Course Genie
Utilities

EUSR Cat and Genny

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Pick a date that suits your team

EUSR Cat and Genny is run on demand — tell us when you'd like to attend and where, and we'll arrange a date and venue that works for you. Single delegates and group bookings both welcome.

UK-wide venues + online Group discounts available

Overview

The CAT and Genny are the standard tools for finding buried services before the ground is broken: the Cable Avoidance Tool detects signals from buried cables and pipes, and the signal generator, the Genny, applies a trace signal to services the CAT cannot hear on its own. Used properly, they are the difference between a clean excavation and a cable strike; used badly, they give false confidence that gets people hurt.

This course teaches proper use, hands-on. Delegates learn how the equipment actually works and its real limits, the scanning patterns that cover an excavation area properly, using the Genny in its different connection modes, interpreting signals and marking up, and how detection fits the wider HSG47 process of plans, location and safe digging. Everyone practises with the equipment, and competence is recorded with EUSR registration on passing.

The course pairs with the EUSR Cat 1 location course for operatives and the combined CAT 1 and 2 course which adds supervisory duties. Teams working on utility networks also hold the SHEA passport for their sector: Gas, Power or Telecom. Browse the range under utilities training.

Who this course is for

  • Anyone who scans ground before excavation
  • Groundworkers, machine operators and utility operatives
  • Site engineers setting out excavations
  • Supervisors verifying scans before permits are issued
  • Contractors standardising detection practice across crews

Requirements

  • No formal entry requirements
  • Outdoor practical work in most weather: suitable clothing and footwear
  • A reasonable level of spoken and written English

What you'll achieve

  • EUSR-registered CAT and Genny competence
  • Hands-on skill with the CAT in its detection modes
  • Proper Genny use, including connection methods for tracing
  • Scanning patterns that actually cover the dig area
  • A clear grasp of what detection equipment cannot see
  • Detection practice that fits the HSG47 safe digging process

Syllabus

How detection works
Signal modes, what each finds and what none of them find.
The CAT
Power, radio and genny modes, sensitivity and depth indication.
The Genny
Applying trace signals by induction and direct connection.
Scanning technique
Grid patterns, marking up and recording results.
Limits
Plastic pipes, deep services and the false-confidence trap.
HSG47 context
Plans, location and safe digging as one process.

EUSR Cat and Genny FAQs

The Cable Avoidance Tool detects buried cables and pipes from their signals; the signal generator, or Genny, applies a trace signal so the CAT can find services that give off no detectable signal of their own. Together they are the standard UK pre-excavation scanning kit.
Because untrained scanning creates false confidence: wrong mode, wrong sweep speed or no Genny and a live cable stays invisible. HSG47 expects locators to be used by trained, competent people, and utility clients check for that competence.
No, and knowing that is half the training. Plastic gas and water pipes without tracer wires, well-shielded or deep services and some telecom cables can all be missed, which is why scanning is combined with plans and trial holes.
Typically a half-day to a day including the hands-on practical, depending on group size and whether it is combined with safe digging training.
They complement each other. The <a href="/courses/eusr-cat-1-location-underground-services/">Cat 1 course</a> covers the whole locating discipline; this course drills into the detection equipment itself. Many teams take both, or the combined <a href="/courses/eusr-cat-1-2/">CAT 1 and 2</a>.
Prices for CAT and Genny training vary by location, group size and whether you book a public date or an in-company course. Where live dates are shown at the top of this page, the price against each date is the full cost of a place. Otherwise send an enquiry from this page and we will come back within one working day with options and pricing.
Yes. CAT and Genny training is often delivered to whole teams at once, and in-company delivery is usually the most cost-effective way to train several people. Request a quote through our <a href="/for-employers/">employer booking page</a>, with purchase order support included.
The course runs on demand as well as on any public dates shown at the top of this page. Send an enquiry with your preferred timing and location and we will confirm available options within one working day.

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