Currently McConnell Dowell Constructors Ltd. is involved in the horizontal rebuild of Christchurch as part of the SCIRT alliance. Part of installing new infrastructure is that work is commenced around existing and live services. During installation, live services are occasionally struck which have the potential to cause injury and/or death along with subsequent economic costs of having to repair the damaged services. David Hopper and Shane Soulsby have investigated some of the root causes for service strikes to occur with a distinct focus on process, communication, culture and costs. From that, key findings have been established along with recommendations and an implementation plan in an effort to lower the number of service strikes on projects.