According to OSHA, an excavation as any man-made cavity, cut, depression, or trench created made into the surface of the earth through the removal of earth. The result of excavation is usually an open face, hole, or cavity. There are several tools used to achieve this. Apart from tools, heavy machinery and explosives are also used during the excavating process.

Excavation can be done anywhere, including on business premises, construction sites, and public areas. There are several types of excavating that can be done on these sites. These involve open excavations, potholing, trenches, pit excavations, drives, and shafts.

There are several types of excavation. An open excavation is done on open ground. Open excavations vary in shape and size. In most instances, open excavation pits will be surrounded by a fence. Apart from open excavations, another common type of excavation is potholing. This is a small type of excavation that is done to locate underground services. The other type of excavation is pit excavation. This is usually four-sided, and it's used to install manholes, pump stations, or underground tanks. In some instances, pit excavations are also used to construct pile caps or locate existing services.

In some instances, excavation can also be classified by the material being excavated. For instance, if you are excavating topsoil, the process can be referred to as topsoil excavation. This means you will only be removing the exposed layer of the earth's surface. During this process, vegetation and decaying matter are also removed since they can make the soil compressible and, therefore, not ideal for bearing structural loads.

Apart from topsoil excavation, you can also come across earth excavation. This process involves the removal of the layer of soil underneath the topsoil. Some materials, like rock, cannot be excavated without employing special excavation techniques like drilling or blasting with explosives. Muck excavation is the removal of excessively wet material that can not be used for stockpiling.

Excavation can also be unclassified. In this instance, it may be the removal of different kinds of materials from different layers of the earth. Because of this, it becomes a bit difficult to make a difference between the materials encountered and the layer removed.

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