Solutions for Safety & Visual Communication

Favorites

Monday-Friday 5:30am-4:00pm PT

1-888-326-9244

Graphic Products
  • Resources
  • Support
  • Samples
  • Contact
  • Shop All Products
    CLOSE

    CATEGORIES
    • Printers
    • Printer Supply
    • Floor Marking
    • Pipe Marking
    • Signs & Labels
    • COVID-19 Solutions

    DuraLabel Kodiak

    DuraLabel Kodiak
    Multi-color, large format

    KODIAK SUPPLIES
    DuraLabel Toro

    DuraLabel Toro
    Portable, stand-alone

    TORO SUPPLIES
    DuraLabel Bronco

    DuraLabel Bronco
    Industrial, efficient

    BRONCO SUPPLIES
    DuraLabel Lobo

    DuraLabel Lobo
    Grab n' go labeler

    LOBO SUPPLIES
    DuraLabel Pro Series

    DuraLabel PRO 300
    Simple and reliable

    PRO 300 SUPPLIES

    LABELING SOFTWARE PRINTER ACCESSORIES PRINTER SUPPORT SHOP ALL PRINTERS
    SHOP BY APPLICATION
    Arc Flash GHS & HazCom Laboratory Pipe Labeling Wire Marking See All
    SUPPLY TYPE
    General Purpose High Visibility Low/High Temperatures Repositionable Tamper Resistant See All
    SHOP BY PRINTER
    Kodiak Supplies Toro Supplies Bronco Supplies Lobo Supplies DLP 300 Supplies See All

    RIBBONS PRINTER & SUPPLY BUNDLES SHOP ALL SUPPLIES
    FLOOR TAPES
    5S Aisle Glow in the Dark Reflective Anti-Slip See All
    FLOOR SIGNS
    BUNDLES
    SHAPES
    ACCESSORIES
    Applicators Stair Safety Floor Laminate
    Social Distancing Floor Signs

    SHOP ALL FLOOR TAPES
    STANDARD PIPE MARKERS
    Fire Quenching Flammable / Oxidizing Toxic or Corrosive Compressed Air Various Water See All
    AMMONIA
    Pipe Markers Component Markers See All
    SHOP BY STANDARD
    ANSI IIAR Pre-2007 ANSI
    flammable-pipe-markers

    ARROW BANDING TAPE ACCESSORIES VALVE TAGS SHOP ALL PIPE MARKERS
    SHOP BY SUBJECT
    Admittance Chemical Electrical Emergency PPE See All
    SHOP BY HEADER
    Caution Danger Notice Safety Warning See All
    COVID-19 Premade Signs

    SHOP ALL SAFETY SIGNS
    COVID-19 SOLUTIONS
    Safety Signs Printer Kits Awareness Posters A-Frame Signs Sneeze Guards
    SOCIAL DISTANCING
    Wall Signs & Labels Floor Signs Floor Tape Shop All
    COVID-19 BY INDUSTRY
    Grocery & Retail Medical & Healthcare Office Settings Restaurants & Food Service Food Manufacturing Construction
     
    Manufacturing Finance Transportation Education

    SHOP ALL COVID-19 SOLUTIONS
  • My Account
  • Quick Order
    Enter item SKU# and quantity
  • Cart()
Monday-Friday 5:30am-4:00pm PT 1-888-326-9244
Graphic Products
Menu Sign In
Products
Printers
Shop All Printers
Industrial Printers
Shop All Industrial Printers DuraLabel Toro DuraLabel Kodiak DuraLabel Bronco DuraLabel Lobo DuraLabel Pro 300
Bundles & Starter Kits
Shop All Bundles & Starter Kits
Labeling Software
Software DuraSuite Labeling Software LabelForge Labeling Software
Printer Supply
Shop All Printer Supply
Shop by Application
Shop All by Application Arc Flash GHS & Hazcom Laboratory Pipe Labeling Wire Marking
Shop by Supply Type
Shop All by Supply Type General Purpose High Visibility Low/High Temperatures Repositionable Tamper Resistant
Shop by Printer
Shop All by Printer DuraLabel Kodiak DuraLabel Toro DuraLabel Bronco DuraLabel Lobo DuraLabel Pro 300
Other
Shop All Other Ribbons Printer & Supply Bundle
Floor Marking
Shop All Floor Marking
Floor Tape
Shop All Floor Tape 5S Aisle Glow in the Dark Reflective Anti-Slip
Floor Signs
Shop All Floor Signs
Accessories
Shop All Accessories Stair Safety Floor Laminate
Other
Shop All Other Bundles Shapes
Safety Signs & Labels
Shop All Safety Signs
Shop by Subject
Shop All by Subject Admittance Chemical Electrical Emergency PPE
Shop by Header
Shop All by Header Caution Danger Notice Safety Warning
COVID-19 Solutions
Shop All COVID-19 Solutions
COVID-19 Solutions
Safety Signs Printer Kits Awareness Posters A-Frame Signs Sneeze Guards
Social Distancing
Wall Signs & Labels Floor Signs Floor Tape Shop All
COVID-19 by Industry
Grocery & Retail Medical & Healthcare Office Settings Restaurants & Food Service Food Manufacturing Construction Manufacturing Finance Transportation Education
Pipe Markers & Tags
Shop All Pipe Markers & Tags
Standard Pipe Markers
Shop All Standard Pipe Markers Fire Quenching Flammable/Oxidizing Toxic or Corrosive Compressed Air Various Water
Ammonia
Shop All Ammonia Pipe Markers Component Markers
Shop by Standard
Shop All by Standard ANSI IIAR Pre-2007 ANSI
Other
Shop All Other Arrow Banding Tape Accessories Valve Tags
Resources
Support
Free Samples
Contact Us
Cart
Sign In
  • Home
  • Resources
  • Articles
  • Tunnel Construction Safety

Tunnel Construction Safety

BY GRAPHIC PRODUCTS STAFF

I’m in awe of tunnels. How do they construct giant tubes under mountains, lakes, rivers and oceans? How long does it take? How many people are needed to build a tunnel and what are their jobs? Why don’t workers suffocate when they’re working underground? And why go below ground? The quick answer: because life above ground is congested.

May 4-15, 2014 is North American Occupational Safety & Health Week (NAOSH). To celebrate and increase awareness of occupational safety and health to workers around the world, we’re profiling the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, the only vehicular underwater tunnel that crosses international borders (the United States and Canada) in the entire world – providing a rapid North American commerce conduit.

“The Detroit-Windsor tunnel is an immersed tube which is constructed by digging a big trench on the river or sea bottom, then placing a tunnel structure on the bottom of the trench segment by segment, connecting these segments together to form a completed tunnel, then filling the trench to cover the new structural tunnel,” explained consultant and historian Harvey A. Parker.

While they’re not architecturally elegant like bridges, tunnels are fascinating in their engineering and the dangers that lurk underground.

In the 1870s, ground was broken for a tunnel under the Detroit River, but a pocket of hazardous gas ended the project when workers were 135 feet out under the river. This gas leak made workers so sick that none of them would work again, so the project was scrapped. Ever hear the expression “canary in a coal mine?” Tunnel builders also sent canaries down to detect underground gases. Invented in 1815 by Sir Humphry Davy, Davy lamps provided a test for the presence of gases such as methane and hydrogen sulfide. If flammable gas mixtures were present, the flame of the Davy lamp burned higher with a blue tinge. Using shovels and rail cars to remove the earth, workers known as “muckers” or “sand hogs” would work eight hours in a tunnel, and then spend four hours decompressing – otherwise they’d get what divers refer to as “the bends.” Cave-ins and flooding were not uncommon.

Can you imagine that kind of backbreaking labor in cold, dark and confined spaces? Bottom line? Tunnel building is hot, dirty, and dangerous work.

Despite the opinion of scientific experts that anyone using the tunnel would die of carbon monoxide poisoning, a Windsor Salvation Army Captain, Fred W. Martin, pursued the dream of a Detroit-Windsor tunnel which was “fueled” by the growth of the automotive industry. In 1926, a New York engineering firm determined that a tunnel would be both feasible and profitable, which enabled Martin to secure financial backing from a group of Detroit bankers.

This was a major engineering endeavor for its time. Probably the most dramatic part of the tunnel’s design and construction was the fabrication, launching, towing, and sinking of 9 enormous steel tubes – the underground section of the tunnel.

Key Facts:

  • Tunnel construction began in 1927.
  • The tunnel was completed in 1930.
  • The tunnel is jointly owned by the cities of Windsor, Ontario and Detroit, Michigan.
  • The tunnel is 5,160 feet in length and cost $23,000,000 to construct.
  • More than 500 laborers were employed during its construction.
  • The tunnel rests 75 feet below the surface of the Detroit River.
  • About 12,000 vehicles pass through the tunnel daily. So that drivers and workers are breathing in fresh air, 1.5 million cubic feet of fresh air is pumped into the tunnel every minute.

Tunnel Construction and Visual Communications

There are two separate phases for signage during construction and post construction. During construction there are more hazard signs such as electric shock, falling rock, and exit locations. Safety equipment locations and standard OSHA signs are required. Depending on the type of tunnel there is some signage in fluid (sewer, water) conveyance tunnels. For transit and highway tunnels there are signs identifying firefighting equipment, exit locations, distance to exits, and call boxes for fire police emergency,

Russell is a senior engineer manager with Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB), with more than three decades of experience in the design, inspection, evaluation, and rehabilitation of tunnels, underground structures and deep foundations, including Portland, Oregon’s light rail tunnel under the zoo.

To do a better job with safety and visual communications, we need to study more about human cognition, networking and how important information gets sent and comprehended,
Also, more tunnel projects around the world are really multi-language worksites. This means that signage and communication has to be in many languages.
Guide to Confined Spaces
Comply with OSHA & develop a confined space safety program

So what's happening in the world of tunneling today?

  • Tunnels are getting bigger (larger diameter)
  • Hard rock and soft ground tunnel-boring (TBM) technology
  • Advanced tunnel waterproofing systems
  • Work has been done to understand fire in tunnels – both train and vehicular – and this has resulted in changes to design.
  • Advances in grout materials and technology allow contractors to make the ground stronger and less permeable
  • When water is a problem, either pumps or and well systems work to keep the ground dry.
  • Remote-controlled pipe-jacking operations provide continuous support to the excavation face by applying mechanical or fluid pressure to balance groundwater and earth pressures.
  • 3D laser scanners and other networked sensor systems quickly survey and evaluate underground conditions and stability

Driven by commerce, culture, and cost, tunnels all over the world are underway. The most exciting tunnels are crossing continents and powering through the Swiss Alps. While each new project seems to grow in price and complexity, engineers and designers are also working to improve safe conditions for workers by installing high-visibility lighting, energy efficient ventilation systems, electricity, and elevators.

Learn to maintain safety for staff in confined spaces

Download our free Guide To Confined Spaces to implement OSHA best practices for maintaining the safety of your workforce as they navigate confined spaces. Get your copy below!

Guide to Confined Spaces
Comply with OSHA & develop a confined space safety program

Related Resources

Mine Safety

Mine Safety Guide

Review the major points of mine safety, MSHA regulations, and how to build an effective Injury & Illness Prevention Program.

Download
Top 10 OSHA Violations of 2018

Top 10 OSHA Violations of 2018

Learn OSHA's top 10 most cited workplace safety violations.

View
OSHA Construction Safety

OSHA Construction Safety

Get OSHA recommendations for construction safety methods, including training tips and tools to reduce workplace hazards

Read
  • Comply with OSHA & develop a confined space safety program
  • Meet OSHA regulations and improve productivity on the construction site.
Get the latest deals straight to your inbox
Trusted by These Companies
Starbucks
GM
Du Pont
Amazon
Disney
3M
Pepsi
NASA
Chevron
AT&T
Toyota
Coca-Cola
UPS
Target
  • Graphic Products, Inc.
    9825 SW Sunshine Ct
    Beaverton, OR
    97005 USA

  • 1-888-326-9244 (U.S./Canada)
  • +1-503-644-5572 (International)
  • Products
  • Printers
  • Printer Supplies
  • Safety Signs
  • Safety Labels
  • Floor Marking
  • Pipe Markers & Tags
  • Catalog
  • Support
  • Shipping & Returns
  • Manage Account
  • Printer Support
  • Warranties
  • Resources
  • Resource Center
  • Guides
  • Articles
  • Video Library
  • Safety Blog
  • Infographics
  • Webinars
  • Company
  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Become a Dealer
  • Find a Dealer
  • Press Room

Need Help?

Give us a call at 1-888-326-9244 and speak with an expert.

Customer Reviews
  • Copyright © 2021
  • All Rights Reserved
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Shipping and Returns
  • Privacy Policy
  • Do Not Sell My Personal Data