Concrete underpinning SWMS, drafted for your job
Excavating under existing footings changes how the building carries its weight, with workers in small pits beneath soil and masonry. Tell us the underpinning design and site: your SWMS is drafted around the supported sequence, and you check it on site before work starts.
A$39per job
However many high-risk activities it covers.
- However many high-risk activities it covers.
- 3 for A$99
- 10 for A$249
- Yearly A$129 for 120
- Monthly A$60 for 10
You review it on site before work starts.
Your Business
Safe Work Method Statement
Version 1
Draft
Concrete underpinning
Site Your site address
Law Your state
High-risk construction work
- Structural alterations that need temporary support
- Work in or near a deep trench, shaft or tunnel
Job steps, hazards and controls
| 1 | Review design and building condition | Existing movement and hidden services | High | Record conditions locate feeds and confirm the engineer’s sequence |
| 2 | Install support and open staged pits | Building instability and soil collapse | Extreme | Use designed support and excavate only released bays |
| 3 | Fit reinforcement and forms | Awkward handling beneath existing footings | High | Use lifting aids and maintain pit protection |
| 4 | Place and cure underpin concrete | Wet cement and premature support removal | High | Control placement and protect bays until release checks are complete |
| 5 | Transfer load and close bays | Movement during support changes | Extreme | Follow the planned transfer and inspect before progressing |
Illustrative first page. Yours carries your business name only.
What you get
What your concrete underpinning SWMS will contain
An A4 document your crew can read on site, a PDF for the builder and a sign-on register.
- Job and site detailsYour business, the site, the principal contractor, the dates.
- High-risk construction workThe categories your job involves, ticked.
- Step-by-step methodEach step with its hazards, risk rating and controls.
- How controls are checkedWho puts each control in place, monitors and reviews it.
- PPE, plant and permitsEquipment and training the job needs.
- Emergency planAssembly point, first aid, nearest hospital to confirm on site.
- Consultation and reviewWho was consulted, when it is reviewed.
- Sign-on registerYour crew signs by QR or on paper.
High-risk construction work
Categories this task often involves
You tick the ones your job involves. Each ticked category gets its own steps and controls, in your state's wording.
- Structural alterations that need temporary support
- Work in or near a deep trench, shaft or tunnel
State notes
Rules depend on your state
Pick your state when you start. Your state's regulator publishes the rules and guidance for this work.
Hazards and controls
What goes wrong on a concrete underpinning job, and how the SWMS controls it
These rows are written for this task. Your draft adds the ones your site and method need.
- 1
Building movement as soil is removed beneath existing footings
Extreme- Follow the engineer’s excavation sequence and install designed temporary support
- Stop and clear the area if footings crack settle or move
- 2
Soil collapse trapping workers inside narrow underpinning pits
Extreme- Install designed pit protection before anyone works beneath unsupported ground
- Keep spoil and materials clear of pit edges and inspect after ground changes
- 3
Loss of footing support when adjacent underpinning bays are opened
Extreme- Mark the staged bays and open only those released by the engineer’s sequence
- Keep completed bays protected until concrete strength and load transfer checks allow progression
- 4
Damage to old water gas or electrical feeds beneath footings
Extreme- Locate and expose building service entries before excavating underpinning bays
- Arrange isolation or support before disturbing ground around the feeds
- 5
Strains lowering reinforcement and formwork into underpinning pits
Medium- Use lifting aids and stage components beside a clear access route
- Share awkward handling and keep workers clear of suspended components
- 6
Cement burns placing concrete beneath low existing footings
High- Use delivery and placing tools that keep workers out of wet concrete
- Wear waterproof protection and wash off cement contamination promptly
- 7
Temporary supports moving during underpinning load transfer
Extreme- Keep support changes under the engineer’s planned transfer sequence
- Exclude people from the transfer area and monitor the building during changes
How the job usually runs
- 1Review design and building conditionExisting movement and hidden services → Record conditions locate feeds and confirm the engineer’s sequence
- 2Install support and open staged pitsBuilding instability and soil collapse → Use designed support and excavate only released bays
- 3Fit reinforcement and formsAwkward handling beneath existing footings → Use lifting aids and maintain pit protection
- 4Place and cure underpin concreteWet cement and premature support removal → Control placement and protect bays until release checks are complete
- 5Transfer load and close baysMovement during support changes → Follow the planned transfer and inspect before progressing
PPE for this job
- Safety boots
- Safety helmet
- Safety glasses
- Work gloves
- Waterproof gloves for concrete
- Hearing protection
Your draft lists the PPE your site and method need.
After you finalise
Brief your crew and send it to your builder
Crew signs by QR
Send to my builder
PDF and register
Builder sent it back?
Make their changes and re-issue the same job free. Workers re-sign the new version.
Questions
Concrete underpinning SWMS questions
- Last reviewed
- 21 October 2026
- How
- Hazard rows checked against the task; no legal line is stated unless it is logged from primary text.
- Next review
- Every six months, or when the method or rules change
Does it cover digging alternate underpinning bays?
Yes. Describe the engineer’s bay sequence and support details. The draft follows those stages, including keeping adjoining work closed until the completed bay is ready to take its planned load.
Can the draft tell us when to remove the props?
The underpinning design and engineer’s release checks decide that. The draft includes holding temporary supports in place until those checks and the planned load transfer allow their removal.
How much does a concrete underpinning SWMS cost?
One job uses 1 SWMS when you finalise: A$39 for one, however many high-risk activities it covers. AI drafting needs a SWMS pack or plan. Packs and Yearly cost less per SWMS.
Is this a template?
No. You describe the job and the site, and the SWMS is drafted for them. You edit anything, then finalise it.
Who checks the SWMS?
You do, with your crew, on site before work starts. The draft gives you a strong starting point; the person running the work makes sure it matches the site.
My builder sent it back. What now?
Open it, make the changes they asked for and re-issue it. Corrections to the same job are free.
How does my crew sign it?
Show the QR code on your phone or print the A4 sign-on sheet. Workers read and sign on their own phones without an account.
Does it work in my state?
Yes. You choose the state before drafting, and the document names the law that applies there. Victoria uses its OHS Regulations.
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