Vacuum Excavation NDD (Plumbing Context) SWMS
A Safe Work Method Statement for vacuum excavation ndd covering all key hazards, controls and regulatory requirements. This is classified as high-risk construction work under WHS Regulation 2025.
SWMS variants reference your state’s WHS legislation. Instant download after payment.
Vacuum excavation (also called hydro or potholing excavation) covers the non-destructive excavation of ground around underground services using high-pressure water or air to break up the soil and a vacuum to remove it — exposing existing services safely to locate them, and excavating around them without the strike risk of mechanical digging. It is a service-protection technique, but it carries its own hazards: the high-pressure water or air jet, the vacuum and debris tank, the spoil and slurry, the excavation and potential confined space, and the services being exposed. This document is written on the basis that vacuum excavation is carried out by competent operators with the high-pressure, vacuum, excavation and services hazards controlled.
Vacuum excavation is non-destructive excavation carried out in connection with the excavation Code of Practice, used to expose and protect underground services. The high-pressure water or air jet can injure, the vacuum and debris tank carry their own hazards, and the excavation can be a confined space or deeper than the regulated depth. The technique reduces the strike risk of mechanical excavation, but the services exposed and the equipment hazards must be controlled. This document coordinates the high-pressure, vacuum, excavation and services controls so the excavation is carried out safely.
Hazards identified
9 hazards covered, sorted by priority.
Injection or impact injury from the high-pressure excavation jet
Injury from the vacuum, hose and pressurised debris tank
Collapse and atmospheric hazards in the excavation or pit
Service strike or contact where services are exposed or the jet contacts them
Exposure and manual-handling hazards from the spoil and slurry
Electric shock where the excavation exposes or contacts an energised cable
Pressure release and discharge from the debris tank
Musculoskeletal injury from the hoses and equipment
Crush and run-over injury where plant and workers are not separated
Control measures
Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.
- 1Engineering: operate the vacuum excavation equipment to its safe working requirements — controlling the high-pressure jet, the vacuum and the debris tank, and keeping clear of the jet.
- 2Engineering: locate, prove and protect existing underground services before any ground penetration using plans, Dial Before You Dig information, a service locator and potholing, so services are not struck.
- 3Engineering: control the excavation to the excavation Code of Practice with support against collapse where required, with a SWMS where it exceeds the regulated depth, and apply the confined space controls where the excavation meets the confined space definition.
- 4Administrative: where a cable could be exposed or contacted, apply the electrical controls and safe approach distances, and use the technique to expose rather than damage the service.
- 5Engineering: manage the spoil, slurry and debris and the pressurised debris tank safely, controlling the discharge, and use mechanical aids for the hoses and equipment.
- 6PPE: appropriate protection against the high-pressure jet, the spoil and slurry, and eye and face protection, in addition to the standard PPE.
- 7Engineering: maintain plant-and-pedestrian separation around the work with a spotter, and exclude workers from the operating plant and its hazard zone.
- 8Administrative: ensure the work is carried out and certified by an appropriately licensed plumber or drainer under the relevant state or territory plumbing licensing scheme, with the relevant competencies and a compliance certificate issued where required.
- 9Administrative: all workers must hold a valid White Card (General Construction Induction Training, CPCCWHS1001) before entering any construction workplace, with the plumbing, excavation, confined space and any other competencies and licences required for the work.
- 10Administrative: conduct a daily pre-start toolbox talk covering the day's work, identified hazards, isolations, required PPE and emergency procedures, and record attendance in the consultation section.
- 11Administrative: consult workers and any health and safety representatives on the work and its risks, record the consultation, and keep this document available at the workplace.
- 12PPE: eye protection to AS/NZS 1337.1, hearing protection where required, gloves appropriate to the task, high-visibility clothing, and Class I or Class II safety footwear with protective toecap to AS/NZS 2210.3.
- 13Administrative: review and update this SWMS whenever the work scope changes, after any incident or near miss, when a worker or health and safety representative raises a concern, when new hazards are identified, or at minimum every 12 months.
Applicable Codes of Practice
Trenching and excavation controls including support against collapse, ground assessment and existing services.
Electrical safety and safe approach distances where the excavation exposes or could contact an energised cable.
Atmospheric testing, ventilation, entry permit and rescue controls where the work involves entry into a confined space.
Controls for the plant and equipment used in the work, including guarding and plant-and-pedestrian separation.
The risk management process and hierarchy of controls applied to the hazards of the work.
High-Risk Construction Work triggered
Where vacuum excavation creates a shaft or trench deeper than 1.5 metres, the work is high risk construction work requiring a SWMS before the work commences.
This is licensed plumbing, drainage or specialist work that, in the circumstances described, is high risk construction work — in or near a shaft or trench with an excavated depth greater than 1.5 metres — so a SWMS must be prepared before the work commences, kept readily accessible, reviewed as necessary, and given to the principal contractor if one is appointed. The work is carried out to the relevant AS/NZS 3500 plumbing and drainage standards, the excavation, confined space and pressure-equipment requirements, and the relevant utility requirements, which are called up by the relevant legislation, with the excavation, confined-space, electrical, pressurised-pipe or work-at-height controls applied as relevant. A failure in this work can cause burial, an atmospheric incident, a service strike, a loss of containment or serious injury, and breaches of the relevant legislation and the primary duty of care under the model WHS Act are actively enforced, with offence categories running from failure-to-comply through to reckless conduct, and the most serious breaches carrying imprisonment for individuals. Body-corporate maxima are substantial and indexed; the current maximum follows the prevailing schedule of the responsible regulator.
Who this is for
- →Competent operators carrying out vacuum excavation for plumbing.
- →Non-destructive excavation and service-locating contractors.
- →Plumbing and civil contractors exposing services by vacuum excavation.
- →Asset owners and PCBUs commissioning vacuum excavation.
- →PCBU safety managers and supervisors coordinating the high-pressure, excavation and services controls.
What you receive
- ✓Editable Microsoft Word document (.docx) fully compatible with Microsoft Word 2016 and newer, Google Docs, and LibreOffice Writer.
- ✓Title page with editable fields for PCBU name, ABN, site address, project name, principal contractor details, and document revision date.
- ✓Hazard register with the vacuum excavation for plumbing hazards — each with a documented consequence, inherent risk rating on a 5x5 likelihood-consequence matrix, hierarchy-of-control measures, and residual risk rating.
- ✓Vacuum excavation prompts referencing the excavation Code of Practice, a high-pressure-jet and vacuum-equipment section, a services-exposure and electrical section, and a spoil-handling and excavation section.
- ✓Licensing, competency and permit prompts for the relevant plumbing, excavation, confined space and specialist work, and a respiratory protection selection and fit-test record per AS/NZS 1715 where relevant.
- ✓Worker consultation record per the model WHS Act consultation duty and a worker sign-on register (blank, expandable).
- ✓Applicable legislation and Codes of Practice schedule pre-populated for the model WHS jurisdiction with a state-variance reference table covering the harmonised states, plus Victoria.
- ✓Emergency procedure template and a revision log.
Worked example
A non-destructive excavation operator is engaged to expose underground services around a plumbing connection point by vacuum excavation. Existing underground services are located, proved and protected before the excavation using plans, Dial Before You Dig information, a service locator and potholing, and the vacuum excavation used to expose them rather than damage them. The equipment is operated to its safe working requirements, controlling the high-pressure jet, the vacuum and the debris tank, with the operator clear of the jet. Because a cable could be exposed, the electrical controls and safe approach distances are applied. The excavation is controlled to the excavation Code of Practice with support against collapse where required, with a SWMS where it exceeds the regulated depth, and the confined space controls applied where it meets the definition. The spoil, slurry and pressurised debris tank are managed safely, controlling the discharge. Plant-and-pedestrian separation is maintained. The services are exposed and protected, and the records retained.
Related legislation
- Model Work Health and Safety Act — primary duty of care; the duty to consult workers; the reckless-conduct offence; and notifiable-incident provisions, as enacted in each jurisdiction.
- Model Work Health and Safety Regulations — Section 291 high risk construction work and the SWMS preparation and review duties, and the excavation, confined space and pressurised-pipe provisions where applicable, as enacted in each jurisdiction.
- The relevant plumbing and drainage standards AS/NZS 3500 (Parts 0–5), the excavation and confined space Codes of Practice, the pressure equipment and pipework standards, and the silica Code of Practice where cutting concrete, are called up by the relevant legislation, together with the Before You Dig Australia information and the relevant utility requirements.
- Plumbing and drainage work is licensed under each state and territory's plumbing licensing scheme, with the relevant competencies for excavation, confined space and specialist work, and compliance certification required for notifiable work; electrical work is carried out by a licensed electrician.
- Victoria operates under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017, with the high risk construction work, excavation and confined space provisions applying in place of the model instruments.
Frequently asked questions
What is vacuum excavation?
Vacuum excavation, also called hydro or potholing excavation, is a non-destructive method of excavating ground around underground services using high-pressure water or air to break up the soil and a vacuum to remove it. It exposes existing services safely to locate them and excavates around them without the strike risk of mechanical digging.
Why is vacuum excavation used around services?
Vacuum excavation reduces the strike risk of mechanical excavation, because the high-pressure water or air breaks up the soil without the force of a mechanical bucket striking a service. It is used to expose and protect underground services, locating them safely so they are not struck during the work.
What are the hazards of vacuum excavation?
The hazards are the high-pressure water or air jet, which can injure, the vacuum and pressurised debris tank, the spoil and slurry, the excavation and potential confined space, and the services being exposed including any energised cable. The equipment is operated to its safe working requirements with the operator clear of the jet, and the excavation and services hazards controlled.
Does vacuum excavation eliminate the need to locate services?
No. Existing services are still located, proved and protected before the excavation using plans, Dial Before You Dig information, a service locator and potholing. Vacuum excavation is used to expose the located services safely, but the location of services beforehand remains an essential control.
Is a vacuum excavation a confined space?
A vacuum excavation can be deeper than the regulated depth, and entry into the resulting shaft or trench can meet the confined space definition. The excavation is controlled to the excavation Code of Practice with support against collapse, and the confined space entry permit, atmospheric testing, ventilation, standby and rescue controls apply where the excavation meets the confined space definition.