Safety And Health Management In Construction | Company ABC Pte Ltd Case Study

PDCA Method: Plan, Do, Check, Act

Discuss about the Safety Health & Environmental Management.

Company ABC Pte Ltd is a solely-owned local company based in Singapore. The company has been in the construction business for more than twenty years with its most recent achievement being tasked to construct three eighteen-storey tower blocks containing residential condominiums by MNC (Australian Developer). The company is an A1 main contractor and is a household name in the local construction industry. The company is BizSafe, ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 18001 certified. ABC Pte Ltd has a core staff of more than 200 employees involved in the local Singapore projects.

My role in ABC Pte Ltd was to manage the Safety and Health standards in the condominiums project as a representative of MNC developers. I was tasked to propose a safe method of erection of cantilevered falsework from the edge of the building without exposing the scaffold erectors. This was the first time ABC Pte Ltd is partnering with MNC developers. 

The timetable for the completion of the task would cover four weeks as described in the table below. The construction team was requested by MNC management to propose a safe method of erection within a month in order not to delay the project schedule.

Participant(s) Save Time On Research and Writing Hire a Pro to Write You a 100% Plagiarism-Free Paper. Get My Paper	Week 1	Week 2	Week 3	Week 4
Structure team including scaffold erectors	Demonstration on the current sequence	§  Participate in discussion and planning. §  Onsite and table-top discussion and planning	Proposed design(s) for mock-up modular	Demonstration on final steps and sequence of erection for the mock-up modular
Operations (Occupier)	Observation on current sequence	§  Monitor the steps and sequence to align with the finalised RA and SWP. §  Ensure all towers are complying with finalised method of erection.
EHS Team (Occupier and Contractors)	Review RA and SWP on the erection method	Finalised RA and SWP on the erection works

The execution of the task was carried out in accordance to the PDCA method: Plan, Do, Check, Act. The Deming Cycle was chosen due to its simplicity and efficiency in addressing challenges and ensuring continuous improvement throughout the task (Charantimath, 2011).

Fig. Deming Wheel

As illustrated in the timetable, the steps taken to complete the task were as follows; observation of current erection methods, discussions and planning, proposed designs, mock-up and implementation.

The first step was the demonstration and observation of the current erection sequence by the construction engineers and workers. The demonstration will provide insight into the sequence, methods, workmanship and standard of materials used in the erection of cantilevered formwork (Chandrasekaran, 2016). In this stage, I requested to be also shown the egress and safe access for the site workers and raised queries on the proposed methods of dismantling the falsework to understand the safety measures put in place by ABC Pte Ltd.

The next step was discussions and planning. At this stage, the current method of erection was reviewed and discussions held on the limitations of the current sequence. Building standards and safety and health regulations were referenced to countercheck if the current methods were safe for the site workers (Defense, 2017). The contractors from ABC Pte Ltd gave their report on their current erection methods and the site workers gave their input on those methods, advantages and limitations, and their recommendations. In addition, the site engineers gave their technical input on the erection methods used by the contractor.

Identifying and Managing Risks in Construction

The next step was the formulation of proposals containing the ideas produced in the discussions. I reviewed the technical specifications on falsework erection in the Building Code. The information in the risk assessment forms was assesses and conclusions drawn (Smart 2014). The safe work procedure (SWP) was also finalised. 

Lastly, I explained the proposed safe erection method to the construction engineers, contractors and the site men. A mock-up erection method was set up and all the site personnel participated. I monitored the sequence to ensure that it is compliant to the safe work procedure (SWP) and the recommendations in the risk assessment (Hardin.B, 2015). Once all the personnel understood the new erection method, the requisite documents were handed over to the engineers and the contractor.

The construction sector is always considered to be a high risk industry with risks involved at every juncture. The construction design and management regulations act are intended to ensure the health and safety issues are properly considered during the development of a project so that the risk produced in the industry upon the workers gets minimized. As the work progresses the risks are identified and residual risks are reduced and managed. These helps in the easy assessment of the works by the people associated with the supervision of the works.  The prevention includes the likes of;

1. Avoiding as much as risks that are possible to avoid
2. Putting the appropriate measures that control them at the source.
3. Evaluation of the exact risks that cannot be avoided by the organization

It is important for the construction company to keep a proper record of the risk assessments if there is a involvement of five or more than five labours. Thus the mentioned company have to keep the records as because the large scale project they have undertaken requires a much larger arrangement for the organization. Risk Assessment must not be a bureaucratic exercise and it should focus on the identification and the elimination of the risks that are involved in the construction of such a large scale project. This involves;

• Identify the Hazards
• Deciding on how and who are in risk of a harm
• Evaluating the risk and deciding on the precautions
• Recording the significant findings
• Reviewing the assessment and update if necessary

The information produced as a consequence of risk assessment can be included bythe management in the tender documents which will help the designers, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers to take into account the types of risk associated while constructing the buildings. This in turn will help them to formulate and implement a plan that addresses all the different safety issues. This is generally included in the health and safety file of the construction company. The method statements can also be used by the mentioned construction company to address the specific issues that are related to health and safety of the workers in the industry. These kind of operations includes the likes of lifting operations, demolition of a building, dismantling of an old site, working at tall heights, installation of heavy equipments  and many other similar risks. The use of the method statement by the mentioned organization can help reduce the risks and ensures that all the necessary communications to prevent the risks have been communicated to the parties involved.  The risk assessments and the method statements are together referred to as “RAMS”. For a large scale company and a large scale project like the one mentioned here “RAMS” is an integral process that must be undertaken to ensure the success.

Collaborative Work Environment

Risk assessment must be the process which passes through a number of different phases. The risk should be assessed during this particular time so as to overview the particular changes accordingly. The risk management framework is as follows;

There are generally four different objectives of performi8ng a risk analysis, they are;]

1. To set the requirement for the budget of the project
2. To identify and assess the items that possess the most risk and plan the mitigation strategies accordingly
3. To set the stretch target as a challenge for the project team
4. To return the excess contingency fund for uise in future projects of the company

The most frequent risks that generally occur in the construction sector are as follows;

1. Risks from infrastructure
2. Risks during execution of works at tall heights
3. Risks involved during the use of heavy machineries and heavy equipments
4. Risks involved from damaged portions
5. Risks involved during demolition process

In most of the cases the risk cannot be identified in the initial phases and most of the risk is identified during the progression of the project. The following project will surely meet with such different risks that will be difficult to assess at the early stages. The general risks during the designing and procurement stages involve how to coordinate designs and the process by how to estimate the different types of costs. Cost of the risk and the program is very much difficult to estimate and thus the organization must prepare a cost plan in realistic boundaries. The management of the company must manage the pre construction risks and design mitigation strategies to deal with such risks during the proper execution of the mentioned project. There should be a different budget allocated by the management towards such risk expenditures. After the proper identification of the different risk elements the possible scenarios of all such risk elements must be identified and evaluated for mitigating the risks of the organization. However there are many risk elements in the construction process that should be evaluated by the organization.       

The main aim of the project was to review and revise the common practises in falsework erection, plan adequately for the falsework erection and propose an alternative mock-up of the modular system which can be designed and fabricated on site.

The objectives set to achieve the stated goal include:

• Minimise the exposure of workers to the open edges of the building during construction.

Exposing the site workers to the open edges of the building increases the risk of incidents and accidents which may be influenced by vertigo (Construction, 2017). By avoiding working near open edges as much as possible, the safety and the health of the workers can be guaranteed.

The recommendations in the risk assessment and the safety measures set out in the safe work procedure (SWP) were incorporated in the proposed erection method. The mock-up erection demonstrated that it is possible to achieve good workmanship without exposing the workers to the open edges.

• Cultivate innovation and productivity in the project
• Improve safety standards for the construction site
• Improve the policies and procedures of construction

By implementing the standards set in building regulations and recommendations obtained from the risk assessment, the construction site improves its safety standards thus ensuring a safe working environment for all site personnel (Tan, 2018). This boosts staff morale, work productivity and cultivates a collaborative work environment.

New and Improved Erection Method for Cantilevers

The company policy provides its workers with a safe working environment and ensures that every employee’s action is monitored. This would help

• Reduce incidents and accidents in the construction site since such accidents can lead to death or injuries that changes once life forever. Therefore, as operation managers, it is important to ensure that safety procedures are followed.

Reasons why it is important to consider the safety of a workplace

• Safety procedures create a productive environment that everyone feels safe and in return creates a safety program where employees are willing to work.
• Absenteeism in a safe work environment reduces since all employees have a sense of safety and ready to perform their duties in such an environment.
• Employees fell happy working in a safe environment.
• Compensation insurance claim by workers greatly reduce and as a result, WCB rates also decrease. This makes any company to be competitive in the job market and is highly preferred by clients.
• Employees are the most important assets in any organization. Therefore, incorporating safety procedures will help protect the company’s assets.
• A working environment where safety procedures are encouraged and implemented makes workers to feel as if they are part of the safety solutions.
• Safety environment brands the company in a good image. This helps the company to retain its customers.
• Safety procedures reduce the business cost and any form of disruption. This leads into a safety working environment.

The following were the challenges faced while undertaking the task:

• Three structural contractors often disagreed on the proposal and the design due to the cost burden.
• It is important to understand that scaffold erection is the backbone of any construction work. It is very essential and at the same time very vulnerable to results of accidents in a construction site. Therefore, during the undertaking of this task, it was difficult to get scaffold erectors and the engineers to collaborate on the design and implementation ideas that comply with safety regulations and local codes.
• Demonstrating the different methods and steps during erection of the cantilevered falsework that are compliant with safety procedures.

ABC Pte Ltd benefited from this project by having a new, improved erection method for cantilevers, risk assessment statements and a safe work procedure. ABC Pte Ltd also benefited by having open discussions among the site personnel that cultivated a collaborative culture. This collaborative culture encourages open communication between the site workers, engineers and the contractors.

As the project manager, I developed a work plan for safe method of erection of cantilevered falsework from the edge of the building without exposing the scaffold erectors that will be the template for all the erection works along open edges carried out on site. Based on the risk assessment, a safe work procedure was developed.

Able to synthesis and apply the skills and knowledge acquired for a successful management integration.

• The management should be able to make a decision on the most appropriate plan.
• Should be able to do the project costing to come up with the most economical one
• Should be able to devise and implement the most appropriate safety measures
• Should be able to ensure safety throughout the project
• Should be able to monitor the progress of the project so as to maintain quality and timeliness

Demonstrate the ability to tackle a variety of practical tasks in a working

• Should be able to lay the foundation in the beginning of the project- The management of the organization must be able to make sure that the risks are managed and mitigated even before the risks occur in actual. Therefore it is essential for them to formulate the foundation of the risk management planning before the commencement of the different operations.
• Should be able to ensure safety in material and tools handling- The management must be able to ensure the proper safety of the different materials and must also ensure the proper handling of the different equipments. This must be ensured to avoid any untoward incident that may happen during the execution of a particular project.
• Should be able to train all the participants on the safety level expected and determine the budgets to enhance this safety- The management of the mentioned construction company must make sure to implement a proper program for all the different employees which will help them to save themselves from unnecessary hazards and risks that may cause them serious injuries or can be fatal for them. The training methods make the employees aware about the different risks and hazards and provide them the measures and countermeasures to mitigate the risks. 

Critically examine the problems that might arise during the process of implementing the project and assessing the constraints that might delay the completion of the project.

• Accidents during material handling processes- There are often different cases where different kinds of accidents takes place during the material handling process of the organization. The material handling process of the organization involves the likes of using safe and sound methods in the construction sector and applying them properly.
• Accidents during constructing- The accidents during the construction process is quite common and the application of wrong methods can be sometimes fatal. Therefore the labourers, the employees, the supervisors and the employees must work in a proper and efficient manner to avoid any such fatal mistakes.

Critically internalize and apply the knowledge learnt and apply such skills in interpreting and giving solutions to the problems based on the clients need.

• Solution 1- Application of safe and sound methods while the construction of the projects in the business
• Solution 2- Implementation of a Training program in the organization
• Solution 3- Delivery of a proper Risk Management Plan

The Gibb’s reflective model was chosen as a template for my reflective writing (Gibbs, 1988).  The Gibb’s reflective cycle has six stages that provide an iterative learning model that is simple to use and understand unlike Kolb’s theory that is more complex and has an experimental learning model that requires one to learn by experience (Kolb, 2014). 

The version of Gibb’s reflective model used has been slightly modified for educational purposes (Bulman & Schultz, 2013). The Gibbs reflective model helps to highlight on and also analyze the practical importance of the situations. The risk management model of the mentioned author helps the management of the company or the risk assessor or to have a close look att he risks and mitigate them using immense experience and skills.

Fig 2. Gibb’s reflective model (Bulman & Schultz, 2013)

My task was to ensure that there was a safe method for erection of cantilevered falsework without exposing the scaffold erectors alongside with overseeing overall safety and health standards of the project on behalf of MNC developers. I was required to understand the various forms of erection of cantilevered false work, the risks associated with the methods and the safety standards associated with them.

At the beginning of the project I felt overwhelmed at the amount of information I was required to collect, review and understand. Other than the legislation and building standards that were readily available, most of the information was obtained from observation of the current construction work and discussions with the site personnel.

At the initial stage, not all personnel were open to the idea of critically examining the current erection methods and coming up with a new method. The contractors from ABC Pte Ltd were not very welcoming of a new erection method, raising concern over variations that may occur if the method is costlier than their current erection method.

Generally, it is my opinion that the data collection was successful. I carried out my research, enumerated all the evidence I obtained for submission (Sutton et al, 2016). I kept in constant communication with the other site stakeholders to ensure that my work was completed within the project schedule, remained on budget and the resulting method is satisfactory to all the site personnel.

At the beginning of the project, the site contractors were apprehensive about participating in the task due to concerns over the cost of the new erection methods. I also encountered a challenge with explaining this and assuring them that its will work as intended.

At the completion of this project I had sharpened my skills in project management, acquired new skills in people management and I feel confident that I can manage a similar project in future.

It offered me an opportunity to develop an alternative safe erection method that can be applied to future construction projects. In addition, I developed a risk assessment template that can be used by construction companies to determine whether their projects are within the legislated safety and health standards.

Conclusion

The learning process on safety took four weeks to complete. In these four weeks, all the planning, execution of the plan and an evaluation was done. The plan included the analysis of the current situation and took the learners through the whole process to the erection which was demonstrated. The plan included the four aspects of the plan execution which are to planning, executing the plan activities, checking for progress and finally taking action. The actions here include the assessment of the project against the set standard and rectifying any mistake that is noticed. The training was done with an aim of delivering the expected four outcomes and finally an evaluation was done. The evaluation was done after aligning the results of self-assessment to the expected outcomes. The analysis offered an opportunity to develop an alternative and safer erection method.

The plan should be streamlined with the organization objectives and should form a ground of future safety measures in training. There should be a continuous training of the safety measures especially to the incoming new employees. Out of the training on the standards, the company should develop a manual that will make a point of reference for future purposes. All learning that has taken place throughout the program should also be documented. The company should also set aside sufficient resources to meet future safety measure.

Task Name	Duration	Start	Finish
Project Apartment Construction	25 days	Fri 5/18/18	Thu 6/21/18
Architecture Design	2 days	Fri 5/18/18	Mon 5/21/18
General Conditions	2 days	Tue 5/22/18	Wed 5/23/18
Site Work	3 days	Thu 5/24/18	Mon 5/28/18
Foundation	1 day	Tue 5/29/18	Tue 5/29/18
Excavating for the foundations	2 days	Tue 5/29/18	Wed 5/30/18
Framing	1 day	Thu 5/31/18	Thu 5/31/18
Dry in	10 days	Fri 6/1/18	Thu 6/14/18
Final acceptence	5 days	Fri 6/15/18	Thu 6/21/18

Figure 3- Gantt Table

Source: (As created by the author)

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