Description
Install, maintain, and repair underground conduit systems for electrical power distribution, including duct banks, handholes, and vaults. Pull and protect cables through conduits, operate excavation equipment, and ensure safe, code-compliant installations.
- • Follow safety procedures, including trench safety, traffic control, PPE, and confined-space protocols.
- • De-energize circuits and apply grounds before working near existing underground cables.
- • Perform utility locates and potholing to identify and protect existing facilities before excavation.
- • Cut trenches for conduit installation using trenchers, excavators, and cable plows.
- • Lay conduit and duct banks in trenches, maintaining required depth, separation, slope, and bend radius.
- • Assemble duct banks with spacers, rebar, and forms, and coordinate concrete encasement.
- • Install handholes, pull boxes, vaults, pedestals, and transformer pads using proper rigging.
- • Install conduit fittings, bushings, expansion joints, seals, and terminations; solvent-weld PVC and thread rigid steel.
- • Pull mule tape or fish lines through conduits; mandrel and swab ducts to verify integrity and clear obstructions.
- • Pull cables through conduits using winches or capstans, applying lubricant and controlling tension.
- • Install tracer wire and warning tape above nonmetallic conduits per specifications.
- • Repair or replace damaged conduits, couplings, seals, or pull boxes.
- • Inspect installed conduits for depth, cover, and separation; document as-builts and labeling.
- • Read and interpret plans, one-line diagrams, and utility standards to lay out conduit routes.
- • Coordinate work sequencing and site access with crew members, other trades, and utility representatives.
- • Backfill, compact, and restore surfaces, including pavement, landscaping, and erosion control.
- • Drive and operate vehicles and equipment transporting tools, conduit, reels, and materials to job sites.
- • Set up and maintain work-zone barriers, signage, and barricades around excavations.
- • Use test instruments, locators, and inspection cameras to identify collapsed ducts or blockages.
- • Install service conduits and make-ups at meter bases, pedestals, manholes, and transformer pads under supervision.
- • Maintain tools and equipment, performing routine inspections and minor repairs.
- • Comply with permits and environmental requirements, including spoil management and stormwater controls.
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
