Safety is must for construction site

OSHA’s Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH) will meet Dec. 9-10 in Washington, D.C. In conjunction with the ACCSH, committee work groups, including the newly established Injury and Illness Prevention Program work group, will meet Dec. 7-8.

The agenda for the ACCSH meeting includes remarks from Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA David Michaels and the directorate of construction, updates on Injury and Illness Prevention Program rulemaking and the Severe Violators Enforcement Program and ACCSH work group reports.

The Injury and Illness Prevention Program work group will hold its first meeting at 1-3 p.m., Dec. 7. The other ACCSH work groups that will meet include Silica and Other Construction Health Hazards, Green Jobs, Diversity – Women in Construction, Multilingual Issues, Nailguns, Training and Education and Prevention by Design.

Established as a continuing advisory committee under the Construction Safety Act of 1969, ACCSH and the assistant secretary have consulted for nearly 40 years on construction safety issues such as women in construction, recordkeeping, crane safety and safety and health resources for Latino construction workers.

ACCSH and its work group meetings are open to the public and will be held in Room N-3437, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210. The full committee will meet from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.,

Written comments, requests to address the committee, and speaker presentations must be submitted electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, via mail or fax by Nov. 30. For general information, contact Mr. Francis Dougherty, OSHA Directorate of Construction, 202-693-2020.

Some Myths of Construction Safety

Myth 1: Safety Is Achievable

What is acceptable to one person is not to another, and this difference is not trivial. Even if you confine the determination of acceptability to the same person, what is acceptable one day in one situation might become completely unacceptable later. The even larger issue of how to address unrecognized hazards creates still more difficulty since many things are not recognized as hazards until after they manifest themselves. Clearly, safety is not achievable by any stretch of the imagination.

Myth 2: Safety Is a "Thing" or an Activity

The myth is that you go forth and do safety. In realty, safety is a result, an outcome of actions. Safety is what you get if things are done properly and events go as planned. Even for movie stunts, the definition of a task executed as intended is that it looks real and is safely done. Accidents happen because things occur that prevent the task from proceeding as intended.

Myth 3: Safety Is Best Dealt with Separately

Separating safety as a separate function severs connections with the operating systems delivering results. With no connection to the process as a whole, safety options appear to be selected in an impulsive, random, and uncoordinated manner.

When safety is set up in its own department in an organization, personnel—consciously or unconsciously—transfer responsibility for safety to the department or individual with the title. Safety is seen as someone else's job. This separation creates a barrier, particularly for the flow of information, which only adds to the obstacles to be surmounted.


Myth 4: Safety Programs Will Solve the Problem

Simply creating a safety program only results in possession of a program, not a solution. Having a process designed to deliver safety as an outcome, and managing the effort required to produce it, is significantly different than just having a safety program. It is entirely possible, and it occurs with too high a frequency, that construction firms have a safety program but not a safe record.


Myth 5: Auditing and Site Inspections Deliver Safety

Auditing and inspections can provide an indication of what kinds of problems are occurring on the construction site and where they are happening. The effort of inspecting does nothing to change the reason for the problems discovered. It does not even provide information as to the root cause of the problem. An inspection, by itself, simply identifies that a deviation from intended results has occurred. Thus, an inspection program, by itself, delivers only reports of failure or non conformance to desired results.

Myth 6: The Solution Lies in Finding Some New Technological "Fix"

No complex problem is ever resolved by the introduction of a new technology, particularly if the underlying social system remains undisturbed. On the other hand, adding a new technology without sufficient consideration of how it fits into the existing system can exacerbate an existing problem rather that solve it. By introducing more complexity without expanding the capacity of the system to manage it, a new technology can overwhelm an existing system, and create social problems among those using it.

Myth 7: Construction Is Too Complex and Dynamic

In reality, we know what causes accidents, and we know what needs to be done to effect change. We know how to solve problems. We know how to deal with complexity. We know how to develop controls and systems to deal with dynamic situations. We have access to advanced technology, enhanced information, and increasing knowledge about sociology and group dynamics.

Construction Safety And Health Guidelines

Construction safety plan is terribly vital while designing a project as any construction site will cause danger to individuals working in it. So as to stop any quite hazards from happening you want to keep some safety measures in place. Keeping a construction safety manual comes highly recommended; some safety measures can be taken from the law and other are just logic, however all these are very vital as we do not wish to take the risk of injury or death in the construction site. Here are few safety concerns that should be taken care of :

Knowing how to handle emergencies - Any construction employee must have the information and coaching of the atmosphere they are working in. It is suggested to coach and educate the staff on the site regarding fire procedures and first aid. Simply some basics like first aid kits, fire extinguishers, emergency phone numbers, location of the closest hospitals, evacuation plan will vastly facilitate cut back the chance of accidents.

First aid and fire safety - As told earlier it is a must to coach the employee on first aid and fire safety. Make sure the development site has enough first aid stations, materials like bandages, gauze, burn ointment and ice packs to take care of a fire accident. Make sure that the fire equipment is nearby and also the employee must bear in mind of where the equipment is, how it ought to be used and what method to follow if there is a fire in a construction site.

Taking Preventive Measures - Safety measures are always important in a construction site. Before beginning the day’s work there are various precautions that one will take to avoid accidents. First, factor is to wear a helmet, eye protection glasses, gloves and correct outfit. People working at construction site must be brave, fit and healthy. If the worker suffers from weakness or dizziness he should not be allowed to work at a high level to stop him from falling off heights. Right data about the work, the way to raise and move heavy things can save a worker from possible accidents. Taking somebody’s help to do so can save a life.

More precautions - A construction worker should never use a power tool unless he is trained to try and do so. Wearing safety harness at all times of work can prevent one from falling or getting injured. Inserting a barricade in the areas of danger can prevent both worker and the visitor form going there.

Safety in Indian Construction

International companies in building and construction are forcing Indian companies to upgrade their safety norms and procedures. Safety in construction is frequently pushed to the bottom rung of priorities by the builders, contractors and engineers. While monetary loss heads the list, loss of man hours and material progress are equally irreparable when scaffolding fails, a roof collapses or a fatal accident takes place at site of work, the human life is irreplaceable.

It is high time that a Construction Safety Manual is evolved, made a part of decision-making criteria submitted along with standard tender document by every bidder and strictly enforced by the supervising agency. Findings of the International Labour Organisation reveal that the accident rate among industrial workers is highest in India, touching 4 per 1000 and a major share of it is accounted by the building and construction sector. Indian construction industry is highly labour-intensive. Though mechanization in construction projects is inevitable, induction of machinery and equipment is taking place in a very slow manner. Unskilled and semi-skilled labour is cheap, unorganised, being unaware of their rights, builders find it convenient and profitable to use manpower than machines. Governments and private bodies worldwide have conducted a lot of research and numerous studies on the subject, which is of global concern.

However, compared to other countries, there is precious little authentic data in respect of the accident rates, causes or preventive measures taken by the Indian construction industry. No agency till date has been assigned the responsibility to compile such records, and no voluntary efforts have been made in this regard. However, as per one report at an all India level, 165 per 1,000 workers get injured during construction activities. This is very high compared to the rates in the developed countries and even certain developing countries.

The reason why no agency has made any efforts in this direction is the lack of specific legislation on safety in the construction industry till as recent as 1996. Before the passing of the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 (BOCW Act), construction safety fell within the mandate of Industrial Disputes Act, Central Labour Act and other related legislations. Central Rules and the State Rules need to be made and the enforcing agencies need to be notified. However, till now apart from the Centre only two states, namely Delhi and Kerala, have set up the necessary State Rules.