DIRT Report

The CGA Index Defined

The CGA Index was developed to track the industry’s progress toward the goal of reducing underground utility damages by 50% over five years. The Index aims to provide a more comprehensive national measure of underground utility damage trends in the United States, addressing constraints in the voluntary reporting system. Employing a methodology based on analysis of several years’ of DIRT submissions and other publicly available data, the Index observed a 6-point decline from 2022-2023 following a 16-point increase from 2021-2022.

Modeling U.S. Damages

CGA partnered with Hanover Research to develop a methodology that leverages submitted DIRT damage information and publicly available data to model underground utility damages across the U.S.

The analysis team established a model to estimate the total impact of damages in the U.S. based on the DIRT dataset. The methodology utilizes county-level data and predictor variables to overcome the limitations of incomplete information. The result is the ability to look at the total landscape of potential damages based on the data submitted into DIRT.

Consider the contrast between the map of unique reported damages in 2023 versus the map of the modeled damages for 2023. Leveraging what we know from reported damages in a given year to build a more complete and robust model of U.S. damages provides us with a better tool to understand opportunities and challenges within the damage prevention process.

Model Methodology

Armed with several years’ worth of DIRT data, the research team examined the relationship of damages to more than 25 variables, including 811 center transmission data, economic indicators, government expenditures, housing data, weather patterns, demographic information and more. The methodology focuses on estimating damages at the county level which aligns with relevant public data and provides a more consistent model than state-level or regional analysis, particularly because applied datasets are reliably available at the county level.

The combined presence of three variables emerged as the most reliable predictors of underground utility damages at the county level: number of industry-relevant companies, degree of urbanicity, and amount of precipitation. The variables were selected for their strong statistical significance in relation to damages and their ability to explain a substantial portion of the variation in damage reports.

To model annual damages, Hanover Research worked with CGA to classify U.S. counties and parishes based on the key Index variables for 2021-2023, creating 27 classification groups for each year based on the assumption that counties within a specified group are likely to have similar damage levels (see table).

Hanover then extrapolated DIRT-reported unique damages by county for each year. For each county classification group, an 80th percentile value was identified and applied as the modeled number of damages for all counties within that group.

This approach serves two purposes: First, it addresses potential underreporting by providing a data-informed methodology for modeling damages in areas without complete or consistent DIRT submissions. Secondly, using the 80th percentile rather than the maximum helps eliminate outliers while still providing a conservative estimate. This method is particularly suitable for our industry, where overreporting of damages is not a concern.

Modeling U.S. damages provides a comprehensive view of the underground utility damage landscape, enabling stakeholders to make informed decisions and target prevention efforts more effectively.

Index Analysis and Trending: Uneven Damage Prevention Progress from 2021-2023

The goal of the CGA Index is to confidently trend damages over time and gauge progress toward reductions. In order to confidently benchmark year-over-year using voluntarily submitted data, the inputs used for the Index calculation were narrowed to the dataset contributed by organizations who have submitted consistently for three or more years. Utilizing this subset of consistently reporting companies provides a reliable trend indicator.

It is important to note that the Index is a predictive model rather than an actual representation of damage counts – and as with any model, the results are based on the inputs and assumptions used to develop it. The Index uses the best industry data and inputs available, resulting in a methodology that is robust, statistically valid and repeatable, ensuring its reliability and effectiveness for evaluating progress despite annual fluctuations in voluntary reporting.

The Index has been scaled by setting 2022 as Year Zero with a value of 100 – reducing the Index to 50 will mark success in reaching our 50-in-5 goal. The table on the next page provides an overview of county group demographics, modeled damages (consistent reporter dataset) and the 2023 Index score for each of the 27 county classification categories.

When applied at the national level from 2021- 2023, the Index shows the industry made initial progress in 2023 by reducing the Index score from 100 to 94. But more broadly, three-year trending shows uneven performance in damage prevention: A modest reduction from 2022-2023 followed a more than 16-point rise in the Index between 2021 and 2022.

While preliminary momentum represents a step toward our objective, it also underscores the considerable work still ahead. The shifting trends from 2021 to 2023 highlight that progress may be non-linear, with both advances and setbacks. To achieve our ambitious target of halving damages, we need to reduce the Index to 50 – a goal that demands aggressive actions, innovation and collaboration across all sectors of the industry.

Industry Insights

The creation of the Index’s methodology for modeling damages across the U.S. and the identification of the top three Index variables enhance our predictive capabilities and provide strategic direction for damage prevention efforts.

The strong correlation between these factors and underground utility damages at the county level offers valuable new insights for looking at the likelihood of damages across the U.S. For instance, we can adjust outreach programs depending on how variables align in specific locations. By focusing on areas of high correlation with damages, we can develop more effective tools and strategies to mitigate risks and drive meaningful progress.

County-level analysis also opens doors to more granular and effective examination of differentiators at the local level that can help us reduce damages. In coming years, it gives us the ability to compare counties within Index categories, including the distribution of the top six damage root causes, to better target reductions.

The CGA Index, like 811 center data or economic indicators, serves as one data point in the increasingly rich ecosystem of damage prevention data. While the Index is a powerful tool for the industry, providing comprehensive year-over-year trending critical to understanding our progress in damage prevention, it is part of a larger analytical approach: We will continue to examine other datasets related to damage prevention, like construction and infrastructure spending in addition to other key metrics, for deeper analysis and insights.

By leveraging this multi-faceted, data-driven approach, stakeholders can make informed decisions, allocate resources more efficiently and collaboratively work towards a safer excavation environment across the United States.

For additional information on the CGA Index methodology, visit the Online Appendix.

Back Next