I was reading through this article that Tony Millikin sent to me from PCL Construction on their Construction Outlook for 2025. So I thought I'd put together my thoughts on what our industry might look like next year and what we can do to change our trajectory. The challenges are mounting, the stakes are higher than ever, and the need for bold action is clear. The utility sector has a choice: evolve or face the consequences of stagnation in an era defined by complexity, risk, and rapid change.

Time is Running Out

The Common Ground Alliance’s 50 in 5 goal is laudable, but let’s be honest: we’re behind. The industry has made strides, but the volume of damage reports and the rising complexity of utility projects reveal a troubling gap between ambition and reality. Every missed opportunity to prevent damage pushes us further from achieving this critical target. The problem isn’t just a lack of effort; it’s a failure to rethink how we approach damage prevention as a whole.

We’re drowning in locate requests. Fiber deployment, spurred by federal incentives, is surging. The potential resurgence of oil and gas exploration under a Trump presidency could bring an avalanche of excavation activity. Meanwhile, utilities are struggling to handle even the current demand. If we don’t address this bottleneck soon, the system will buckle under its own weight.

“Good Enough”

"Good enough" is becoming a dangerous standard in the utility industry, with some companies opting for the legal bare minimum to satisfy state or provincial locate requirements. Some companies, for instance, have adopted photo-only locates - a cost-saving measure that might work fine until the inevitable damage occurs. When damages happen, the consequences often outweigh the initial savings, leading to repair costs, service interruptions, and reputational damage. If utilities choose this path, they need to leverage every possible data point - photos, GPS, depth information, and context - to mitigate risks. Still, I’d caution against this approach; while it might balance the books in the short term, it often proves costly in the long run. Unfortunately, money talks, and some companies are willing to accept a calculated amount of damages as the cost of doing business. That’s a hard reality, and addressing it requires either legislative changes to enforce higher standards or technological advancements that can make even "bare minimum" safer through data-driven insights and predictive capabilities.

Rising Damages Demand Faster Responses

The CGA Index Indicates Damages Declined in 2023  but not at a satisfactory rate. Every incident is a failure of the system - a misstep that costs money, delays projects, and, most importantly, puts lives at risk. Yet, in too many cases, the response to these incidents is reactive and disjointed.

This has to change. Our industry must move faster and think ahead. We need to tackle this issue head on by addressing the main issues - the top six root causes made up nearly 76% of damages, according to the CGA’s DIRT Report for 2023. That’s a figure that hasn’t improved in a few years and we need to do everything from marketing to training to changing technologies. Technologies like AI and automation give us the tools to anticipate problems, but we have to embrace them fully. Let’s stop treating damage prevention as a chore and start treating it as a strategic priority.

Data Security is Growing in Importance

While we’re focused on physical risks, let’s not overlook the looming digital ones. Infrastructure data is a goldmine for bad actors. The perceived threat of hacking utility maps seems to be gathering steam, and it is a stumbling block for companies to share their mapping. Sharing our maps between stakeholders is an essential step towards preventing a lot of damages but a lot of companies are reluctant to share. I think this perception will increase in 2025 but we can overcome the stumbling blocks by offering secure systems and using REST API's which only access small chunks of data at a time. The SUMDEX initiative will continue to lead the charge on this here in North America.

Lessons from Construction

The construction industry is grappling with its own challenges, but it’s also showing us the way forward. As highlighted in Construction Outlook 2025: How the AI Revolution Will Influence What We Build and How We Build It, construction professionals are leveraging AI to address labor shortages, supply chain constraints, and regulatory pressures. Why aren’t we doing the same?

We should be using AI not just to predict risks but to optimize everything from ticket routing to on-site inspections. Every delay, every missed locate, every damage event is an opportunity for AI to step in and make us better. If the construction industry can deploy robots and predictive analytics to build smarter, why can’t we do the same to dig safer?

Labor Shortages Aren’t Going Away

Speaking of labor, let’s face the reality: the workforce we have today is the workforce we’ll need to rely on for the foreseeable future. Training programs and recruitment efforts are essential, but they won’t solve the immediate problem. That’s why retention, reskilling, and efficiency are so critical.

We need to stop overburdening locators and contractors with unrealistic expectations. If we want better outcomes, we have to set them up for success - with better tools, clearer processes, and more support.

The Holistic Approach We Need

Here’s the good news: some solutions already exist and/or are being worked on. That’s one of the reasons we’ve joined Urbint. Their advancements in AI and commitment to safety is something that complements our vision and purpose with Utilocate.  But partnerships and tools alone won’t fix the problem. We need a cultural shift - an industry-wide commitment to holistic damage prevention that looks beyond traditional approaches.

This means better collaboration between utilities, contractors, and locators. It means smarter, data-driven decision-making that prioritizes high-risk areas. And it means holding everyone accountable - from the smallest excavation contractor to the largest utility.

A Call to Action

2025 isn’t just another year. It’s a proving ground for our industry. The CGA’s 50 in 5 goal isn’t just a metric; it’s a wake-up call. Urbint and Utilocate’s partnership shows us what’s possible, but it’s up to the rest of us to catch up.

The challenges are daunting - too many locates, rising damages, labor shortages, cyber threats - but they’re not insurmountable. What we need now is a sense of urgency, a willingness to innovate, and a commitment to doing things differently.

The path forward isn’t just about reducing damages; it’s about redefining what damage prevention can be. It’s about protecting lives, safeguarding infrastructure, and ensuring that our industry is ready for the future. The clock is ticking. Let’s rise to the occasion.