Discuss about the Major Projects In Constructions for Architectural Engineering.
The main aim of his thesis is to examine many aspects relating to the risk management and construction safety. These include the project timelines and project cost when incorporating high safety standards on the projects with tight timelines and budgets. The topic of research was chosen mainly because the construction industry is growing at a very high rate, which calls for implementation of safety precautions in the day to day construction activities in order to avoid fatalities, injuries and reduce the time and the cost of the fatalities aftermath effects.
Specific objective of the study
There were specific aims of the study and they include.
This thesis will try to evaluate into details whether the safety management system affects the overall project timelines and the overall cost of the project. This thesis will mainly be based on the Tier one builder as they put in place a lot of efforts to manage the construction risks and safety.
The injuries which occurs at the construction sites are due to the lack of training or supervision. Workplace, Health and safety legislation have been put in place to protect the business from potential accidents. These regulations must be observed by all the traders, specifically those from the construction industry as it is one of the industries which are faced with the high risks. Lot of emphasis should be put on the workplace, health and safety in order to minimize the industries cost. The construction industry is rising at a very high speed. Lack of proper safety precautions being put in place it introduces a greater risk to the people who are working in different construction sites as the industry made up 5% of the workforce but was the reason for 11% of workplace fatalities in Victoria alone. For the last 11 years the number of workers has increased with approximately 33%.
The number of fatalities can be reduced by implementing safety and health precautions but in most cases they are ignored because a lot of focus is focused on the timeline program and the economic aspect of the site. The operators and the management should effectively apply safety and health precautions which will result to the safer environment and system according to Vdais (1996) in the construction handbook. It is very debatable that the project timelines are the most important factor to be discussed before the implementation of the project starts. Nevertheless the site safety in most cases is not given a lot of weight and it lies at the bottom of the hierarchy of the priorities. Holmes (1999) proposes that the economic merits and demerits and the project timelines are seen to be the topic of convention and thus it appears to greatly impact the way one sees the risks. The risk factors at the construction sites are also neglected.
Health, safety and productivity enhances the quality of the project (Levitt 1995) nevertheless, the pressure which the contractors receive regarding to the completion of the project are also very demanding. Hinze proposed in 1988 that most of the people in the construction industry does not feel that the health and safety are very important in regarding to the success of the project. According to Hinze (1997)the projects which are ahead of the timelines or running according to the timeline programs and are within the budget in such projects the safety and health precautions and measures are outstanding and they might have contributed to the success of the project.
The beliefs which most of the parties in the construction industry are that there safety and health measures comes with cost5 of which it is not true, and it has resulted to most of the operators ignoring the implementation of the measures. Most of the managers believe that the implementation the safety precautions and measures will increase the cost of the project and thus reducing the profit margins. From the research and studies which have been carried out it is very clear that for the construction companies which implement the safety and health precautions they increase their profit margins through the increase in product, morale of the workers, reduction of the leaves and decrease in attrition. (Mohammed 2003).
This research outlines the results in time and cost when putting in place effective safety and health procedures and at the same time to determine whether focusing more resources and time on the safety measures can reduce the fatalities and injuries which are witnessed at the construction sites. With the safety and health being a humanitarian and economic concern they require a lot of attention (Grace Muiruri, 2014).This research paper explains the effects of putting in place safety and health from the economic perspective, short term and long term benefit s and the similarity and prioritization of these factors in the process of developing the site timelines programs.
The benefits of implementing safety and health precautions in the construction sites are discussed in details in this section. The current and future benefits and limitations are also discussed in details in this section.
The number of workers and developments in the construction industry are increasing at a very high rate which has motivated the manufactures and engineers to develop technological advancement which facilitate faster construction of buildings and other structures. Due to the technological advancements which are being made in the construction industry it is very important to implement safety and health precautions.
The research which was conducted by. Marianne Törner (2009) to test the safety of the construction sites from the experienced workers. The participants who took part in the study included 119 managers from grand development within Sweden. From the findings of the study it was very clear that individual and managerial attitudes greatly influences the safety performance of the construction sites. Nevertheless Holmes’ (1999)
Proposed that in Australia the risks within the construction industry are high because of pressure which is mounted on the contractor regarding to timelines and the project cost.
In the industry of computing the benefits of safety in the construction industry can be easily recognized. The simulators have been developed to improve the education and training with the main aim of increasing the safety of workers on the construction sites. The application simulators has greatly increased initially the simulators were used mainly for leisure and for military purposes. However their application has extended to the construction industry (J Lorenzo et.al. 2001).
The workers who train who to apply the simulators expand improve their knowledge and skills which gives them a lot of confidence to use the modern technology in construction. The VAR simulators which are available for training include: Wheeled excavator, mast platform, good lift and dumper (Alvaro Segura et.al. 2007).The introduction of the simulators in the construction industry are aimed at enhancing the safety of the workers at the construction sites
According to Moreanne Törner (2009) one cannot act in a safer way unless they have the competence and ability to act so. Thus, the significance of the competence and the knowledge that is the sufficient training- is an important factor in minimising the risk. He conducted his study and came to a conclusion that the health and safety were both very significant as shown in fig 1 below.
It was found out that 92.8% of the participants agreed that safety at the construction sites is greatly impacted by the factors which the company see as competitive tenders.
The significance of safety in the construction sites varies from one business to another. Some of the business classifies the significance of safety and health higher in their management plans. Safety is very essential for all aspects of planning a development as the failure to reduce injuries, this may cause fiscal issues later. The companies may be affected by saving the money which was to be used in implementing safety procedures.
Putting in place construction safety on site is all creating a proactive culture in the construction industry. Even though the risk control mechanism have been put in place ,the construction sites still remains to be very dangerous .The safety and health mechanisms needs to be to implemented to ensure that the construction sites are very safe.
In order to achieve safer industry and workplace, safety needs regular efforts to be put in place. Jaselskies (1996) suggests that the management of the construction sites should focus more in the safety and health programs as much as possible. The outcome of the programs will be worth the money, time and resources to help in managing safety of the project. Through the retention of large portions of the risk via deductibles, the project will be expected to incur significant costs for the accidents which occur at the site .Delays in project implementation plays a very significant role in the projects it could lead to the project failing to meet the set timelines which will not be appealing to the client.
The current construction culture taking risks is part of the construction process and there is no need of putting the safety precautions. The workers on the construction sites are put at high risks due to the machines and the power tools which they use while constructing large buildings.
For the purpose of achieving safety at the construction, keeping the projects according to the set timelines and reducing the cost the following steps are taken:
A safety committee is need to be formed by the safety managers in the construction companies. The major aim of forming the committee is to discuss and review safety performance on the specific site.
It is very beneficial to ensure that all the subcontractors who take part in the implementation of the project are aware of the rules and regulation which they have bleached. At the same time the hazards which they have created at the site. When the cases of fatalities and accidents at the sites have gone down it is very important to recognize the success of managing safety at the site.
It is very important to develop a safety plan prior to the implementation of the project so as to identify the potential hazards and risks.
In the process of implementing any project different subcontractors are involved. It is very important to ensure that the subcontractors submit their, safety history including the accident cases which they have ever been involved in.
The workers who are to take part in the implementation of the project require adequate training regarding to their safety at the construction sites. This can include the training of how to use safety equipment and how they can be able to identify risks. It is very essential for the Contractors to take new employees through induction process.
Fall is one of the main issues in the construction sites and should be treated a issues with very high risks and due to that they should be handled with a lot of seriousness.
It is very important to review all the accidents which occurs in the construction sites so as to determine the root cause and to ensure that they don’t happen again.
It should be ensured that each phase of the project is reviewed so that you can avoid any particular issues that have risen.
Merits & Demerits of safety in construction today
Putting in place safety in the construction industry today exhibits many benefits for both short term and long term. Nevertheless, most of the construction managers perceive the safety at the construction sites as burden.
In Australia most of the construction firms are small business approximately 97 %( Lingard 2002).The small business have witnessed high fatality rates, to be more precise the construction industry. There are more cases of ergonomics, physical and chemical hazards. Most of this small businesses they employ younger, less educated and less experienced staff. Also some of this small construction firms they don’t have sufficient funding to buy modern equipment which are safer than the standard ones. Figure 2 below outlines the merits and demerits of implementing the health and safety measures in the construction sites.
In this section the effects of implementing safety precautions on site will be investigated into details.
It would be very challenging to justify that the construction safety and health does not affect the overall cost of the project. Safety is considered as the key element of managing a construction site or the company it allows the project implementation to run smoothly and efficiently without any hazard developing.
Cost, time and quality are the limits of planning where the project has reached. Nevertheless, time, cost and quality are products which are indirect of lack of work, safety and health and they directly influence the occurrence of accidents. Factors such as inorganic materials, oil and concreate spillage, uncontrolled sanitation and fire also greatly increases the health risks at the construction sites
Health, safety and productivity enhances the quality of the project (Levitt 1995) nevertheless, the pressure which the contractors receive regarding to the completion of the project are also very demanding. Hinze proposed in 1988 that most of the people in the construction industry does not feel that the health and safety are very important in regarding to the success of the project. According to Hinze (1997)the projects which are ahead of the timelines or running according to the timeline programs and are within the budget in such projects the safety and health precautions and measures are outstanding and they might have contributed to the success of the project.
Indirect costs are all non-insurable costs incurred when one is injured. Heinrich’s indirect costs include:
According to Heinrich (1959) the manufactures indirect are similar to the construction cost and thus they are related.
Comparing Heinrich’s (1959) list with Hinze’s list the indirect cost include:
Costs for Clean up
Direct costs are the payouts which are set and they include:
A greater number of injuries that were assessed and it was concluded that indirect injury costs incurred companies approximately four times more than direct costs (Hinze 1992).
According to Hinze (1997). Most of the projects which are outstanding are either on schedule or a head of the schedule.
|
Nature of Improvement |
Response % |
|
Reduced accident costs |
52.1 |
|
Increased productivity |
34.8 |
|
Improved human relations |
17.3 |
|
Raise firm image |
14.9 |
|
Others |
11.3 |
Large businesses VS small businesses regarding safety costs
Ensuring safety and health precautions for small companies can be a challenge as the small company have limited resource and meeting local regulatory requirements and cost concerns that are associated with facets, including workers compensation, as they are all current problems. Due to that higher rates of injuries and deaths are witnessed in small companies.
Regulatory costs for small and large construction found out that small companies have a higher regulatory compliance than the larger firms according to the 2012 SBA Report. Small companies could take more time to get setup with all of the equipment needed to be compliant.
Fatalities and accidents cost both the employee and the employer not only money but also time. Nevertheless, paying for potential accidental costs such as workers compensation and public liability saves the money in the long run. It was approximated that the loss for the companies is about 8.5% of the tender price(Seok J Yoon 2013).A research which was conducted in the united states has shown that the construction industry makes 5-6% of the work force and it was consisted 15% of the fatal injuries which occur. Over 9% of all work days were lost due the injuries. Injuries (Ringen K., Seegal J., Englund A 1995).This suggests that investigating the safety protocol is worth to be given attention as the high risk job can account for the large number of accidents if there are no precautions being put in place.
Carrying out an investigation on the site in most cases is not seen as significant, however a research by Huang (2007) which was carried out and the findings have shown otherwise. A majority of the participants who took part concluded that the indirect costs for the injuries at were much higher than the direct costs for the injuries
The participants from the large and medium companies were asked to estimate the amount of dollars would be saved for each dollar spent on improving the safety of workplaces in Yeung-Hsiang Huang’s (2009) study. Figure 4 is a table of the summary of the study and it clearly show that the average mean value was $4.83 for every dollar spent on safety protocols. For the large companies, the mean averages was $ 4.29.That show the different opinions of the participants on the significance of putting in place safety precautions.
|
Dollars returned for every dollar spent on safety |
||
|
$1.00 spent |
$’s returned |
Size of company |
|
Medium – # of people ± frequency (%) |
Large – # of people ± frequency (%) |
|
|
0-0.99 |
17 ± 11.6% |
15 ± 9.7% |
|
1-1.99 |
40 ± 27.4% |
18 ± 11.6% |
|
2.00 |
38 ± 26% |
43 ± 27.9% |
|
3.00 |
19 ± 13% |
31 ± 20.1% |
|
4.00 |
4 ± 2.7% |
15 ± 9.7% |
|
5.00 |
12 ± 8.2% |
22 ± 14.3% |
|
8.00 |
0 ± 0% |
1 ± 0.6% |
|
10.00 |
9 ± 6.2% |
8 ± 5.2% |
|
# of participants |
139 |
153 |
Conclusion
In conclusion, this report outlines the significance of the management of safety and health at the workplace. The benefits of work safety and health will create important benefits such as reduced accidents cost long term, improved project productivity, enhanced human and client relationships and the entire company profile.
The number of workers and developments in the construction industry are increasing at a very high rate which has motivated the manufactures and engineers to develop technological advancement which facilitate faster construction of buildings and other structures. Due to the technological advancements which are being made in the construction industry it is very important to implement safety and health precautions.
While the construction industry is currently recognized as the major economic force, it is at the same time the most dangerous industries. The accidents which occur at the construction sites are not only painful but they also affect the quality, productivity, time and also impacts the environment negatively. Unfortunately work safety and health are often neglected on the site and re given a low priority to the time and budget.
Occurrence of accidents will results to the increase cost of projects and causes delays. The enhancement of safety and health can minimize accidents which in general reduces the cost of the accident costs. Education and training should be supplied to the workers and management to enhance the safety of the site, It is highly recommended that workers on site to receive enough training before entering the site.
The workers who train who to apply the simulators expand improve their knowledge and skills which gives them a lot of confidence to use the modern technology in construction. The VAR simulators which are available for training include: Wheeled excavator, mast platform, good lift and dumper (Alvaro Segura et.al. 2007).The introduction of the simulators in the construction industry are aimed at enhancing the safety of the workers at the construction sites
It is advisable that the construction management team to implement safety on the construction sites to ensure that workers are safe, doing that can greatly reduce the less accidents occurring thus reducing the effects on the timelines and the cost of the project.
References
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Holmes, N., Lingard, H., Yesilyurt, Z. and De Munk, F. (1999). An Exploratory Study of Meanings of Risk Control for Long Term and Acute Effect Occupational Health and Safety Risks in Small Business Construction Firms. Journal of Safety Research, 30(4), pp.251-261.
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