Health is a condition of wholesome physical, psychological and social welfare with deficiency of ailment or disability. Safety is being endangered from any form of maltreatment and it is the governing of renowned perils to moderate the risk of being maltreated. Health and safety are defined as a multidisciplinary set of guidelines, laws, and principles that deal with the creation, design, implementation, communication, and regulations that administer the safety and health of the people at work and in civic places. Health and safety management refers to the efforts and measures that ascertain profession threat and emphasis on the bargain of mishaps and revelation to menacing circumstances and affluence. They are inclusive of efforts made to suitably train employees in mishap anticipation, steady safety assessments and the categorizing of hazards and eradication of hazards and use of protective clothing. Managing occupational hazard is carried out with the aim of maintaining and promoting personal health, improving the work setting of the employees and development of working cultures.
Construction of the multistory building was divided into several phases that involve the execution of all professional standards. The most important task in the building is the safety and health of the personnel and ensuring the conditions of people living in the building and the access to utilities. This case study focused on explaining and assimilation of the construction phases and what happens in each stage. The building name was St. Petersburg which is a residential building that has a single section height of six floors. The life service is estimated to be 50 years while insulation and ventilation have a lifespan of 30 years. The goal of the case study was to understand the stages of construction but in this context, it is used to demonstrate the practices put in place to ensure the health and safety of the personnel.
Figure 1: Location of the site(Lee, Mahendra and Alvarez, 2011 p.620)
Figure 2: Location Complex Organization (Lee, Mahendra and Alvarez, 2011 p.620)
There are critical errands that underwrite to accomplishing of safety and health board in building sites. This is the responsibilities which succor in the identification of perils and risk controls and aid in the scheduling, organization, governing and assessment of health in addition to safety measures in a construction scheme from the time it inaugurates to the culmination (Zavadskas, Turskis and Tamošaitiene, 2010 p.39). Health and safety management is achieved with reference to four steps which are; preparation of the labor, setting up the spot, the construction segment, and healthiness and well-being board regulations.
Preparing for work describes the activities that take place before the work begins. They include ensuring the working settings are safe, guaranteeing the anticipated work does not put the personnel at jeopardy and the deliberation of changing the work environments as the site grows (Lee, Mahendra and Alvarez, 2011 p.620). During construction of the St. Petersburg, the preparation phase focused on several aspects of health and safety management. The contractor prepared the site by first ensuring proximity to facilities such as hospitals in preparation for emergencies and rescue procedures. They also ensured the fair proximity of electricity for proper lighting. Geological surveys were conducted to ensure the absence of hazardous contaminants due to the history of the land and conclusion was in form of a certificate that confirmed the absence of a hazardous element and therefore was safe for construction (Wilkins 2011, p.1020). They also provided the work execution schedule that allowed workers to decide if the working conditions were proper for them. They also made it possible to access the working methods that were recommended.
The site setting up stage is a stage where preliminary work is done in preparation for the creation of a proper working environment. It includes setting boundaries and fences to ensure the safety of the pedestrians and people who are around but outside the construction sites. According to GOST 23407-78, the temporary fences should be profiled sheets with blue polymer coating with the height of 2.0m. There should be swinging gates with same polymer color and height 2.6m and width of 6.0m. There were temporary two-way roads that facilitated the transport of materials in and out of the construction site. The roads also had pathways for the personnel. In preparation, they constructed temporal service facilities like clean water supply, construction water supply, and electricity supply. They also allocated an area for parking and repair of machinery. The site setting stage will also construct the welfare facilities for the workers. This facility will contribute to maintaining health and safety. Dining halls and canteens will ensure that food taken by the workers is clean and uncontaminated. Showers so that workers can shower after work to remove chemicals and harmful substances from their skins, first aid clinic which will provide the first aid to workers who might get accidents during construction, toilets were built in an accessible area that was not so near the site nor too far from the site and storage areas where equipment will be stored to avoid injuries to workers (Wu et al, 2010, P. 138). These buildings were constructed in a way that they ensured proper drainage of runoff water. The temporal buildings were located in the north-eastern part of the site.
The construction phase is where most hazards and accidents happened and therefore keen interest was taken to ensure the reduction of the risks. The activities that are carried out in this phase have the highest risks with reference to health and safety. In this stage, the contractors carry out the risk assessment and the supervisors are mandated with the responsibilities to inform the personnel of the risks that were involved and they take measures to reduce the risks in all the activities that are carried out. In the painting of the roofs and ceilings, the supervisors considered purchasing the readily painted materials (Eshtehardian, Ghodousi and Benjanpour, 2013, p.268). In working at the height the first measure was to ensure that the personnel involved were not height phobic. The paint composition was inspected to ensure it did not contain toxic elements that would harm the painters. The paint approved by the St. Petersburg contractor was water-based paint. In the reduction of risks, the personnel is required to avoid height work unless necessary. They were provided with equipment that ensured safety like; erection rail guards on steelwork. Workers are usually at risk of being injured by the vehicles in the construction sites when they are being loaded or unloaded or when they are overturning (Pinto, Nunes and Ribeiro 2011, p.622). Therefore there was a need to reduce the risk of vehicle accidents. This was done by limiting the number of vehicles in the site which involved using gates and barriers to control the number of vehicles entering the site, providing parking for the work personnel and visitors. Proper material handling should be ensured. Lifting was done by machines and not the people this reduced the health risk of backbone breakage. Excavation is the basic activity in the building. Precautions were taken to avoid the collapse of sides and vehicles and personnel falling in the excavations.
The last phase is the phase after construction which involves monitoring and reviewing to ensure the safety and health responsibilities have been properly carried out. This stage ensures the proper installation works of electricity and water and ensures proper disposal of garbage that could risk safety (Zhang et al 2013, p.190). The St. Petersburg contractors involved the environment protection authorities who verified the safety of the completed building and the conducive environment of the area.
Best practices are generally accepted techniques that are considered superior to alternatives because they are a standard way of doing things (Del et al 2010, p.125). Best practices are used to maintain and improve quality. In the construction industry best practices are used to improve health and safety to the workers and reduce the risk of hazards. Safety measures put in place are highly dependent on the decisions made by the contractors. Awareness is one of the practices put in place where the work personnel in all levels are informed of the risks involved and the possible hazards. This is because it is assumed that ignorant workers are in most danger. They are made aware of how the prevention measures that are put in place including wearing of protective clothing. The workers are equipped with skills for the job before they start working (Dejus and Antuchevi?ien? 2013, p.125). The experienced workers are required to refresh their knowledge by attending training throughout. The sessions train about the general protective practices. They encourage the supervisors to observe safety during construction. In the St. Petersburg construction they carried out examination that enabled the managers to choose the best-skilled personnel for the job. Among the expertise examination violations leading to emergency situations was a major concern. In safety and health observing, communication is key (Benjaroan and Bhokha 2010, p. 39). The site should be equipped with proper communication gadgets and fast communication e.g. walkie-talkies. This will allow easy communication in cases of accidents. Proper equipment, adequate work area, and storage are ensured. If the equipment is not proper, they can cause injuries to the workers. The equipment is approved by the contractors after they ensure they are not fatal and are well maintained. In the building of St. Petersburg, load lifting mechanics are involved to lift the constructing materials (Zhou, Whyte and Sacks 2012, p. 108). They ensure the equipment are properly working. They mark the areas and ensure safe distances. The supervisor who is known as the foreman is required to be strong-willed and capable to act in a manner that will enforce safety practices and keep tabs on all employees to ensure they are not putting themselves at risk. Extra resources are put towards innovations that are directed at keeping the personnel safe. Transparency is a practice that allows the contractors to accept that accidents are inevitable in construction sites but the management can account for the accidents and show how well they put practices that prevented the accidents and how the measures put in place to aid in case of an accident (Aminbakhsh, Gubduz and Somnez 2013, p.102) . The ultimate goals for construction safety measures are to provide efficient work and promote the zero accident policy.
Conclusion
Health and safety in construction are essential and all activities that occur mainly have to revolve around the measures that should be taken in the effort of accidents reduction. There is a requirement of special supervision that controls construction and leads to the reduction of health and safety risks (Rodriguez, Alegre and Martinez 2011, P.1860). From the first stages of construction, the main issue that should be addressed is the welfare and safety of the people which improves efficiency and reduces cost (Ferreira, De Britto and Barra, 2011, p.620). In all the stages of construction health is the key concern of the supervisors and therefore in every stage, there are mitigations that are put in place to combat with the risks.
References
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Eshtehardian, E., Ghodousi, P. and Bejanpour, A., 2013. Using ANP and AHP for the supplier selection in the construction and civil engineering companies; a case study of Iranian company. KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering, 17(2), pp.262-270.
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Rodriguez, G., Alegre, F.J. and Martinez, G., 2011. Evaluation of environmental management resources (ISO 14001) at civil engineering construction worksites: a case study of the community of Madrid. Journal of environmental management, 92(7), pp.1858-1866.
Wu, W., Yang, H., Chew, D.A., Yang, S.H., Gibb, A.G. and Li, Q., 2010. Towards an autonomous real-time tracking system of near-miss accidents on construction sites. Automation in Construction, 19(2), pp.134-141.
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