INNOVATION AND

ENTREPRENEURSHIP
MODULE PROJECT
 INTRODUCTION
1. In this study, the researcher is required to conduct a project report that
is based on design thinking skills to offer the student an opportunity
to apply their knowledge to gain some understanding.

2. The researcher has chosen an industry including a major problem

associated with the industry to help the users to overcome them.

3. According to that, the researcher has conducted interviews including

allocated empathy maps including journey maps and questions that
can be asked according to the problem along with the potential
solutions.  
 BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT
AND THE PROBABLE CHALLENGES
1. The aim of the project is to develop a report that can help to
overcome the issues associated with the chosen industry for the
selected pain point population with the help of designed thinking
skills.

2. According to that the researcher has chosen the construction

industry and employees as the main character of the project
report along with the workplace health and safety issues of the
employees within the construction industry.
 METHODOLOGY FOR DATA
COLLECTION
1. The researcher has used primary qualitative data to conduct the
current research, which can also be considered as real-time data
gathered from interviews.

2. The researcher has conducted three sets of interviews with four

open-ended questions to the selected population that indicates
one employee and manager from the construction industry as
well as a municipal councilor who is directly related to the
construction industry
QUESTION 1 - RESPONDED BY
AN EMPLOYEE
1. What are some of the major health and safety-related issues As per an employee from the construction industry the major health
involved in construction? and safety-related issues involved in construction are personal safety
risks, which include falls, electrocution, crushed by a structure, and
more.
QUESTION 1 - RESPONDED
BY A MANAGER
1. What are some of the major health and safety-related issues involved According to the manager of the construction industry, it can be seen that the
in construction? manager thinks the risks related to the usage of equipment can be considered
as a major health and safety-related issue. On the other hand, the manager
also thinks that poor leadership capabilities of the managers along with the
lack of ongoing leadership training for the workers are also some of the major
concerns that can be considered as health and safety issues.
QUESTION 1 - RESPONDED BY
A MUNICIPAL COUNCILLOR
1. What are some of the major health and safety-related issues In the view of the municipal councilor, it can be seen that health and
involved in construction? safety issues within a construction industry for the employees can be seen
due to the risks like falls, electrocution including respiratory diseases due
to the airborne fibers as well as materials and moving objects.
QUESTION 2 - RESPONDED
BY AN EMPLOYEE
2. According to you, what are the two most common risks that
can be faced by you in the construction industry?
According to the employee from the chosen industry, it can be seen
that slips, trips, and falls including noise can be defined as the two
most common risks that can be faced while working in a construction
site. The employee explains that at the time of construction of
building they need to work in heights, which can be very risky for
them and also there is a possibility to slip, trip and fall from the
height, which can cause some serious injuries or death sometimes.
On the other hand, the employee also said that noise is one of the
major or common hazards in the chosen industry, which can cause
long-term hearing issues and also it could be dangerous as well as
cause accidents.
QUESTION 2 - RESPONDED
BY A MANAGER
2. According to you what are the two most common risks that
can be faced by you in the construction industry?
In addition to the situation, the manager from the construction
industry stated that one of the common risks that can be faced by
the worker is hand-arm vibration syndrome, which is also known as
the blue finger. It is quite a painful health issue that can be seen in
nerves and joints as well as can be triggered by the use of vibratory
power tools as well. Meanwhile, the manager also said that at the
time of material and manual handling on a construction site there
can be some degree of risks that can be seen, which are quite
common.
QUESTION 2 - RESPONDED BY
A MUNICIPAL COUNCILLOR
2. According to you what are the two most common risks that can
be faced by you in the construction industry?
According to the views of the municipal councilor, the two most
common risks that can be faced by the employees in the construction are
the risk of falling while working at height and electricity due to the
unmanaged wiring.
QUESTION 3 - RESPONDED
BY AN EMPLOYEE
3. What do you think about how construction industries can improve In terms of the improvement of WHS or workplace health and safety in the
workplace health and safety for employees? construction industry, the employee said that proper training as well as
capacity management including regular breaks and using proper equipment
can help.
QUESTION 3 - RESPONDED
BY A MANAGER
3. What do you think about how construction industries can improve In order to improve workplace health and safety in the construction
workplace health and safety for employees? industry, the manager said that reviewing the health and safety
management processes, which include supervising, spot maintenance and
more, can help to mitigate most of the issues associated with workplace
health and safety. On the other hand, providing proper training is one of
the effective options that can improve the overall WHS for employees on
a construction site.
QUESTION 3 - RESPONDED BY
A MUNICIPAL COUNCILLOR

3. What do you think about how construction industries can improve Using personal protective equipment, and deploying proper risk control
workplace health and safety for employees? as well as prevention including proper training can help to improve
workplace health and safety for employees.
QUESTION 4 - RESPONDED
BY AN EMPLOYEE
4. What about technological advancements in the construction industry to In order to improve the WHS by technologies, the employee said that using in-
solve health and safety-related issues? site sensors, to sense the noise levels including temperature and other things can
be helpful. Moreover, using drones can be considered as another revolutionary
option to maintain workplace health and safety in construction industries as
well.
QUESTION 4 - RESPONDED
BY A MANAGER
4. What about technological advancements in the construction industry As per the manager, using VR or virtual reality including heavy-duty drones
to solve health and safety-related issues? can reduce some of the health and safety-related issues for the workers on a
construction site.
QUESTION 4 - RESPONDED BY
A MUNICIPAL COUNCILLOR
4. What about technological advancements in the construction industry Using smart wearable and sensors including other smart technologies can
to solve health and safety-related issues? help to reduce the WHS risks.
ANALYSIS AND SOLUTION
EMPATHY MAP
Lower levels of knowledge regarding how
to handle construction materials

Lower levels of knowledge regarding how

to promote wellness

Workplace safety norms and policies

 JOURNEY MAP
Lack of policy framework and enforcement on
employee understanding of WHS

Increase of accidents because of non-

adherence to WHS policies

Loss of employee capital

WAYS THE PROBLEM CAN
BE QUESTIONED
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS TO
ADDRESS THE CHALLENGE
Knowledge and understanding level of employees
regarding WHS

Proper policy enforcement

Developing workplace health and safety hazard

teams

Effective training and drill sessions

REFERENCES
Babalola, O., Ibem, E. O., & Ezema, I. C. (2019). Implementation of lean practices in the construction
industry: A systematic review. Building and Environment, 148, 34-43. Retrieved on: 26th February,
2020, from: http://eprints.covenantuniversity.edu.ng/13310/1/1-s2.0-S0360132318306760-main.pdf

Mohandes, S. R., & Zhang, X. (2021). Developing a Holistic Occupational Health and Safety risk
assessment model: An application to a case of the sustainable construction project. Journal of Cleaner
Production, 291, 125934. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652621001542

Oswald, D., Sherratt, F., & Smith, S. (2018). Problems with safety observation reporting: A
construction industry case study. Safety Science, 107, 35-45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2018.04.004