Techniques of

Construction Safety
Management

 The term `safety management' is used for convenience and for brevity, and wherever it
is used it should be taken to refer to the management of occupational health and the
environment as well as safety
 Safety management is concerned with, and achieved by, all the techniques which
promote the subject.
 Safety management is also concerned with influencing human behaviour, and with
limiting the opportunities for mistakes to be made which would result in harm or loss

Objectives
 Gaining support from all concerned for the health and safety effort.
 Motivation, education and training so that all may recognise and correct hazards.
 Achieving hazard and risk control by design and purchasing policies.
 Operation of a suitable inspection programme to provide feedback.
 To ensure that hazard control principles form part of supervisory training.
 Devising and introducing controls based on risk assessments
 Compliance with regulations and standards

Benefits
1. All injuries and occupational illnesses are preventable
2. Management is directly responsible for doing this, with each level accountable to the
one above and responsible for the level below
3. Safety is a condition of employment, and is as important to the company as production,
quality or cost control
4. Training is required in order to sustain safety know-ledge, and includes establishing
procedures and safety performance standards for each job
5. Safety audits and inspections must be carried out
 6. Deficiencies must be corrected promptly, by modifications, changing procedures,
improved training and/or consistent and constructive disciplining
7. All unsafe practices, incidents and injury accidents will be investigated
8. Safety away from work is as important as safety at work
9. Accident prevention is cost-effective; the highest cost is human suffering
10. People are the most critical element in the health and safety programme. Employees
must be actively involved, and complement management responsibility by making
suggestions for improvements

Key elements
1. Policy
2. Organising
3. Planning and implementing
4. Measuring performance
5. Reviewing performance and auditing

1. Policy - written policies are the centrepieces of good health and safety management.
They insist, persuade, explain and assign responsibilities. An essential requirement for
management involvement at all levels is to define health and safety responsibility in
detail within the written document, and then to check at intervals that the responsibility
has been adequately discharged. This process leads to ownership of the health and
safety programme, and it is based on the principle of accountability
2. Organising - To make the health and safety policy effective, both management and
employees must be actively involved and committed. Organisations which achieve high
standards in safety create and sustain a culture which motivates and involves all
members of the organisation in the control of risks. They establish, operate and maintain
structures and systems which are intended to:
 Secure control- by ensuring managers lead by example
 Encourage co-operation - both of employees and those representing them as
their trade union safety representatives or in other ways.
 Secure effective communication - by providing information about hazards, risks
and preventive measures
 Achieve co-ordination of their activities both intern-ally between projects, sites,
departments and other operating areas, and with other organisations which
interface with them.
 Ensure competence - by assessing the skills needed to carry out all tasks safely,
and then by providing the means to ensure that all employees (including tem-
porary ones) are adequately instructed and trained
3. Planning and implementing - Planning ensures that health and safety efforts really
work. Success in safety management relies on the establishment, operation and
maintenance of planning systems which:
 Identify objectives and targets which are attainable and relevant.
  Set performance standards for management, and for the control of risks which
are based on hazard identification and risk assessment, and which take legal
requirements as the accepted minimum standard.
 Consider and control risks both to employees and to others who may be affected
by the organisation's activities, the structures they construct and complete and
the services they provide.
 Ensure documentation of all performance standards
4. Monitoring - just like finance, the safety management system has to be monitored to
establish the degree of success of the operation. For this to happen, two types of
monitoring system need to be operated. These are:
 Active monitoring systems. They are intended to measure the achievement of
objectives and specified standards before things go wrong. This involves regular
inspection and checking to ensure that standards are being implemented and
that management controls are working properly. Examples are regular
inspections by site management, and technical inspections of equipment at
specified intervals.
 Reactive monitoring systems. They are intended to collect and analyse
information about failures in health and safety performance, when things do go
wrong. This involves learning from mistakes, whether they result in accidents, ill
health, property damage incidents or `near misses'. Examples are investigation
reports, and reviewing of risk assessments and method statements following
incidents
5. Reviewing and auditing performance - Auditing enables management to ensure
that their policy is being carried out and that it is having the desired effect. Auditing
complements the monitoring programme. Economic auditing of a company is well
established as a tool to ensure economic stability and it has been shown that similar
systematic evaluation of safety performance has equal benefits.
The two main objectives of an audit are:
 To ensure that standards achieved conform as closely as possible to the
objectives set out in the organisation's safety policy, and
 To provide information to justify carrying on with the same strategy, or a change
of course

And if companies do not do all this?

Attempts to motivate the individual meet with greatest success when persuasion rather than
compulsion is used to achieve agreed safety objectives. Consultation with workers, through
representatives such as trade unions, and locally through the formation of safety committees, is
generally a successful strategy, provided that an adequate role is given to those being
consulted. The importance of consulting employees on matters affecting their health and safety
has been recognised in UK law.
Benefits of safety committees include the involvement of the workforce, encouragement to
accept safety standards and rules, help in arriving at practicable solutions to problems and
recognition of hazards which may not be apparent to management.
The contribution of behaviour-based safety management as a technique that fosters employee
involvement has been mentioned in the previous chapter. The technique is not without its critics,
the more sensible of whom have pointed out the danger that physical hazards may be over
looked amid the enthusiasm to `spot workers doing something wrong'

Is it all just a pile of paperwork?

The fact is that many organisations in the construction industry can point to `a good safety
record', but one which can be shattered in a moment. The experience of workers, coupled with
the enthusiasm and concern of site management, can and does count for a lot.
Nobody would expect to run the financial management of a business without keeping accounts,
without basic rules on controlling costs. Strangely, though, many people expect to be successful
in controlling site safety, the health of their employees and minimising environmental impacts
without having any system in place to handle it

The control systems to meet those challenges are not difficult to manage, but they need to be
measured, recorded and audited.
The solution that will allow us to eliminate construction hazards lies in recognising the sense in
getting the paperwork right enough to do the job, but not too much so that the spirit of the
business is stifled by it
World best practice
Ten major elements can be identified that are common to all the world's major contractors.
There are many different ways used to measure the extent to which each element is complied
with, but, in businesses where they are all found, directors can be sure that they are meeting the
challenge of world best practice.

 All work is done according to a managed design that has taken safety, health and
environmental issues into account, not only as they affect the end user, but also those
constructing and maintaining the structure, and the population of the surrounding area
 All work has been assessed and steps have been taken to identify and control significant
hazards and their risks
 All work is managed by staff with an appropriate knowledge of the safety, health and
environmental issues involved in the work
 All work is carried out by contractors and their workers who are competent in safety and
health matters as well as in their particular skills, who have been verified as competent
and who have been given a job-specific induction to the work
 The work is done by contractors who have made appropriate allowance in their tenders
for necessary health and safety measures required by the demands of the contract
 Workers have been given necessary information and training about the hazards and
risks, and the control measures used to remove or minimise them
 There is a system for ensuring work is coordinated between groups of workers and
different contractors, and that work safety issues are discussed and solutions agreed
before the work begins
 The work is carried out in compliance with national or local standards where these exist,
and in accordance with international good practice where they do not
 There is a safety plan specific to the work, which includes the details of the control
methods applied to the hazards and risks, and a comprehensive fire, emergency and
environmental plan, which is in place before the work to which it relates begins
 There is a system of reward for safe behaviour and compliance with the safety
management system, and unsafe behaviour is penalised or otherwise discouraged.

The role of the client

The client or owner is a key figure in the construction safety management process, as the
instigator of the work and the source of funds.
. A client is defined as `any person for whom a project is carried out, whether carried out by
another person or in-house'. Where projects are carried out for domestic (non-commercial)
clients, most of the CDM requirements apply neither to the contractor nor to the client, unless
the client is also a client of a developer, when by Regulation 5 the domestic house developer is
the de facto client until the project is completed.
CDM imposed criminal liability onto the client for the first time. In cases where there could be
multiple clients, and otherwise, a client can appoint an agent or another client to carry out the
client's duties, and then has to make a declaration to the enforcing authority (the Health and
Safety Executive) that the transfer of duties has been made.
Under CDM, the client must:
  Appoint a Planning Supervisor and a Principal Con-tractor in respect of each project,
being satisfied thatthese duty holders are competent and have theresources to perform
their duties adequately404PRINCIPLES OF CONSTRUCTION SAFETY
 Not permit the construction wor kto start unless ahealth and safety plan which complies
with Regulation15(4) is in place for that project
 Provide the Planning Supervisor with informationabout the state or condition of the
premises where thewor kis to be carried out. This is information which isrelevant, and
which the client either has or could getafter making reasonable enquiries
 Satisfy himself that any designer or contractor heappoints directly is competent for the
tas kand hasallocated sufficient resources to it
 Make the health and safety file available for inspectionby anyone who may need
information in the file tocomply with legal requirements. The client will sell orpass on the
file to a future owner or a person acquiringthe interest in the property of the structure to
which itrefers

The Contractor and CDM

Under CDM, a contractor is defined as any person whocarries on a trade or business or other
undertaking,whether for profit or not, in connection with which heundertakes to or does manage
construction work, orarranges for any person at wor kunder his control (includingany employee,
where he is an employer) to carry out ormanage construction work.
Construction work' means carrying out anybuilding, civil engineering or engineering construction
workassociated with a structure. `Structure' is given a very wideinterpretation which extends to
fixed plant being com-missioned, installed or dismantled where anyone could fall2 m or more.
All the CDM Regulations will apply where thewor kfalls within the definition given in the
Regulations Ðnon-domestic, notifiable and where five or more personsare to be at wor kat any
one time. Where a project is notnotifiable to the enforcing authority and fewer than fivepersons
are involved at one time, only the designer carriesCDM responsibilities
Many of the Regulations do not apply when constructionwor kis being done for adomestic client.
The domesticclient of a contractor does not attract any of the dutiesotherwise given by the CDM
Regulations to commercialclients. The following CDM Regulations do apply to workdone for
domestic clients:

 The contractor must notify the project to the HSE, if itis notifiable under the definition
given above
 The contractor must notify the project to the HSE, if itis notifiable under the definition
given abovenThe duties of the designer apply in full (Regulation 13)

The Principal Contractor and CDM

The Principal Contractor is any person appointed for the time being by the client under
Regulation 6(1)(b). There is no restriction on the appointment, except that the duty holder must
be competent, be able to allocate adequate resources for health and safety in order to carry out
the duties, and the person must be a contractor. The `person' may be an individual, a company,
part of a company - and may already hold other responsibilities and duties under CDM where
competent to do so
The Principal Contractor's duties are contained in Regulations 16-18. He must:

 Take reasonable steps to ensure that contractors cooperate

 Ensure that everyone complies with any rules in the safety plan
 Take reasonable steps to ensure that only authorised persons enter the construction
area
 Display particulars about the site and details about himself and the Planning Supervisor
where they can be read by workers
 Take reasonable steps to ensure that the safety plan contains the correct arrangements
and details until the end of the construction phase of the work
 Keep the Planning Supervisor up to date with items for the safety file
 Give reasonable directions to contractors, and include rules in the safety plan where
necessary
 Ensure so far as is reasonably practicable that every contractor is given information
about relevant risks ,and ensure that all workers are given training and information by
their employers
 Make arrangements to allow discussion of health and safety issues by both employees
and the self-employed, and arrangements so that they can offer him advice, and make
appropriate arrangements for the co-ordination of the views of the employees or their
representatives

The Planning Supervisor and CDM

The Planning Supervisor is any person appointed to the role by the client, with the aim of
helping the client to comply with Regulations 8, 9 and 11. The Planning Super-visor is required,
principally by Regulations 14 and 15 to:
1. Ensure as far as is reasonably practicable that the design of any structure in the
project includes adequate regard to the `three needs':(a) The need to avoid
foreseeable risks to the health and safety of constructors, cleaners and maintainers,
or anyone who might be affected by their work(b) The need to combat risks to the
same categories of people at source(c) The need to give priority to measures
affecting everyone in those categories rather than measures protecting each
individual
2. Ensure so far as is reasonably practicable that the design of any structure in the
project includes adequate information about any aspect of the project or structure, or
materials, which might affect the health or safety of people in the above categories
3. Take reasonable steps to ensure co-operation between designers to allow each to
comply with the three needs. This requires a co-ordinating function, including
facilitating the free flow of information
4. Be in a position to give adequate advice to the client and any contractor to enable
them to appoint competent designers with adequate resources to allow them to meet
the three needs, and be in a position to give similar advice to the client to appoint a
competent contractor
5. Ensure that a Health and Safety File is prepared in respect of each structure in a
project, which contains adequate information about any aspect of the structure or
materials which might affect the health or safety of people in the above categories
 6. Review, amend or add to the health and safety file as necessary during the work,
and on completion of the work on each structure to deliver the file to the client
7. Ensure that a Health and Safety Plan covering the pro-posed construction work has
been prepared so as to allow a copy to be provided to each contractor before
arrangements are made for that contractor to start or manage construction work
8. (Potentially) advise the client that the Health and Safety Plan complies with
Regulation 15(4) before the client authorises the construction phase of the work to
start.

Competence, qualification and selection under CDM

it is a central feature of CDM that all duty holders (except the client) must be competent,
and the Regulations specify that certain steps must be taken to ensure that only
competent duty holders are selected.
Even the smallest contractors working under CDM must therefore expect to be asked
about their competence and resources. To satisfy questioners, they will need to have
available, as a minimum:

 An up-to-date safety policy statement, which specifies the means used to audit
and monitor the policy and activities on site, and the means of showing
compliance with the Management Regulations 1999. For most contractors, this
requires recording of the arrangements made to effectively plan, organise,
control, monitor and review the preventive and protective measures
 Risk assessments covering their common activities to which significant risks are
attached. Although there is no requirement for contractors employing fewer than
five people to have either a written safety policy or written risk assessments, not
having done so is likely to place them at a disadvantage -- references from other
contractors would be useful in that case
 Method statements covering activities where the risks are properly controlled by
this means, identifying standard methods and precautions
 Biographies for project managers or those in charge of the work, identifying
previous experience and/or qualifications

The Health and Safety File

The Health and Safety File is a collection of documents showing the methods and means of
construction of a structure, for the benefit of anyone who carries out construction work on the
structure at any time after completion of the current project. It provides information which
otherwise might rest only in the minds of those who built or modified the structure, or in
documents which might otherwise have been destroyed at the end of work on it.