclusion, competent review, new controls, rebrief and authorisation to resume. Do not bridge the gap with a worker's “quick look” from inside an unsupported trench.
Example: service trench beside a vehicle route
A contractor plans a narrow trench beside a warehouse driveway. Before digging it obtains utility information, marks services, separates the vehicle route and asks a competent person to set ground support and spoil positions. Rain exposes a soft layer overnight. The team stops entry, has the support/design reassessed and changes the traffic arrangement before work resumes. Yesterday's task analysis is amended and the crew rebriefed.
Briefing and closure record
Workers and roles ___; drawings/service information reviewed ___; support method demonstrated ___; emergency and rescue route explained ___; questions ___; date/time ___ . Competent inspection/release: ___ . Change record: ___ . Backfill/final handover: ___ . A signed form is evidence of briefing; it cannot replace technical ground assessment.
This page owns the NZ excavation task form, distinct from the broader site-specific safety plan and from WorkSafe's detailed technical guide. Targeted live search found no exact Complys NZ excavation-task template; final repository/gated-owner check is required. The observed NZ Complys host is a neutral link. The proposed /nz/risk-assessment-software destination and all product claims require route and implementation proof before a CTA. No claim that software designs ground support or submits WorkSafe notices.
Primary sources reviewed 6 October 2026: WorkSafe excavation safety, underground services, particular hazardous work. Writer-side QA: site-specific technical approval and current notification check explicitly gated; no invented safe depth. Disposition: READY for repository reconciliation.