Safety in construction – a comprehensive description of the characteristics of high safety standards in construction work, from the combined perspective of supervisors and experienced workers

Introduction

The often applied engineering approach to safety management in the construction industry needs to be supplemented by organizational measures and measures based on how people conceive and react to their social environment. This requires in-depth knowledge of the broad preconditions for high safety standards in construction. The aim of the study was to comprehensively describe the preconditions and components of high safety standards in the construction industry from the perspective of both experienced construction workers and first-line managers.

Method

Five worker safety representatives and 19 first-line managers were interviewed, all strategically selected from within a large Swedish construction project. Phenomenographic methodology was used for data acquisition and analysis and to categorize the information. Nine informants verified the results.

Results

The study identified four main categories of work safety preconditions and components: (1) Project characteristics and nature of the work, which set the limits of safety management; (2) Organization and structures, with the subcategories planning, work roles, procedures, and resources; (3) Collective values, norms, and behaviors, with the subcategories climate and culture, and interaction and cooperation; and (4) Individual competence and attitudes, with the subcategories knowledge, ability and experience, and individual attitudes.

Discussion

The results comprehensively describe high safety standards in construction, incorporating organizational, group, individual, and technical aspects. High-quality interaction between different organizational functions and hierarchical levels stood out as important aspects of safety. The results are discussed in relation to previous research into safety and into the social-psychological preconditions for other desired outcomes in occupational settings.

Impact on Industry

The results can guide construction companies in planning and executing construction projects to a high safety standard.     

Radiological risk assessment and biosphere modelling for radioactive waste disposal in Switzerland

Long-term safety assessments for geological disposal of radioactive waste in Switzerland involve the demonstration that the annual radiation dose to humans due to the potential release of radionuclides from the waste repository into the biosphere will not exceed the regulatory limit of 0.1 mSv. Here, we describe the simple but robust approach used by Nagra (Swiss National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste) to quantify the dose to humans as a result to time-dependent release of radionuclides from the geosphere into the biosphere. The model calculates the concentrations of radionuclides in different terrestrial and aquatic compartments of the surface environment. The fluxes of water and solids within the environment are the drivers for the exchange of radionuclides between these compartments. The calculated radionuclide concentrations in the biosphere are then used to estimate the radiation doses to humans due to various exposure paths (e.g. ingestion of radionuclides via drinking water and food, inhalation of radionuclides, external irradiation from radionuclides in soils). In this paper we also discuss recent new achievements and planned future work.     

The trajectories of Prevention through Design in construction

INTRODUCTION: Construction Hazards Prevention through Design (CHPtD) is a process in which engineers and architects explicitly consider the safety of construction workers during the design process. Although articles on CHPtD have appeared in top construction journals, the literature has not addressed technical principles underlying CHPtD to help designers better perform CHPtD, to facilitate the development of additional CHPtD tools, and to predict the future path of CHPtD. METHOD: This theoretical paper uses the existing literature on CHPtD and current action research associated with several CHPtD workgroups to analyze how CHPtD will likely evolve over the coming decades. RESULTS: There are four trajectories along which CHPtD will progress. (a) Designs will increasingly facilitate prefabricated construction; (b) designers will increasingly choose materials and systems that are inherently safer than alternatives; (c) designers will increasingly perform construction engineering; and (d) designers will increasingly apply spatial considerations to reduce worker hazards. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: By understanding how CHPtD may be manifested in the engineering-procurement-construction (EPC) industry, practitioners can better prepare for adopting CHPtD within their organizations and construction and engineering educators can better prepare their graduates to perform CHPtD.     

基于生命经济价值理论的企业安全投资技术经济分析

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初论矿区安全生态经济学研究的必要性

本文受世界环发大会“地球誓言”及我国古代“哲学诗”——《老子》“天地人的大法则”的启示。探讨了“矿区安全生态经济学”的概念与定义。阐述了研究本课题的必要性:我国拥有2000万矿业生产人员,24万座矿山,一大批依托矿产资源开发而兴起的矿业城镇,我国矿区总人口近亿人,如何用“整体、动态、平衡”的思维方法,深入研究我国矿区资源开发中生态、经济、社会协调发展的规律和模式,最大限度地减轻与消除矿藏开采对地球表层造成的综合性负效应,确保矿区生产环境,生活与生存、社会环境的安全与舒适,使矿区人民安居乐业。还给出了反映本课题必要性的两则实例,并研讨了主要研究内容与方法,提出了有关的基础理论与主导思想。     

企业供电系统安全可靠运行的探讨与实践

介绍了金川公司内部供电系统的概况,对供电系统的故障、事故类型及原因进行了简要分析,对降低故障率、减少一般事故、杜绝重大事故和人身伤亡事故的对策进行了探讨和实践。从企业的人──机──环境的角度提出：①依靠科技进步,提高系统装备安全可靠性;②加强管理,使员工具有较强的安全意识和行为。这两点是供电系统安全可靠运行的两个同等重要条件。     

根据现代企业理论探讨煤炭企业安全管理问题

煤炭行业属于高危险性行业,降低其事故发生率,提高安全生产水平是煤炭工作者孜孜以求的目标。笔者应用委托——代理理论对煤炭安全管理问题进行探讨,分析了安全投入与安全水平、安全投入与安全报酬、事故赔偿与安全水平等之间的关系,提出了煤炭企业改善安全现状的管理对策及建议,并认为事故赔偿金过低,不足以对企业形成足够的压力,不利于企业主动提高安全水平,应加大惩罚力度,提高惩罚成本和惩处率。     

海洋功能区划立法探讨

海洋环境的诸多特点使得依据各涉海部门的单行法律法规难以进行有效的海洋管理,从而导致海域开发秩序混乱、局部海域用海矛盾突出及人力、财力的浪费等现象。要从根本上解决以上问题,必须对涉海法律进行整合并制定专门的综合性的海洋功能区划法律。针对目前海洋功能区划的立法缺陷,本文从符合海洋生态系统的规律和特点的角度出发,分析了立法的必要性,提出海洋功能区划立法应以生态安全和非社会秩序为价值取向,以可持续发展为指导思想,以保持海洋生态健康原则、预警原则、以海定陆原则、资源定位原则、公众参与原则为立法原则。     

水污染物排放总量控制管理的经济原则

本文通过对外部性概念的分析和最优/次最优污染物排放量——环境质量管理模型的建立,阐述总量控制管理系统的两个经济原则及公平、效率两管理目标的含义与关系。并着重指出:遵循公平性目标是总量控制管理系统外部制约条件——国民经济管理系统合理运行的需要。     

Distributed Safety Management as a tool for creating a safety culture in university students and future professionals

The main hypothesis of this work is that it is possible to create a safety culture not only in industrial or commercial organizations, but also in educational institutions. The goal is communicating a culture of safety to their students, which will be spread by the new professionals. Consequently, the objective of this paper is showing the results of first steps of application – establishing the baseline – of the Gaining Distributed Safety – GDS – tools to the academic community of the Universidad Centroamericana "José Simeón Cañas" (UCA) of El Salvador. GDS tools establish those aspects to which attention should be posed in order to achieve excellence in safety. Also enables analysis to recognise the weaker aspects of safety, so corrective actions can be taken.Before applying any improvement action according GDS, the initial parameters to measure the culture of safety in UCA were established. Special versions of the AsSeVi Survey Tool were developed and checked out. The first one was adapted to academy and administration of UCA. The second, to students. Both communities showed similar characteristics according GDS, opening the door of improving the safety culture of students working only with academy. Finally, the JST Safety Survey and a traditional behavioural safety observation activity were used to establish reference indicators. Use a handrail in stairs and walking watching cell phone are two excellent potential possibilities to be used as indicators.