One Call Quality Assurance

Purpse Reference Appendices Related Tlbx Tpics The purpse f this dcument is t share learnings f peratrs relating t One Call Quality Assurance. 49CFR 195.442(c)(6) Damage preventin prgram API RP1166 State Damage Preventin Laws and Regulatins Appendix A: Frms and Reprts Appendix B: Other Dcuments Operatr One Call Ticket Management Systems One Call Ntificatins Respnse and Cmmunicatins One Call Ntificatin Screening Line Lcating and Temprary Marking Excavatin Mnitring and Observatin Page 1 f 15

: As a prcess centered apprach, is designed t identify and eliminate systematic errrs thrugh frequent review and reprting. Unfrtunately, systemic prblems are smetimes discvered fllwing an undesired event. Lagging indicatrs as these can be cstly when cnsidering the risks f excavating near undergrund pipelines. This tlbx tpic prvides an Operatr with a platfrm fr establishing his/her wn prgram. It prvides a mre practive apprach fr assessing and ptimizing damage preventin effrts related t One Call prcesses, their systems, and the peple that manage them. Page 2 f 15

Mapping: A respnsibility f every Operatr that participates in a One Call system is t manage the hrizntal accuracy f their pipeline lcatins. Based upn real wrld crdinates, a Gegraphical Infrmatin Systems (GIS) prvides the tls t maintain pipeline centerlines and limit psitinal errr. Spatial errr is ften unintentinal and inherent t the methds f cllectin, prcessing, and transfrmatin. Prpagating this errr is the additin f base map verlays that cntain an imperfect netwrk f streets, addresses, and ther gegraphic references used by One Call Centers t determine prpsed excavatin lcatins. T accunt fr such errr, ften referred t as a ne call buffer, Operatrs may submit t their One Call Center a centerline buffer as a unifrm ffset distance r as an asymmetrical plygn. The size f the buffer is left t the Operatr t determine, hwever mst One Call Centers have buffer requirements. The ideal buffer size is ne that accunts fr the ttal errr while nt verwhelming an peratr with tickets that persist well utside areas f peratin. When a One Call Center analyst determines and plts a dig site lcatin a spatial analysis is perfrmed and all Operatrs f intersecting ne call buffers are sent the ntificatin. Ultimately, Operatr s with inadequate buffer cverage are likely t nt be intersected resulting in a missed ntificatins. CONSIDERATIONS: Is there a prcess fr managing all centerline changes that includes the prper change ntificatin t all ne call stakehlders? Are frequent buffer review meetings scheduled with all ne call stakehlders t accunt fr changes in centerline gemetry? Des a prcess exist fr updating ne call cverage fr newly acquired, divested, r abandned lines? Is there a prcess t review, update, and validate current ne call cverage at the State One Call Centers? D One Call stakehlders knw the buffer submissin requirements at each state One Call Center? What data frmat is required? What crdinate system is required? Is a datum transfrmatin necessary? Des the Operatr have a cmpetent persn in place t versee buffer management and submissins, ne that understands GIS data management and the nuance f crdinates systems and their transfrmatin methds? Page 3 f 15

Reprting: Operatr Ticket Management Systems are designed t transmit and recrd incming ticket details including a time stamped histry f utging cmpany respnses. Mst f these systems grant the Operatr the ability t mine and reprt ticket histries as a single ticket r in the aggregate. Cllected ver time, these data may prve useful fr assessing a ne call prgram that includes, but nt limited t, an internal evaluatin f prtcls fr screening, cmmunicatin & respnse and a measure fr mnitring ther ne call activities. Screening, Cmmunicatin and Respnse Standard n all incming ne call ntificatins are attributes such as date, time, lcatin, excavatr name and wrk descriptins. Such infrmatin is the starting pint fr an Operatr t perfrm the necessary due diligence and determine the apprpriate screening actin and respnse back t the excavatr. All psitive respnses will cntain date and time respnded and respnse type, e.g., clear r marked. Other pertinent details shuld be included in the respnse such as type and clr f markings, cnversatin lg, r any ther details as utlined by the Operatrs cmmunicatin and respnse prtcls. Designing reprts arund screening, cmmunicatin & respnse details may prvide useful feedback fr. Wrk Lad Balancing Perhaps easiest t reprt is ne call activity levels. As a simple ticket cunt, knwn activity levels prvide an Operatr with a baseline fr identifying r predicting changes in field wrklads. Operatrs cvering large gegraphic areas may find it useful t identify and reprt upn wrk znes f respnsibility. Activity level reprts brken int znes have ptential t highlight wrklad imbalances that may be crrected by redefining respnsibility bundaries r a justificatin fr adding headcunt t cver areas with higher ticket vlumes. A rati f tickets per lcatr r tickets per zne may be established t bring attentin t sudden spikes in ne call activity. At a mre macr level, trends in mnthly r seasnal variability may prvide enugh evidence fr shifting the wrkfrce r planning ther activities, such as training, during perids f lull. Timeliness and Effrt Anther variable t cnsider when reprting ne call activity is effrt r the time it take t clse a ticket. While sme tickets are straightfrward, taking minutes t cmplete, thers are mre cmplicated and may take additinal time fr marking and bservatin. Nrmalizing activity levels can be accmplished by ne f tw ways. The first is t assume effrt by reprting respnse type categries. Tickets that were identified as nt in cnflict with the planned excavatin can be assumed a lwer effrt than thse that required marking r a field visit (n cnflict vs. cnflict). Optinally, sme ticket management systems have the ability fr the Operatr t enter effrt in units f time. Used crrectly this methd is a mre precise measurement f effrt. Page 4 f 15

Auditing Mst Operatr Ticket Management Systems have the ability t cnfigure daily audit criteria as practical way t cnfirm ntificatin systems and prcesses are functining prperly. Operatrs may chse t cnfigure autmatic electrnic audits such as a daily cunt f received ntificatins in cmparisn f ntificatins sent by the One Call Center. Mst systems allw audit ntificatin sent via email t the apprpriate ne call stakehlder fr review r immediate attentin. CONSIDERATIONS: Cunt f Tickets per Mnth, per Quarter, per Year. Tickets Per Mile f Pipe Rati f tickets per lcatr Outstanding Tickets/Past Due Tickets Mnitr variability in ticket vlumes (mnthly, seasnal) Number f Psitive Respnses Average and Median Time fr Psitive Respnses Percentage Marked Percentage Update Tickets (Ticket Extensins) Ticket Type (regular, emergency, update, etc.) Average and Median Time t Respnd t Emergencies CONSIDERATIONS: Tickets with pictures attached Drve t Field (Y/N) Methd f Clearing (Map, Cntact, Site Visit) Methd f Marking (paint, pin flags, cane ples) Distributed Safe Digging Literature (Y/N) Required Crssing Agreement (Y/N) Daily Audit f Tickets Received by Operatr vs. Tickets Sent frm One Call Center Page 5 f 15

Training/Persnnel Respnsibility: If required, training shuld be available t ensure that designated persnnel can manage all ne call mapping files and all supprting sftware. Operatrs may als designate persnnel t assess and manage the cnfiguratin f reprts and metrics identified fr reviews. CONSIDERATIONS: Are designated persnnel adequately trained in the tls and sftware that supprts the management, submissin, and review f ne call mapping files? Des the ne call buffer review prcess require any specialized training that includes editing r cnfirming cverage using any prprietary One Call Center mapping sftware? Are designated persnnel adequately trained in the tls and sftware that supprts the cnfiguratin f reprts and metrics identified fr One Call Quality Assurance reviews? Recrds Infrmatin: All recrds regarding Quality Assurance shuld be maintained by the Operatr as required by Operatrs dcument retentin plicy. CONSIDERATIONS: Is there a cmpany retentin plicy? What is cmpany retentin plicy? Hw will cmpany use these recrds? Will data be used fr internal and external rending analysis activities? Hw? Page 6 f 15

1 Appendix A: Frms and Reprts This appendix cntains industry examples f frms and reprts related t the tpic. 1.1 Example Reprt Ticket Vlume Area: District: State: Mnth: This Year s Vlume: Previus Year s Vlume: % Change: Ttal Tickets per Area: Ttal Tickets per District: Miles per Area (District): Tickets per Mile (District): TOTAL Tickets: TOTAL Miles per Area: Tickets per Mile: %f TOTAL Budget: Page 7 f 15

1.2 Example Team One Call Reprt Page 8 f 15

1.3 Example Mnthly One Call Reprt One Call Mnth Year Summary Chart Regin Entity State CDC CDC Descriptin Ttal Tickets Daily Avg Emergency % Nt Prcessed Marked % N Cnflict % In Prgress Current % In Prgress Ttal <10 feet 10 25 ft 25 50 ft 50 500 ft >500 ft Field Visit Excavatr Cntacted Excavatin Observed Line Crssing Line Expsed Excavatin Mnitred CO Prcedures Nt Fllwed Warning Signs Used Parallel Cnstructin Waiver Definitins fr Mnthly One Call Reprt Items t check Tickets Received Ttal Tickets = Ttal Number f ne calls received by the CDC fr the specified time perid. Review this number t see that it is in line with previus mnth s ticket vlumes. Cmpare t ther Call Distributin Centers (CDCs) in the Regin/Entity fr wrk lad and activity. Daily Average This is the ttal tickets divided by the days in the mnth. It includes weekends and hlidays. Emergency Tickets are tickets that meet the definitin f Emergency by the state r tickets that are classified as "shrt ntice" by the ne call center. Page 9 f 15

"Emergency means a sudden, unexpected ccurrence, invlving a clear and imminent danger, demanding immediate actin t prevent r mitigate lss f, r damage t, life, health, prperty, r essential public services. "Unexpected ccurrence" includes, but is nt limited t, fires, flds, earthquakes r ther sil r gelgic mvements, rits, accidents, damage t a subsurface installatin requiring immediate repair, r sabtage. (CA definitin) Shrt Ntice (SN) means the excavatr indicated the excavatin is scheduled t begin befre the state required ntificatin time. COMPANY cnsiders Shrt Ntices emergency s the ROW Defenders will knw that they d nt have the full 48 hurs t mark the ticket. % = Percent f Emergency and Shrt Ntice tickets received within the specified perid (cmpared t ttal tickets received) Cmpare the percentage t ther CDCs in the Regin/Entity as well as the cmpany average. A high percentage f emergencies culd be an indicatin f pr prject planning by excavatrs. A high percentage will als indicate additinal wrk lad fr that CDC. Nt Prcessed = ttal number f Tickets in One Call Ticket Management System fr the specified perid that the recrd indicates have nt been prcessed as Lcate r N Cnflict (new r viewed tickets nly). This number shuld be mnitred clsely n the daily reprts. A high number (mre and 1.5 times daily ticket vlumes) wuld indicate that tickets are nt being prcessed timely and are starting t stack up in the inbx. Tickets Prcessed Marked = ttal number f tickets that, the recrd in One Call Ticket Management System indicates, have been physically marked. This shuld include, but is nt limited t all lcatins where the lcatins f the excavatin area (inside the white marks) are within 50 ft f the pipeline, unless the prcedure r a ROW Specialist/Supervisr exempts the marking. This als includes a minimal amunt f tickets, such as Meet r Design tickets that were checked as marked t prevent a psitive respnse. Even thugh the line may nt have been marked. % Cmpare the percentage f marked tickets t ther CDCs in the Regin/Entity as well as the average fr the cmpany. A higher percentage than the average culd indicate mre r clser prximity encrachments fr that CDC. The number f Marked encrachments shuld als crrelate t the ttals in the distance t pipeline clumns. Fr example: if yu mark yur pipeline when an encrachment is within 50. The ttal f <10 + 10 25 + 25 50 shuld be clse t the number f encrachments that were marked. These numbers may nt be exact since we d smetimes mark ur lines even if the encrachment is ver 50 away. If the percentage f Marked encrachments is higher than the average and higher than the ttals f the less than 50 clumns then we may be marking encrachments that will nt affect ur assets. Page 10 f 15

Nte Due t the fact that mst state laws d nt allw fr an In Prgress ticket. Sme tickets are initially declared as Marked s that they can be prcessed within the 48hr. requirement. That same ticket may eventually be cleared as a N Cnflict and recrded in the ticket ntes sectin. These types f tickets will cause ther numbers within the reprt t be ff als. N Cnflict = ttal number tickets that, the recrd in One Call Ticket Management System indicates, are nt required t be marked (the wrk area is greater than 50 frm ur line). The act f determining that a ticket is a N Cnflict is smetimes referred t as Cleared Nte: a Psitive respnse shuld have been sent t the excavatr indicating that there was n cnflict. Summatin f One Call Ticket Management System N Cnflict Reprts % N Cnflict percentages shuld als be cmpared t the percentages f ther CDCs in the Regin/Entity as well as the average fr the cmpany. A high percentage f N Cnflict tickets might indicate that we are getting tickets that we shuld nt be. A review f the pipeline buffer we have registered with the One Call Center might be in rder. Or we might need t wrk with certain excavatrs t ensure that they are giving accurate wrk descriptins t the One Call Centers. Nte See the nte in the Marked sectin abve. Sme tickets that initially cleared as Marked are ultimately cleared as N Cnflict and that is recrded in the ticket ntes sectin. In Prgress Current This respnse is used in states where COMPANY respnds back t the necall center. In Prgress means that COMPANY has acknwledged receipt t the ne call center, but has nt either cleared the ticket r lcated it. This clumn als indicates tickets that are in Mnitr Status. Mnitred tickets are tickets that have been prcessed as Marked r N Cnflict but are being held in mnitr status because the jb is nt cmplete. This clumn indicates nly the tickets frm this reprting mnth. (These tickets are als cunted in the In Prgress Ttal clumn.) The number f In Prgress tickets shuld be mnitred t make sure that they are being cleared and d nt begin t pile up in the CDCs in bx. Tickets shuld nt be held in mnitr status, past the ticket life fr that state. If wrk cntinues past the ticket life then the excavatr shuld issue a new ne call and the ld ticket shuld be cleared frm the CDC in bx. Tickets in the In Prgress clumn can indicate the number f lng duratin prjects (increased mnitring/wrklad) in an area. In Prgress Ttal As described in the sectin abve; In Prgress means that COMPANY has acknwledged receipt t the ne call center, but has nt either cleared the ticket r lcated it. This clumn als indicates tickets that are in Mnitr Status. Mnitred tickets are tickets that have been prcessed as Marked r N Cnflict but are being held in mnitr status because the jb is nt cmplete. This clumn indicates all tickets that are in prgress. This will als indicate hw many tickets are held ver frm the previus mnth(s). (The ttal in this clumn includes the In Prgress Current tickets.) Page 11 f 15

The number f In Prgress Ttal tickets shuld be mnitred t make sure that they are being cleared and d nt begin t pile up in the CDCs in bx. Tickets shuld nt be held in mnitr status, past the ticket life fr that state. If wrk cntinues past the ticket life then the excavatr shuld issue a new ne call and the ld ticket shuld be cleared frm the CDC in bx. Tickets in the In Prgress clumn can indicate the number f lng duratin prjects (increased mnitring/wrklad) in an area. Frm this pint t the end f the reprt will nly include infrmatin fr tickets that have been clsed. It des nt cunt infrmatin fr any ticket that is still in mnitr status. NOTE: The infrmatin in these clumns shuld be used t check fr ptential prblems nly. Discrepancies will require a review f individual tickets. Pipeline Distances This field is required. It shuld be cmpleted fr each ticket and care taken t make sure that the prper distance is recrded when clsing the ticket. <10 ft = Ttal number f tickets where the lcate area is less than 10 ft frm the pipeline. This lcatin requires cntinuus Observatin, depending n O&M prcedure r unless exempted by prcedure r variance given by supervisr. Taken frm One Call Ticket Management System Marked Ticket Reprt 10 t 25 ft = Ttal number f tickets where the lcate area is between 10 ft and 25 ft (inclusive) This lcatin requires Observatin, depending n O&M prcedure r unless exempted by prcedure r variance given by ROW Specialist/Supervisr. Taken frm One Call Ticket Management System Marked Ticket Reprt 25 50 ft = Ttal number f tickets where the lcate area is greater than 25 ft, but 50 ft r less frm the Pipeline Asset (This lcatin requires mnitring, depending n O&M prcedure r unless exempted by prcedure r variance given by ROW Specialist/Supervisr. Pipelines must be marked unless exempted by prcedure r by ROW Specialist/Supervisr. This area requires mnitring r, at the discretin f the ROW Defender, bserved Taken frm One Call Ticket Management System Marked Ticket Reprt Depending n which O&M Prcedure yu fllw the encrachment distance t pipeline clumns shuld crrelate t the ttals in the Excavatin Observed and Excavatin Mnitred clumns. Example: if yu had 20 encrachments less than 10 ft. frm the pipeline yu wuld expect t see at least 20 in the Excavatin Observed clumn fr that CDC. If nt it wuld indicate that we did nt bserve the encrachments per ur O&M prcedure. 50 500 ft = Ttal number f tickets where the lcate area is greater than 50 ft frm the pipeline but less than 500 ft. This area des nt require marking; hwever, the ROW Defender may Page 12 f 15

chse t mark the PL based n knwledge f Excavatr, Scpe f Wrk, r Equipment being used. Tickets that fall within this buffer are usually within the buffer that we have filed with the state ne call center. The ttal number f tickets in this clumn plus the ttal in the >500 clumn shuld clsely cmpare t the ttal in the N Cnflict clumn. >500 ft = Ttal number f tickets greater than 500 ft frm the pipeline. This number is usually utside the buffer that we have filed with the state ne call center. The ttals shuld be watched t make sure we are nt getting t many tickets that are utside that buffer. A high number might indicate that a cverage review is needed. Or, that excavatrs are nt giving accurate jb descriptins n their tickets. Reprt Infrmatin Field Visit = This is the number f site visits fr tickets cleared as N Cnflict. Taken frm the One Call Ticket Management System N Cnflict Reprt Add this number t the number f Marked tickets t get: ttal site visits. A field visit can be required t ether mark the PL r determine that n lcating was required. Excavatr Cntacted = Ttal number f ne call tickets that were fllwed up by a persnal cntact by a ROW Defender, either by phne r site visit Taken frm One Call Ticket Management System Marked Ticket Reprt. Excavatin Observed = This descriptin will fit the definitin in the (L)O&M204 and indicate the number f excavatins where we were cntinuusly present. Line Crssing = Ttal number f excavatins that actually crssed a COMPANY pipeline. This des nt include excavatins that paralleled COMPANY. Taken frm One Call Ticket Management System Marked Ticket Reprt If a line is crssed there shuld be a crrespnding Freign Line Crssing Reprt n file. Line Expsed = Ttal number f excavatins that required the COMPANY PL t be expsed. Taken frm One Call Ticket Management System Marked Ticket Reprt If a line is expsed there shuld be a crrespnding Buried Pipeline Inspectin Reprt n file. Excavatin Mnitred = This descriptin will fit the definitin in the (L)O&M204 and indicate the number f excavatins where we mnitred the excavatin r prgress. Taken frm the One Call Ticket Management System Marked Ticket Reprt Temprary Markings Used = Indicates the number f lcates where temprary markings were used. Warning Signs Used = Indicates the number f encrachments where the additinal 25 ft warning signs were used. Page 13 f 15

Parallel Cnstructin = Indicates the number f encrachments where there was parallel cnstructin t the COMPANY pipeline. Our fur highest risk encrachments are: Line Crssings Line Expsed Encrachments within 10 Parallel Cnstructin The numbers in these clumns shuld be mnitred, as an indicatin f ptential risk and wrk lad requirements fr each CDC. Page 14 f 15

2 Appendix B: Other Dcuments This appendix cntains industry examples f frms and reprts related t the tpic. 2.1 Example One Call Mapping Review Page 15 f 15