Oklahoma One-Call System, Inc.
Table of Contents
I.
Who Is Call Okie?
II.
Mission Statement
III.
Safety Statement
IV.
Damage Prevention
V.
Contact Page
Who Is Call Okie?
Posted on July 15, 2013 by Susan Bohl, Executive Director
Call Okie is Oklahoma’s One-Call System that manages all incoming dig or locate requests. We have over 65 total employees with over 45 Customer Support Representatives that take statewide dig requests 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We receive dig requests from those that call 811, call 1-800-522-OKIE, or from those that go online and submit a web-ticket (www.callokie.com). Call Okie has over 1,100 member companies that operate underground facilities across Oklahoma. When Call Okie receives a dig or locate request, we transmit a ticket to each underground facility operator that has services in the dig area. Call Okie DOES NOT mark the lines; the facility operator sends a locator to the excavation site to mark the approximate location of their underground facilities in the dig area.
Here’s How it Works: Detailed information collected during the call or through the web-ticket is entered into our system; the area is mapped using sophisticated GIS mapping software; and a ticket is transmitted immediately to each facility operator. Oklahoma’s state law requires the dig area to be marked within 2 business days of the time the locate request is processed by Call Okie. Many of our member companies and locate companies help spread the message about “Calling 811 Before You Dig”, but this does not mean they work for Call Okie. Call Okie provides the communication link between the caller and the underground facility owners. It is the facility owner’s reasonability to communicate where it is safe to dig by marking the area with flags and paint and through communications by phone or in person.
The goal of all of this is to make sure the person digging, also known as the excavator, is able to identify where he or she can safely dig, avoiding underground facilities that if struck, could cause catastrophic damages or loss. Dialing 811 is the first step in damage prevention and in some instances not all lines will be located. Owners of underground facilities (telephone, cable TV, gas, electric, pipelines, sewer, traffic signals, and waterlines) are responsible for locating the lines that they own or maintain once they have been notified of the planned excavation. Some service lines extending from the property easements to the house may belong to the property owner.
After the May 2013 tornados that hit Moore and El Reno, Call Okie experienced a dramatic increase in the volume of calls for dig and locate request. The first wave of requests was directly related to restoring electric, gas and phone services to the affected areas. That was followed by a wave of requests for putting up fences and rebuilding damaged structures. And a steady flow of additional requests have been coming in to locate where underground facilities are so people can assess where they might put an underground storm shelter. Call Okie played a vital role in safely restoring services to the affected areas.
Call Okie also provides safety and damage prevention services designed to promote public awareness about the importance of protecting our underground facilities. There are six damage prevention councils across each of the states tourism areas in addition to statewide Public Damage Prevention Regional Partner Councils. All play a valuable role in promoting safety. It is vital that everyone be committed to safety and work to prevent damages caused by unsafe digging. It’s as easy as making the FREE call to 811 at least two business days before you dig!
There is great value in being a member of Oklahoma’s One-Call. The service team at Oklahoma One-Call takes great pride in protecting Oklahoma citizens, companies and the underground facilities that run throughout our state. We support statewide dig/locate requests 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. And we remain the industry leader in service, technology and in promoting the damage prevention message.
Our Call Center Operation adheres to strict standards in order to ensure quality and timeliness of all locate requests. When a locate request is processed, we average less than 3 minutes turnaround time to transmit tickets to the facility owners that have services in the respective dig area. Additionally, we work to ensure the scope of work being done at the excavation site can be done in a 10-day window so that our member companies are not covering great distances on a single ticket
We instill the value of teamwork and have some of the best employees you can find in Oklahoma. As a non-profit organization, we don’t have the luxury of overstaffing, and our staff does their part to stay flexible and dependable in order to meet the excavators and members needs.
Tools & Resources that Benefit Call Okie Members:
• Web Ticket gives excavators and members the option to go online and enter the locate request instead of calling it in. There’s also online chat support for those needing help with any questions they may have about the locate process.
• Member Service Area Management (MSAM) allows members to quickly view the existing service area mapping that we have in our system. It even allows members the ability to add or delete from that service area. This site encourages members to monitor their service areas regularly, offering everyone a higher level of public safety.
o In addition, we also accept other forms of service area update submissions from grid lists, faxes, paper maps, shape files to KMZ files. We know the importance of having accurate service areas on file, and are happy to work with Members to meet this common goal.
• Online Ticket Look-up is available for routine and non-routine ticket lookups going back as many as three years.
• Ticket Research is available for inquiries, investigations and studies.
• Emergency Ticket Management where we create the ticket and make the emergency call-out to the member companies per their instruction.
• Damage Prevention Education & Training is an available service to our members. Our staff and volunteers work hard to educate everyone about the Oklahoma Underground Facilities Damage Prevention Act and about the importance of safe digging. This is important to the members because the more people we reach with the “Dig Safely” message, the lower the chance of possible damage to their underground facilities.
• Publications that are sent quarterly and annually to excavators and members to assist our members in meeting requirements for pipeline awareness and other necessary safety
initiatives.
• Consultant Services for special requests from members, excavators or government agencies.
• List of Member Companies is available to excavators for non-excavation design/survey work. This provides the information needed without actually producing a ticket. This is a cost saving to the membership.
• List of Operators is maintained in our database.
