Safety Risk Management in Australian Construction Sites - Case Study Example

Safety risk mаnаgemеnt in Аustrаliаn соnstruсtiоn sitеs Author Registration Number Course Tutor Date Table of contents Executive Summay……………………………………………………………………3 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………..3 Risks in the construction industry in Australia……………………………………….4 Causes of risks………………………………………………………………………...5 Management of safety risks in construction sites……………………………………..6 National OHS strategy………………………………………………………………...7 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………..8 References……………………………………………………………………………..9 Executive Summary This research is focused on construction projects in Australia and how they manage risk in general and on matters regarding safety in particular. It is also intended to give evidence of risk management in general and also evidence of specific methods adopted by the industry in managing both internal and external risks. The essay will also compare the practical actions taken in risk management in the Australian construction industry with the provisions of project management theory with regard to project management. It goes on to look into the government’s contribution to the uplifting of safety standards. It also looks at project risks in general because they contribute to safety risks in that decision makers have to balance between risks and they may consider avoiding other risks like the risk of financial loss to be more important than reducing safety risk. The safety risks in Australia are also compared to similar risks in other industries to which they compare rather unfavourably. Introduction A projects objective regarding duration, cost, quality and environmental sustainability are, to a substantial extent, dependent on the risk management process. Risk management involves timely identification of occurrences, within a project, that are likely to prevent the achievement of the objectives for which the project was started in the first place. The risks may originate either internally or externally (Akitonye & McLeod 1997). Proper risk management requires that risk control measures be put under review regularly and necessary changes be recommended to those concerned as need arises to ensure that they are implemented hence constantly keeping the risks in check (Tang et al. 2007; Kansal & Sharma 2012). Risk management is used by those involved in managing the project as a tool of finding out what the causes of risks and uncertainties are determining the extent to which they may impact the project and coming up with a way of handling them accordingly (Uher 2003). SFW 2012 refers to construction as work done concerning changing, ‘conversion, installation, commissioning a renovation, repair, maintenance, demolition, decommissioning or dismantling a structure’. Risks pertaining to the safety of people on sites in which any of the activities mentioned in this definition is an important risk, because lack of safety may lead to huge losses on the part of the project. Such risks and how they are managed in Australia are the subject of this paper. The construction industry has a relatively bigger number of risks owing to the uniqueness of all the many activities involved. Projects in construction take long to complete, and are financially intensive. They also have very dynamic organizations which involve a wide variety of people and interests (Smith 2003). This higher susceptibility to risk in general in the construction industry is, unfortunately, reflected on matters regarding safety. The construction industry is one of the key indicators of economic performance in a country. In Australia, the industry is regulated by different government agencies to ensure that projects comply with the set regulations. A report by ABS 2003 shows that in, Western Australia alone, the construction industry alone employed 8.1% of the entire state workforce. This made it the fifth largest industry in terms of employment. Studies have been conducted concerning the most prevalent risks in the industry and how they can be managed. Risks in the construction industry in Australia A survey by Zou et al. (2005) on the Australian construction industry established different types of risks; these included risks related stakeholders. Among the stakeholders listed as causing risks were, the risks associated to them were listed as, among other things, project schedules that did not allow time for unforeseeables. Others included constant changes of the original plan by the client the client also, at times, has high, unrealistic expectations concerning how the project should be implemented. Another category of stakeholders who had risks associated to them listed were designers. Changes in designs was seen as one of the main risks associated with them, project schedules that do not meet the threshold of adequacy was also identified as a designer related risk. Sometimes the cost estimates are not complete and they may be complete but lack accuracy. Contractors are other stakeholders who have risks associated to them the risks include construction management plan that is not suitable for the project in question. Poor coordination among the participants of the project is another risk related to the project contractors. Government related risks were identified to include too much bureaucracy which resulted in unnecessarily many approval needs. The above risks are internal, external risks include increase in prices of construction materials (Zou et al. 2005). Matters regarding risk to injury in the construction industry are regulated by the Occupational Health Safety and Welfare Act of 1986, which is commonly referred to as OHS & W. Causes of safety risks Safety has been described as a condition in which there is no risk of something going wrong (Holt 2001). Another definition has been given as control of the known risks in order to reach an acceptable level of risk Hislop 2009). Unsafe conditions and activities in the construction industry lead to accidents. The unsafe conditions that have, mostly, been experienced in the Australian construction sites include too much noise, flammable materials improperly handled and lack of sufficient firefighting equipment. It also includes excessively easy accessibility to moving machines and use of tools that are not working properly among others. The risk of lack of safety may also be brought about by other factors that have the domino effect of promoting lack of safety. These include too much financial restrictions, having a project management team that has no interest in ensuring safety. Lack of a clear policy regarding safety also predisposes a construction site to lack of safety. There may be a safety policy at the construction site but it would not be of much use if it is not communicated clearly to all involved, lack of clear communication channels has been identified as a key cause of the problems that lead to accidents in Australian construction sites (Kansai & Sharma 2012). Certain social attitudes also contribute to lack of safety these include traditions found in some trades or industries. Management of safety risks in construction sites According to Fraser 2007, performance of the construction industry in terms of safety is much poorer compared to overall work injury statistics. The statistics paint a grim picture with the rate of fatalities topping 9.2% as compared to 3.1 % for all industries. According to Duff et al. (1993), the surest way to improve safety in Australian construction sites can only be achieved if all the people involved change their behaviour concerning safety. This can be done by encouraging the use of technology as a way of making conditions at the site better. Technology ensures that the machines introduced at the construction site are safe to work with e.g. they can be well built to prevent workers from touching movable parts that may be dangerous. It is important to ensure that the safety issue of concern is handled early and at its source this makes it easier for the problem to be handled. It is even better to eliminate the danger where possible, when that is done there no longer is the need for development of modalities to management of the safety issue. Project management theory further suggests prioritization of protection of the whole site as opposed to individual sections of the construction site. National OHS strategy In 2002 Australian National OHS put in place a strategy for the reduction of deaths, injuries and diseases that are related to work. The target was to reduce work place injuries by a minimum of 40% by 2012. The Australian construction industry came up with a strategy which identifies priority areas to which emphasis must be laid in order to increase work safety in the industry. The report outlined principles for safer construction which include demonstration of safety leadership, promotion and designing for safety, communication of safety information, management of safety risk, and continuous improvement of safety performance, the other principle was the entrenchment of safety practices. The guide the construction industry also addresses the priority areas outlined by the national strategy. The first priority area is risk reduction is Risk reduction which should be done in all stages of the project process from design to completion; this means that safety issues in all available options should be carefully considered before a decision is eventually made. The other priority is capacity building in OHS management where employers’ ability to manage safety should be carefully considered. The priority of prevention of occupational disease is implicit in all other activities since work related diseases are injuries in a way. The guide also lists the elimination of hazard by design as a priority. This requires that physical danger be reduced at design stage this is because there has been numerous studies showing flaws in design as a major cause of injuries in construction (Suraji et al. 2001; Behm 2005; Gibb et al. 2004). The last priority listed is strengthening of the capacity in for government influence, through the development of safety guidelines, the government, as a major client in construction ought to have the capacity to influence safety standards. Conclusion The construction industry in Australia has a very high rate of safety problems as compared to other sectors. Being an important player in the economy in the Commonwealth of Australia, it is important that safety standards be improved to reduce fatalities, injuries and other illnesses related to it as it continues to grow. There have been efforts to improve safety but they can be more coordinated so that all players understand that safety considerations are a non negotiable part of what they do in the project from design to commissioning and every step in between. References A B S 2003. Western Australian statistical indicators .Commonwealth of Australia. Akintoye A.S and MacLeod, M.J. 1997. Risk analysis and management in construction, International Journal of Project Management. Vol 15, February 1997, pages 31-38. Behm, M 2005. Linking construction fatalities to design for construction safety concept. Safety science, 43, 589-611. Fraser, L, 2007. Significant developments in occupational health and safety in Australia’s construction industry, International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, 13: 12-20. Gibb. A.G.F., Pavitt, T. and McKay, L.J., 2004. Designing for health and safety in cladding installation – implications from pre-assembly. IN: Proceedings of International Conference on Building Envelope Systems and Technologies (ICBEST 2004), Sydney, Australia, pp. 1-7. Holt,A 2001.Principles of construction safety Blackwell science. Malden USA. Kansal & Sharma 2012. Risk Assessment Methods and Application in the Construction Projects International Journal of Modern Engineering Research (IJMER) Vol.2, Issue.3, pp-1081-1085 Smith, N.J. 2003. Appraisal, Risk and Uncertainty (Construction Management Series), London: Thomas Telford Ltd, UK. Suraji, A., Duff, A.R., & Peckit, S.J., 2001. Development of a causal model of construction accident causation. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 127, 337 – 345 Uher, T. 2003 Programming and Scheduling Techniques, UNSW Press, Sydney Tang, W, Qiang, M., Duffield, C, Young, D.M and Lu, Y 2007. Risk management in the Chinese construction industry. Journal of construction Engineering and Management 133 (12) Zou1, P, Zhan, G and Wang, J 2002 & Faculty of Built Environment, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2002, Australia;3: College of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, P.R. China. Read More