Safety Knights

We do a four hour training with an outsourced specialist for anyone working in or around trenches. We also contract out most of the trenching work so the contractor would be responsible for making arrangements with the PE if needed

You and the employees should do competent person excavation training to get the full story of the hazards and how to prevent injuries. Greenville Technical College has an online classroom (with an actual instructor) and I really thought it was great training. It was a full day, 8 hours. I think its worth it.

Prior to consulting, I would always have anyone working in or around a trench or excavation complete a 2-hour awareness level course. Then, I'd train all of the supervisors to be a competent person since a CP is required at each excavation site. I'd suggest some type of formal training prior to being exposed to excavation hazards.

As a consultant, we've conducted numerous Excavation Competent Person training courses, ranging from 8-24 hours, depending on the level of exposure, company requirements, etc.

You need classroom awareness training for everyone in and around trenches. You need all of your supervision folks trained to the competent person level.