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The article discusses some digging accidents in the U.S. including a damaged gas line caused by a subcontractor forcing the evacuation of a condominium complex in Kansas City, Missouri on March 2, 2013. It notes the plastic gas line leak caused by a contractor while attempting to bore a conduit killing one and injured 15 at JJ's Restaurant in the state. It also discusses the largest percentage consumed by utilities and their contractors in the 811 utilities protection service of Michigan.

The article focuses on the problem associated with the water line replacement project in the U.S. It informs about an accident which occur in Park Forest, Illinois, when a contractor struck a steel gas service while replacing a section of water system. It further states that if people have knowledge about the underground system, they can protect the system from excavation damages.

An interview with publisher Mike Parilac is presented. When asked why he started to utilize an interview format, he states that he wants readers to feel like they are listening to a conversation. He notes that companies are given a chance to tell their story in an interview format. He emphasizes that locators failed to identify mismarked line for locators are trained to use a locating instrument in a procedural manner.

The author reflects on the experience of a field locator with six years of experience. He highlights easement painting as the main problem in the U.S. utility companies and has caused burden to utility employees since they are charged with every damage that they will commit. He points out that utility companies does not care about the problem of their employees as long as there is always paint within 18 inches or 24 inches of all damaged lines.

The article evaluates several underground pipes including the new 3M Dynatel Advanced Pipe/Cable Locator 2220M from Dynatel, the Sure-Lock multi-frequency pipe and cable locator from Health Consultants Inc. (HCI), and the Pipehorn 800 Series Locators from Pipehorn Pipe and Cable Locators (PPCL).

An introduction to the journal is presented in which the guest editors try to find out if damage prevention in the case of fiber installation by phone companies in Australia is better than the U.S.

The article provides an overview on Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration's (PHMSA) Damage Prevention Assistance Program (DPAP) in the U.S. It states that the program aims to provide guidance to stakeholders for improving state damage prevention programs. It urges facility owners to establish minimum training and qualification requirements for persons performing locating services and notes. It also calls performance measurement on persons performing quality assurance programs.

The article focuses on the late tickets issue due to unavailability of locators, in the U.S., and talks of increase in one-call volume during utility upgrade projects by gas, cable and phone companies, pooling of resources, and use of global positioning system (GPS) to avoid accidents.

An introduction is presented in which the author discusses various reports within the issue on topics include the sources of potential sonde interference, the role of destructive interference in locating cable inside the conduits, and the appropriate training for safe excavation.

An introduction to the journal is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including a gas explosion in Lewisville, Texas, and a boring accident in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

An introduction is presented in which the author outlines the theme of the issue focusing on the gas explosion caused by horizontal directional drilling (HDD) in Kansas City, Kansas on February 19, 2013.

In this article the author discusses the kinds of inspectors in the utility business and their ethics in the prevention of damage to underground utilities in the U.S. He highlights the cases of four supervisors who had violated the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act. He is critical of the functions of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).

Several letters to the editor are presented in response to articles in previous issues including "Losing My Tolerance for Tolerance Zone" in the Fall 2009 issue, the different understandings of the meaning of tolerance zone and the need for locators to take more accountability to ensure correct locates.

In this article, the author discusses the significance of accurate placement of the tolerance zones towards underground workers in the U.S. He recommends that contractors in the damage preventions industry should dug the area for tolerance zones to ensure proper placement. He emphasizes the role of excavators and locators for the accurate location of tolerance zones.

The article discusses the principles developed by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) which are essential in locating underground pipelines in the U.S. It focuses on the Damage Prevention Assistance Program (DPAP) titled Partnership in Employee Training, developed by the PHMSA. It states that the program enables one-call centers to offer training services for locators, stakeholders and excavators in the one-call process.

Two letters to the editor are presented in response to articles in previous issues including "Checks and Balances" in the March 2009 issue and an editorial concerning security concerns among public utility companies in the U.S. since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 in the March 2009 issue.

In this article the author discusses the need for the excavators and utilities to response on unmarked and uncovered pipe or cable. The author relates that the excavators must try to confirm and treat every uncovered pipe and cable as live to avoid fatal mistake. The author notes that it is important to acknowledge the problems presented by an abandoned facility to enhance communication between operators and excavators and establish an effective program.

The author reflects on the art of finding or designating buried pipes and cables. The author claims having been able to locate a cable to which a certain company had troubled finding with. The author therefore believes that most locates can be done properly even without using inductions. From that mere point of view, he highlights several methods useful in the aspect.

The author reckons on his conversation to the people who are involved with damage prevention. He reveals that he spent time talking to people who talk to juries, insure excavators, run utility construction trade organizations, and bring oil and natural gas to the surface and put it in pipelines. The author was amazed on how plastic pipe goes into the ground without any tracing mechanism.

The article focuses on the tracer wire system guidelines which ensure that the tracer wire installation on underground utilities meets the requirements for the effective use of pipe and cable location equipment. Included are the weak links of any tracer wire system which include the below-ground connections, the end points and the location where the wire has been discontinued due to excavation damage. Details with regards to the tracer wire system installation are discussed.

The author reflects on the feedback he received from professional excavators regarding the risks involved in drilling near gas pipes. He agrees that if excavators think that until the operators of sewer mains take responsibility for marking such laterals, more home explosions will occur. He also asserts that municipals are supposed to be the one to locate sewer laterals because they have more information than excavators.

The article discusses the contract locating of Steve Baker and Allen Robertson. Created through quality contract locating with Indiana Bell Company, Steve brought out SM&P and began locating electric lines. SM&P was a thriving contract locating company which was later on sold. Robertson started with Byers Engineering Company and did the plant patrol for it. Together with Byers, he centered on locating cables of construction activities and won contracts with Media General Cable.

The article presents an introduction to this issue of the journal that offers the most detailed and comprehensive locating instrument knowledge ever assembled.

The article focuses on an incident in which house of the director of public works and water in the village of Indian head park, Illinois, in the U.S., Ed Santen was filled with waste water due to damaged sewer line and also suggests that not locating sewage laterals before digging can be deadly.

In this article, the author offers information about e-mail from executive Joe Sellers of Kokosing Construction Co. Inc. It mentions that the topic of the e-mail was trench protection and the workers who are exposed to trenches. The author also discusses about the articles that are published in the journal regarding trenches, underground equipments and workers.

The article presents the author's views on the issues related to the future of damage prevention of underground areas. He informs about the damage Information Reporting Tool (DIRT) that deals with the damage protection by providing guidance by several individuals and various organizations. The author also recommends for the DIRT for the development of an effective damage prevention system and for identifying opportunities for the improvements to the progress of damage control efforts.

In this article the author discusses the issues involving excavation damage prevention. The author recalls his experience at a seminar which focuses on excavation-related issues, and the settlement of utility damage claims. He stresses that the measures for excavation damage prevention and improvements on excavation techniques remained debatable among engineers as the business diversifies. He also emphasizes the importance of a locator instrument to minimize excavation damages.

An introduction to the journal is presented in which the editor discusses the damage frequency in excavation.

In this article the author discusses the Element Seven of the Damage Prevention Assistance Program (DPAP) designed by U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PMHSA). He points out that such element, which calls for fair and consistent enforcement of damage prevention law, is reasonable as it requires the use of remediation measures. He explains the element's role in strengthening PMHSA's argument against the adoption of the proposed Federal Rule.

The article presents the author's view on electronics, particularly on locating instruments. The author mentions the objective of the Staking University program, an adult education training program which is designed to provide education about locating instruments. The author also notes some ideology from experts about technical truth of this instrument.

In this article, the author discusses the benefits of consolidated utility maps on the underground construction industry in the U.S. He notes his effort to pursue the use of these utility maps because of their potential to cut operations cost as well as explains the possible business issue regarding the utilization of these maps. Steps in making consolidated utility maps are also presented.

In this article, the author discusses the future of the contract locating industry in the U.S. The author claims that the future holds a lot of surprises for contract location companies and whether the companies will flourish or perish is unpredictable. The author also mentions that the industry is a profitable business but argues that it is the type of business where expenses is pretty easy than income. Moreover, the author asserts that the industry is still doing well despite the recession.

The author reflects on the vital role of designating utilities to damage prevention. He considers designating utilities, including global positioning system (GPS), to be the most important part of damage prevention since they offer highly accurate buried utility location information. He also highlights the need to change cultural approach in damage prevention.

The author reflects on the result of the unsolicited bid packaged received by Big Show-ME Telephone Co. from one of Western Utility in Kansas City. The author views that said bid package would permit Western Utility to bid on the work they were presently working that any other contract locating firm was working for Big-Show Me. He cites Big Show-Me as one of the largest telecommunication firm across the U.S. with eight state service territory including Des Moines, Omaha and Nashville.

A personal narrative is presented which explores the author's experience of receiving an e-mail about facility locating and subsurface utility engineering.

The author reflects on the role the municipality plays in locating underground utility lines and damage prevention. He argues that utilities and municipalities need to set-up programs that assist their customers in locating privately-owned utility lines. Three photos with different cases of utility line problems are also offered. Furthermore, the author suggests that the damage prevention industry needs examples of leadership.

The author reflects on the issue of contract locating. He argues that phone companies introduced the concept of contract locating to the other utilities. In the U.S., they still have the most influence over which contract locating company is operating due to their immense geographical service territories. Furthermore, the author suggests that when the phone company changes locating contractors, other utilities change contractors too.

The author reflects on the impact of technology on the utility locating industry. As for NorAm Damage Prevention, the first to use mobile ticket management, the advent of technological advances truly brings forth an enhanced productivity, a tighter management, an increased accountability as well as a lower cost of operation. Relative to such revelation, the author also lays claim that the utility could perhaps expect an accurate and timely billing information.

The article presents various topics from the previous issue of the journal and its related publication "The Conduit" which was published by the National Utility Locating Contractor Association (NULCA). It says NULCA plans to develop benchmarks and other quality measurements for utility locates, discuss business ethics, advancement of underground locating technology, and legislation. An excerpt from a letter to Massachusetts Governor Paul Cellucci from the publisher of the journal is offered.

The article presents a note from the publisher commenting the previous articles in the March 2008 issue of the journal. He states that the journal is very interesting. An overview of the implication regarding the prevention of damages on excavation is presented. The publisher suggests that education on damage prevention should not stop after a pipe or cable is damaged. Workers need to be educated on what to do to prevent injury after a utility strike to protect the workers and the public.

The author discusses how the employment of contract locating among telephone companies started in the U.S. He notes that AT&T conceived the idea of outsourcing for one locator to mark multiple utilities after it made a court settlement on antitrust violation charges in 1981. He also states the factors behind the success of early contract locating companies as well as their accountabilities and benchmark for quality.

The author comments on the issues regarding business ethics in damage prevention industry in the U.S. He cites that some people in the industry seem to overlook the most basic truth of damage prevention that underground pipes must be located precisely whether the excavator or facility owner is aware of the location. The author asserts that they will continue to feature examples of business ethics.

The author reflects on the problems surrounding the contract locating industry in the U.S. He cites that the industry is made up of companies that specialize in contract locating. He stresses that the business ethics in the industry is getting minimized over time. He asserts that utilities love contract locators for the reason that damages are never their fault.

The author reflects on the ways to assess damage prevention in underground facilities. He emphasizes that everyone must consider that effective location is a lot less about technology and several habits of successful locators such as identifying if sufficient transmitter current exists on target line. He believes that through taking the temperature of contract location can begin to accurately assess damage prevention.

The author reflects on the issue of the Call 811 campaign in the underground construction industry in the U.S. He said that the issue focuses on the ownership of the lines in which most utility owners are not going to mark what they do not own. He added that state laws require that utilities belong to one-call and subsequently mark their utilities when requested.

The article presents views on the person responsible for the Spiller's Pay, a local ordinance that requires excavators to pay municipalities' expenses for sending emergency responders to gas line damages in Chicago, Illinois. The first cites a hypothetical situation involving a telephone company crew which calls in a ticket for installing 1,000 feet of duct in a municipally-owned public right of way. The second claims that the excavator would pay costs associated with a damage.

The article describes the learning gained from exploring how witching electronic instrument for underground construction works. It claims that skill is needed to operate the instrument, but it is easy to master if instructions and practices recommended are followed. It asserts that proper balance in the operator's hand is an important consideration. It also enumerates the steps in operating instructions for the instrument.

The author reflects on the random audits conducted by the pipeline regulatory commission in the U.S. A compliance officer for a pipeline company mentioned to the author that the regulatory folks had swept through awhile back and did not care for what they saw of the pipeline compa­ny's Operator Qualification program.