Method and system for automated project management of excavation requests

A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored therein a plurality of instructions for causing one or more processor on one or more network devices to execute the steps of:

• receiving a new electronic excavation work order request on a server application on a server network device with one or more processors via a communications network from an application on a network device with one or more processors,
• wherein the new electronic excavation work order includes a request to excavate below a surface level at a user-defined location while avoiding any existing underground utility infrastructure components at the user-defined location,
• wherein the new electronic excavation work order will cause one or more municipalities to be automatically notified of the request to excavate;
• wherein the new electronic excavation work order will cause one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components at the determined actual physical location to be automatically notified of the request to excavate, and
• wherein the new electronic excavation work order will cause the one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components to mark or have marked, on the surface level precise locations of all existing underground utility infrastructure components at the determined actual physical location,
• thereby eliminating a need for a user to correctly determine all required information for the excavation, and
• thereby reducing a possibility of the user requesting markings or excavating at a wrong location not including the determined actual physical location;
• determining automatically on the server application geographic information for the user-defined location thereby determining the actual physical location with one or more queries to other applications via the communications network;
• determining automatically on the server application one or more municipalities that include the determined actual physical location with one or more queries to the other applications via the communications network;
• determining automatically on the server application one or more owners of one or more existing underground utility infrastructure components that include the determined actual physical location with one or more queries to the other applications via the communications network;
• determining automatically on the server application a street name of a street closest to the determined actual physical location and one or more names of one or more other streets intersecting the determined street closest with one or more queries to the other applications via the communications network;
• calculating automatically on the server application bounding box data calculated from the determined actual physical location, wherein the bounding box data includes a length, width and depth for the request to excavate below the surface level at the determined physical location;
• adding on the server application to the received new electronic excavation work order the determined:
• (1) geographic information, (2) one or more municipalities, (3) one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components, (4) street name, (5) one or more intersecting street names, (6) calculated bounding box data, and (7) the determined actual physical location, thereby creating a modified electronic excavation work order;
• sending order from the server application the modified electronic excavation work via the communications network to the application on the network device,
• wherein the application on the network device extracts electronic information from the modified electronic excavation work order and automatically displays on a display component on the network device the:
• (1) one or more municipalities, (2) one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components (3) street name, (4) one or more intersecting street names, (5) a graphical bounding box on an electronic map created from the calculated bounding box data, and (6) the determined actual physical location determined from the user defined location;
• determining on the server application from the modified excavation work order the one or more municipalities and the one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components of the proposed excavation for the determined actual physical location;
• and
• sending from the server application the modified electronic excavation work order via the communications network to one or more other applications on one or other network devices, each with one or more processors comprising the determined one or more municipalities and the determined one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components with electronic notifications of the proposed excavation and requesting marking on the surface level precise locations of all existing underground utility infrastructure components at the determined actual physical location.

A method for automated work project management excavation mark-outs, comprising:

• receiving a new electronic excavation work order request on a server application on a server network device with one or more processors via a communications network from an application on a network device with one or more processors;
• verifying and correcting if necessary, from the server application excavation information input by a user into the new electronic excavation work order;
• determining on the server application one or more municipalities and one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components of the proposed excavation;
• creating a modified electronic excavation work order from the server application including the verified and corrected excavation information and the determined one or more municipalities and one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components of the proposed excavation;
• and
• sending the modified electronic excavation work order from the server application via the communications network to one or more other applications on one or other network devices, each with one or more processors, comprising the determined one or more municipalities and the determined one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components with electronic notifications of the proposed excavation and requesting marking on the surface level precise locations of all existing underground utility infrastructure components.

A system for automated work project management excavation mark-outs, comprising in combination:

• a server application in a non-transitory computer readable medium on a server network device with one or more processors;
• the non-transitory computer readable medium having stored therein a plurality of instructions:
• for receiving a new electronic excavation work order request on a server application on a server network device with one or more processors via a communications network from an application on a network device with one or more processors,
• wherein the new electronic excavation work order includes a request to excavate below a surface level at a user-defined location while avoiding any existing underground utility infrastructure components at the user-defined location,
• wherein the new electronic excavation work order will cause one or more municipalities to be automatically notified of the request to excavate;
• wherein the new electronic excavation work order will cause one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components at the determined actual physical location to be automatically notified of the request to excavate, and
• wherein the new electronic excavation work order will cause the one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components to mark or have marked, on the surface level precise locations of all existing underground utility infrastructure components at the determined actual physical location,
• thereby eliminating a need for a user to correctly determine all required information for the excavation, and
• thereby reducing a possibility of the user requesting markings or excavating at a wrong location not including the determined actual physical location;
• for determining automatically on the server application geographic information for the user-defined location thereby determining the actual physical location with one or more queries to other applications via the communications network;
• for determining automatically on the server application one or more municipalities that include the determined actual physical location with one or more queries to the other applications via the communications network;
• for determining automatically on the server application one or more owners of one or more existing underground utility infrastructure components that include the determined actual physical location with one or more queries to the other applications via the communications network;
• for determining automatically on the server application a street name of a street closest to the determined actual physical location and one or more names of one or more other streets intersecting the determined street closest with one or more queries to the other applications via the communications network;
• for calculating automatically on the server application bounding box data calculated from the determined actual physical location, wherein the bounding box data includes a length, width and depth for the request to excavate below the surface level at the determined physical location;
• for adding on the server application to the received new electronic excavation work order the determined:
• (1) geographic information, (2) one or more municipalities, (3) one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components, (4) street name, (5) one or more intersecting street names, (6) calculated bounding box data, and (7) the determined actual physical location, thereby creating a modified electronic excavation work order;
• for sending order from the server application the modified electronic excavation work via the communications network to the application on the network device,
• wherein the application on the network device extracts electronic information from the modified electronic excavation work order and automatically displays on a display component on the network device the:
• (1) one or more municipalities, (2) one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components (3) street name, (4) one or more intersecting street names, (5) a graphical bounding box on an electronic map created from the calculated bounding box data, and (6) the determined actual physical location determined from the user defined location;
• for determining on the server application from the modified excavation work order the one or more municipalities and the one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components of the proposed excavation for the determined actual physical location;
• and
• for sending from the server application the modified electronic excavation work order via the communications network to one or more other applications on one or other network devices, each with one or more processors comprising the determined one or more municipalities and the determined one or more owners of the existing underground utility infrastructure components with electronic notifications of the proposed excavation and requesting marking on the surface level precise locations of all existing underground utility infrastructure components at the determined actual physical location.