29 CFR 1926.652: Requirements for protective systems

Question 1

A excavation contractor is sloping the sides of a trench using tabulated data that a registered professional engineer approved. The written tables list the soil parameters affecting selection and the maximum safe slopes, and they name the approving engineer. The competent person on site wants to check the trench slope against the tables, but the only copy is in the home-office files 40 miles away, where the project manager says it is available on request. Construction of the sloping system is underway. What is the correct assessment?

1. ACompliant, because the copy only needs to be at the jobsite after the sloping system has been completed
2. BCompliant, because the data may be stored off the jobsite as long as the engineer's firm can send it when asked
3. CNot compliant, because at least one copy of the data identifying the approving engineer must be kept at the jobsite while the protective system is being constructed
4. DNot compliant, because a copy of the data must be filed at the nearest OSHA area office before construction begins

Question 2

A crew is installing aluminum hydraulic shoring in a 12-foot trench. After a dump truck backs into the stack of materials, the competent person finds one cylinder with a bent rod. She inspects it, but she cannot confirm that it can carry the loads it was designed for. The crew lead proposes: (1) pull the cylinder from the trench and set it aside, (2) put it back into service once the manufacturer's sales representative says it looks acceptable. Which action is required by the standard before that cylinder can be used in the trench again?

1. AVerbal approval from the competent person after she re-inspects it the next morning in better light
2. BUse of the cylinder only at the shallowest part of the trench, where the soil loads are lower
3. CApproval from the manufacturer's sales representative, documented in the daily inspection log
4. DEvaluation and approval by a registered professional engineer, since the competent person could not assure its suitability

Question 3

A crew is installing a trench shield chosen from the manufacturer's tabulated data. On day two, the foreman finds that the trench will be deeper than the maximum depth in the manufacturer's data for that shield. The competent person has inspected the excavation and believes the shield can handle the extra depth. A supervisor suggests getting a verbal okay from the manufacturer's technical line and putting it in the daily log. Which action complies with the standard?

1. AProceed, because the competent person's on-site inspection and judgment can authorize exceeding the manufacturer's depth limit
2. BProceed after the manufacturer's technical line gives verbal approval that is recorded in the daily log
3. CDo not exceed the listed depth limit unless the manufacturer issues specific written approval, and keep that approval at the jobsite during construction of the protective system
4. DProceed if the shield is rated for the soil type, because only deviations from soil classification limits require manufacturer approval