Utility Trenching
Continuous runs for conduit, duct and utility product where the corridor is open and the alignment is straightforward.
PRIORITY SERVICE 03
Open Trench Excavation
Production-focused trenching for the stretches where open cut is genuinely the right method — planned around utilities, access, ground conditions, traffic and restoration from the first day rather than the last.
OPEN CUTWHEN IT IS THE RIGHT METHOD
SHOREDSUPPORTED EXCAVATIONS
COMPACTEDBACKFILL IN LIFTS
RESTOREDSURFACE HANDED BACK
OVERVIEW
03 / OPEN CUT
Trenchless is not always the answer.
Where the ground is open, the run is short, the grade has to be controlled or the product simply cannot be pulled, open cut is faster, cheaper and more certain.
Plenty of contractors will sell you a bore for work that should have been trenched. We would rather tell you which method actually fits — because a trench that is planned properly beats a bore forced onto the wrong site, and the reverse is equally true.
Open cut gives you continuous access to the installation. That matters when bedding and grade have to be controlled precisely, when the product is rigid or large, when multiple utilities share a corridor, or when the alignment changes enough that a bore profile stops making sense.
The difference between a trench that goes well and one that becomes the problem on the job is almost entirely planning: knowing what is already in the ground, keeping the excavation safe and supported, and having backfill, compaction and restoration organized before the first bucket comes out. That is how we scope it.
APPLICATIONS
Where open cut
earns its place.
Method selection is a cost decision as much as a technical one. These are the conditions where trenching is the honest answer.
Access & Bore Pits
Entry, exit and intermediate pits supporting directional drilling and tie-in work, excavated and supported properly.
Vault & Structure Excavation
Excavation for handholes, vaults and underground structures, dimensioned and prepared to take the structure cleanly.
Utility Exposure & Repair Access
Opening up an existing run so it can be reached, worked on and put back — with the surrounding infrastructure protected.
Multi-Utility Corridors
Shared trenches carrying more than one system, with separation, bedding and sequencing planned in advance.
Backfill & Restoration
Compaction and surface restoration coordinated so the site is handed back in the condition the project requires.
HOW WE WORK
Locate, support,
restore.
An open trench is a safety problem and a restoration problem before it is a production problem. We treat it in that order.
Locate First
Existing utilities are identified and, where it matters, physically exposed before machine excavation begins — our own hydro excavation crews do this work. Marks tell you approximately where something is; daylighting tells you exactly.
Excavate & Support
The trench is opened to the required line, grade and width, with shoring, benching or sloping appropriate to the depth and soil. Spoil is managed so the site stays workable and the excavation stays safe to enter.
Backfill & Restore
Product is bedded and backfilled in controlled lifts with compaction to specification, then the surface is restored to the standard the project or municipality requires — not left as someone else punch-list item.
BIDDING A TRENCH
What drives
the number.
Trenching prices move on depth, surface, soil and restoration far more than on length. Tell us about those four and the estimate stops being a guess.
Total length, required depth and trench width
Surface type — asphalt, concrete, gravel or open ground
Known soil and groundwater conditions, and any rock expected
Product being installed, plus bedding and backfill specification
Restoration standard and who is responsible for final surface
Traffic control, permitting, working hours and site access
Not sure whether your run should be trenched or bored?
Send the alignment and the site conditions. We will tell you which method fits — including when the answer is not the one we would rather sell.