Damage Prevention’s 3-Point Shot: How Dig Site Scope Transforms the Way Locate Work is Measured
In nearly every industry, better data is changing how teams win. As analytics mature, organizations gain clearer insight into what actually drives outcomes, and those insights often challenge the stats everyone thought mattered most.
Sports offer one of the clearest examples of this shift.
For decades, teams tracked what was easy to count. Then they learned to measure what actually mattered.
The Analytics Lesson: What Basketball Can Teach Us About Better Decisions
For years, the three-point shot existed in basketball without being fully embraced. Coaches knew it was exciting, but without consistent shooting and reliable analytics, it was viewed as a risky gamble rather than a strategic advantage.
Then the game changed.
As player skill improved and analytics became more sophisticated, teams started breaking down efficiency: points per possession, shot selection, spacing, and probability. The data revealed something undeniable: a well-selected three-point shot was often more valuable than a contested mid-range jumper.
Once the numbers backed it up, strategy followed.
NBA teams didn’t change how they played because of tradition or intuition. They changed because the data showed a better way to win.
How Data Is Changing the Way Locate Work Is Managed
A similar evolution is underway in damage prevention and locating.
For decades, ticket counts have been the industry’s go-to stat (the equivalent of tracking shots attempted without considering shot quality). On paper, tickets look equal: one request, one task, one unit of work.
But just like not all shots are the same, not all tickets are created equal.
Some tickets represent quick, low-risk work. Others involve expansive dig areas, overlapping scopes, dense facilities, or heightened exposure. Treating them the same hides the true workload on the field and skews performance expectations.
Until recently, the industry simply didn’t have the analytics to break that down.
Why Ticket Counts Fall Short
When ticket volume is the primary metric, critical questions go unanswered. Much like early basketball teams relying on box scores alone:
- How complex is the work a locator is stepping into today?
- Which tickets demand more time, experience, or caution?
- Where is risk stacking up along a route or across a service area?
- Are workloads actually balanced, or just evenly distributed on paper?
Without this visibility, organizations are forced to coach from the sidelines with incomplete stats; like basketball teams making strategic decisions before advanced analytics reshaped the game.
A New Way Forward: Measuring Scope, Not Just Volume
The next evolution in locating is about seeing the full court.
Measuring Dig Site Scope is the equivalent of understanding shot selection, spacing, and defensive pressure before the ball ever leaves a player’s hands. By analyzing factors like dig site size, overlap, facility proximity, and boundary interaction, organizations gain a clearer picture of workload and risk before a locator takes the field.
When teams measure scope instead of simply counting tickets, the strategy shifts:
- Workloads are balanced based on actual effort, not assumptions
- Risk is identified early, not after a damage occurs
- Productivity and accountability improve naturally, without forcing pace
Better data leads to smarter plays.
The Bigger Picture: Why This Matters Now
As infrastructure expands and locating environments become more complex, relying on oversimplified metrics becomes riskier. Fiber deployment, urban density, and tighter timelines leave little margin for error.
Organizations still managing by ticket counts alone aren’t falling behind because their teams lack skill. They’re falling behind because they’re playing a modern game with outdated stats.
Just as basketball analytics redefined how teams evaluate performance and strategy, Dig Site Scope is redefining how the damage prevention industry understands work, risk, and readiness.
It’s Time to Rethink the Metric
Counting tickets tells you how busy you are. Measuring Dig Site Scope tells you how prepared you are.
Basketball evolved by shooting smarter. Damage prevention is facing the same opportunity.
Dig Site Scope represents the industry’s three-point shot: a data-driven shift that changes how work is evaluated, resources are deployed, and risk is managed. For organizations ready to move beyond outdated metrics, the path forward is to stop counting tickets and start measuring scope.
Because in any competitive environment, better decisions start with better data, and a willingness to look beyond what’s always been counted.
About KorTerra, Inc.
KorTerra is the leading provider of damage prevention software, protecting billions of dollars in underground infrastructure. For over 30 years, the leading stakeholders in gas distribution, pipeline operation, telecommunications, electric distribution, contract locating, and city, county, and state governments have trusted KorTerra as their damage prevention solution. KorTerra helps mitigate risk and ensure the safety of field personnel by providing secure software platforms for processing 811 locate tickets, tracking and reporting asset damages, meeting regulatory compliance, and more. Explore additional solutions at korterra.com and follow KorTerra on LinkedIn.
Media Contact:
Paige Nygaard – KorTerra, Inc.
952.368.1911
marketing@korterra.com