On behalf of the Highway Safety Officers Group I would like to thank SHOC for the very informative presentation they delivered to a seminar audience at the West Midlands HAUC/HSOG Roadshow on 10/11 September 2013 at Wolverhampton Racecourse. The annual roadshow attracted approximately 1,200 people during the two days with over 60 exhibitors displaying and demonstrating their equipment and processes both inside and outside the main building. Due to the number of presentations they were restricted to 20 minutes each. However, SHOC still managed to condense their presentation to provide a very interesting and thought provoking insight into the dangers of working near to overhead and underground services together with the requirements of the revised GS6 guidance. I would expect that, as a result of the presentation, SHOC will be contacted by many of the attending Local Authority and Utility organisations in the very near future for further advice and assistance.

Being the number 1 provider in the UK for safety & training when working with Overhead Power Lines, Suparule are delighted to support and recognise SHOC Consultancy as the only recommended organisation to carry out training courses using the SupaRule CHM product within the UK and so maintaining their number 1 position as market leader

I was introduced to SHOC by an associate when I asked for a recommendation for a training provider who could train our employees not only on the use of CAT & Genny equipment, but also safe dig techniques. I was initially impressed by the “no frills” approach that Gary and Nigel have when talking about their training courses and the services they can offer. You know exactly what you’re going to get with no hidden extras and having come up through the industry they realise the issues and problems that our guys face on a daily basis. To date, Gary and Nigel have undertaken a number of training days for Danaher & Walsh employees with more dates in the pipeline and each day has received excellent feedback from our employees. Some of our guys have been using this equipment for 10 years and were unsure as to what they could gain from this training, but without fail, all our attendees have commented that they didn’t realise how much you could do with this equipment and how under-used it is. Not only have SHOC provided us with an excellent level of training but they have advised us on equipment appropriate to our needs and have been apply to supply at extremely competitive prices. In addition to the aftersales services and consultancy services that SHOC provide they truly are a “one-stop-shop” when it comes to safe digging and once our guys are trained on underground, we will definitely be calling on SHOC to address our overhead cable safe working training needs.

Gardiners have the building maintenance contract for Shropshire and the West Midlands for Severn Trent Water and often need overhead powerlines (OHPL) guidance for the sites we cover. Since working with SHOC (UK) LLP it has raised our awareness of working more safely with OHPL helping us to create a safe system to work. We have always found them to be very helpful and informative.

The main benefits we have derived from sending delegates on the course is that we now have a bank of employees with an awareness of the dangers of working in the vicinity of overhead power lines, but are also able to devise safe systems of work for basic situation. Other advantages include: that we can measure the height of conductors with our Suparules; will report instances of conductors below the statutory heights to the DNO; and can advise our DLO staff in emergency situations.

SHOC UK provide us [Severn Trent Water] with a service that allows us to carry out capital maintenance across our estate, safely and efficiently when working within the proximity of Overhead Power Lines. SHOC UK have also assisted us with works involving excavations where complex electrical, underground services are present. The solutions and guidance provided to Severn Trent Water are easy to follow, low cost and most important of all, safe.

Just writing to let you know how well your 2 presentations on Working under Overhead Power Lines were received by the farmer members of Kennet & Thames Training. I’ve had lots of positive comments from those that attended, saying it has given them valuable information on what they should be doing to keep themselves and others safe, and who they should be contacting when working in close proximity to Overhead Power Lines. One farmer, who had already had a number of incidents said “Had he known what he now knew, these incidents would surely not have happened”! Hopefully we will be able to run some more sessions in the future.

The Overhead Power Lines - Safety Awareness course is a new course we have offered out to all our members who consists of primarily farmers and internal drainage boards employees. We managed to get 3 full courses organised and hope to do the same or more next year. The training helps make everyone aware of the dangers of working under electric wires which is a growing problem especially in the farming environment as machinery is getting bigger the trainees are taught to assess the area prior to working in Unsafe zones of overhead wires which was previously not a problem with the smaller machines. It also teaches them the importance of how to identify and measure the height of the wires, allowing them to work safely under or in close proximity of the wire. All the trainees have given me good feedback and are now more aware of the importance of all pre-work site/field assessment that need to take place before work commences.

Following completion of the course – Avoidance of Danger from Overhead Electric Lines in accordance with GS6, Nigel and Gareth of SHOC Consultancy Ltd have provided an impeccable after services which includes providing advice on safety practices around specific overhead lines for our schemes, attending site to measure overhead lines with very short notice and providing assistance to enhance the service provided by the overhead line owners. I am extremely happy with knowledge I have acquired and the services I am getting from SHOC Consultancy Ltd.

The Shoc presentations given to our staff, workforce and regular sub-contractors were excellent. Nigel and Gareth having many years invaluable experience in this area certainly got the message home. Our recent history of damage to underground electricity cables was very poor and these presentations were an ideal way of getting the message across and introducing our amended Permit to Dig system. It really made everyone more aware of the dangers associated with underground electricity cables and apparatus.

I found the presentation given & its content to be excellent in how it was put over. I shall be contacting you early in the New Year to arrange the same presentation to be given to my site managers.

The training was extremely informative with the trainers showing a good depth of knowledge, a lot of which came from personal experience. The other personnel on the training appeared to be gaining the information that they required to carry out future surveys when working near or under overhead cables. The information book given out as part of the pack will come in very useful in the future. The overhead course was very good. With the paperwork, it made it easy to understand what cable we were looking at. The instructors were very good at getting the point across. I think everyone now knows what sort of cable we were looking at however if we were unsure, the trainers have given us their numbers so we can phone them for help. I would recommend this course to others. I found the course to be informative & helpful and now allows me to make the right call when working onsite. The instructors experience and knowledge seemed good from the way they presented themselves and the confidence in which they delivered the course with. I found course easy to understand and well explained.

I attended my CAT and GENNY refresher training course with Shoc Consultancy Ltd today. I can hand on heart say it was the most informative, well organised and in depth Cat and Genny Training I have ever received. 4 hours of theory coupled with 3 hours of practical work in the freezing cold was all worthwhile.  The course focused on the legislation and practical applications of HSG 47. Understanding utility drawings, the limitations of CAT only use and most importantly the capabilities of the Genny.  On the practical part of the course we located and traced 8 separate services within a footpath using the combined CAT and Genny configuration.  Only 4 of these could be located using the CAT tool on its own. We were also trained on the correct calibration checks for the GCAT4, including the Strike Alert and Depth check. If you are doing any type of excavation work and are serious about keeping your operatives safe and trained correctly. I would highly recommend you engage with Nigel Brown and his team for this type of training.

‘One of the best training services we have had the opportunity to work with; I would recommend it to others. Nigel, the trainer is excellent – very friendly, makes everyone feel at ease and makes the course really interesting and interactive. Wouldn’t change anything – just to say, thank you and keep up the excellent work!’

We have used SHOC over a number of years and always found them to be very professional and always produce reports when they have been asked for. We have used SHOC to produce Health and Safety documentation when working near overhead cables and also used them for professional advice in general about electric cables. You can always get advice from SHOC with just a telephone conversation

The company in mention are very efficient and reliable in the work that they have done for me on the Stoke framework contract Gary is always willing to help in any way and advise and put forward solutions so the work can be done in a legal  and safe manner i would recommend this company to anyone in the contracting business.