Construction Health and Safety

1. Construction Health and Safety Radhlinah Kunju Ahmad (Radhlinah.Kunju_Ahmad@bekon.lth.se) Source: Charles Ebbet, 1932

2. Learning outcome At the end of the lecture, students should be able to: • Understand the different types of existing hazards on site • Comprehend the diferent types of accident measurement approach • Reflect on the Swedish construction accident records • Appreciate the importance for improving health & safety in construction • Undertake the techniques of improving health & safety in construction • Understand the existing legislative framework • Understand an accident analysis if required.

3. Definitions • Safety is free from risk and danger. • Accidents is defined as an unexpected and desirable event resulting in damage or harm. • Hazards is an unsafe condition or activity, that if left uncontrolled can contribute to an accident. • Risk is the assessment of ’probability of loss’ and ’potential amount of loss’. (concise Oxford Dictionary)

4. Common situation on a construction site • Construction work is dynamic, diverse, and constantly changing in nature. • Constantly changing job site environments and conditions • Multiple contractors and subcontractors • High turnover; unskilled laborers • Constantly changing relationships with other work groups • Diversity of work activities occurring simultaneously • Construction workers are at risk of exposure to various hazards and risks that can result in injury, illness, permanent disability, or even death.

5. ÅRETS VILDA VÄSTERN Området från Sälen till Hemavan har förvandlats till rena vilda västern. Situationen är extrem inför kommande world cup-skidåkningen i Åre. Arbetsmiljön är ofta direkt livsfarlig när fritidshusen byggs. Det saknas skydd, personalutrymmen, med mera. I Hamra, Härjedalen, skadades två baltiska byggnadsarbetare då de föll åtta meter ner i ett betonggolv. De skulle montera en byggnadsstomme på ett timmerhus, men gavelspetsarna gav vika. Där fanns varken ställningar eller annan fallskyddsutrustning. Byggnadsarbetaren, nr 18, dec 2006, sd 11

6. Arbetsmiljöverket har stoppat byggjobb 135 gånger under det senaste året. I 113 av förbuden fanns det akut risk för personskador då de handlade om risk för fall från hög höjd. Sedan slutet av 1990-talet har antalet byggarbetsplatser som stoppats av Arbetsmiljöverket ökat dramatiskt. 1998 stoppades byggverksamhet 40 gånger. I år är siffran 135, en uppgång på 238 procent. Precis som vanligt har de flesta stopp, 113 stycken, satts i samband med risk för fall. Det handlar om dåliga ställningar som saknar skyddsräcken, om fallrisk från tak, om personer som jobbat utan personlig säkerhetsutrustning. Byggnadsarbetaren, nr 18, dec 2006, sd 20

7. Chemical Physical Biological Ergonomic Types of hazards

8. Chemical Hazards • Chemicals can exist in the form of • dusts, fumes, fibers (solids) • liquids, mists • gases, vapors Examples of chemical hazards found in construction work: • welding fumes • spray paints • cutting oil mists • xylene vapor • solvents • asbestos • lead • silica • cadmium • carbon monoxide

9. Physical Hazards Physical hazards are different types of energy which may be hazardous to workers. • Noise • Vibration • Temperature extremes • Radiation

10. Biological Hazards Exposure may occur during demolition, renovation, sewer work, work on air handling systems, or other construction work from contact with contaminated or disease-carrying • soil • water • insects (mosquitoes, ticks) • bird, bat droppings • animals • structures

11. Ergonomic Hazards Ergonomic hazards can cause painful and disabling injuries till example Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs) . This following situation may causes these injuries: • heavy, frequent, or awkward lifting • repetitive tasks • awkward grips, postures • using excessive force, overexertion • using wrong tools for the job or using tools improperly • using improperly maintained tools • hand-intensive work

12. Types of accident measurements • Death • Fatal injury (broken leg, hips, amputation) • Non-fatal injury (finger cut) • Occupational accidents (MSD, hearing loss) • Absence from work ( >1 day, > 3 days etc) • Near misses • Rate per 100 000 – number of injuries or causes of ill health per 100 000 employees. • Working days lost – days off work due to workplace injuries & work-related ill health

13. Other health hazards • Living conditions and welfare facilities • Temporary accomodation • Food • Drinking water • Sanitary conveniences • Facility for clothing • Work related mental stresses • Alcoholism and drug addiction

14. Personal protective clothing and eqiupment (PPE) • Legal requirements • Eye protection • Respiratory protection • Ear protection • Face protection • Head protection • Hand protection • Foot protection • Body protection • Fall protection

15. Construction accident record for 2005 (Samuelson & Lundholm, 2006)

16. Causes of construction accidents 2005 Samuelson & Lundholm, 2006

17. Existing health & safety legislations in practice

18. Reasons and benefits to improve health and safety in construction • Responsibility; • Economic reasons; • Impact of safety on overall performance; • Contractor’s performance; • Control of accident causes.

19. Responsibility • Safety is everyone’s responsibility. • It is a moral and legal obligation of employers to provide a safe working place and of employees to work safely. • Employer’s duty of care to employees as covering the following areas: • safe system of work; • a safe place of work; • plant and machinery that is safe to use; • competent supervision and/or suitable training; and • care in the selection of fellow employees.

20. Costs of accidents – direct costs and indirect costs Direct costs Indirect costs

21. Direct costs The direct costs are insurance. These include medical costs and others workers’ compensation insurance benefits as well as liability and property-damage insurance. Indirect costs Below are the lists of indirect costs: Transportation costs – include the cost of emergency transportation, together with the cost of other personnel that were necessary to get to the injured worker to proper medical facilities Wages paid to injured worker for time not worked – include all the time in which the worker was not actually doing his or her job and for the wages paid.

22. Cost incurred because of delays which resulted from accident – other crews affected or delayed; equipment idled; duration of project lengthened; plus all wages, rental fees and indirect supervision costs that occurred as a result of the accident. Costs of overtime necessitated by accidents – overtime occurred because of the accidents Loss of efficiency of crew – decrease of crew efficiency due to low morale or reshuffling that might occur to replace an injured worker. Cost to break in and/or teach replacement worker – hiring new worker would include training and orientation Costs for clean-up, repair or replacement and stand-by costs – normally accidents involves spillage, cave-ins vehicle damage, material wastage or site clean-up

23. Extra wage costs, slower returned worker – normally when a worker return to the job site and is partially and/or temporarily disabled, the worker is probably working at a different, less demanding job or less efficient at the former job. Costs to reschedule work – include time spent to review and reschedule the project due to investigations or project being temporarily suspended by the authorities. Costs of wages for supervision as a result of the accidents – include all time spent on the accident and its results: caring for the worker’s medical treatment, investigation, completing forms, disseminating information, visiting the worker, planning to prevent recurrence, appearance in court

24. Costs for safety and clerical personnel as a result of the accident – typing, investigating, forwarding forms, time with press, etc. OSHA and civil fines – paying fines. Cost of legal assistance – engaging a lawyer to settle the accident claims. Other costs – any other cost that were incurred because of the accidents. The average ratio of indirect costs to direct costs is 4:1.

25. Impact of overall performance • Time • Budget • Accident statistics • Absentism • Low morale

26. Contractor’s performance • Studies have proved that there is an adverse effect on a contractor’s reputation and unfavourable image for the client when the project suffers high accident rates.

27. Control of accident causes • Safety performance measurement enables behaviours and conditions to be identified that have the greatest potential in contributing to an accident. • It also forms a basis to predict future accident problems and enables management to control the causes of accidents on site and establish long-term accident control. • These measurement techniques provide continuous information concerning changes in the safety state within an organisation in operation.

28. How to improve health and safety on construction sites? • Reactive measures • Accident recording & reporting • Accident investigations • Proactive measures • H & s safety policy • H & s safety programme/plan • H & s safety induction/training • Tool-box talk • Others

29. Example of an accident analysis Accident: Falling off a stepladder The unsafe act: Climbing a defective ladder The unsafe condition: A defective ladder The correction: Replace the ladder Questions: • Why was the defective ladder not found during normal inspection? • Why did the supervisor allow its use? • Didn’t the injured employee know it should not be used? • Was the employee properly trained? • Was the employee reminded not to use the ladder? • Did the supervisor examine the job first? Answers: • An improved inspection procedure • Improved training • A better definition of responsibilities • Pre-job planning by supervisors

30. References • Grifitth A & Howarth T. 2000. Construction health & safety management. Pearson Education Limited. • Samuelson B & Lundholm L. 2006. Arbetsskador I byggverksamhet 2005. Byggindustrins • Kunju Ahmad. 2000. Developing a safety performance measurement tool (SPMT) for construction sites. Loughborough University thesis. UK. • Heberle D. 1998. Construction safety manual. McGraw Hill. USA. • Davies V.J. Tomasin K. 1990. Construction safety handbook. Thomas Telford, London. • Brown. 1996. Total integration of safety professional into project management. Proceedings. of the 1st International Conference of CIB, Libson, W99. pp 137-144.