Construction sites are energetic and frenetic places. They are also places where the risk of accident, injury and even fatality is high. It’s the nature of the beast – heavy equipment, noise, tools, the materials in use and the site itself present many hazards.

There are more fatalities because of workplace accidents in the construction industry than any other. In 2017/18, the UK construction industry suffered 38 workers’ deaths because of workplace accidents. In addition, according to HSE construction statistics, in 2017:

• There were 58,000 work-related injuries
• 30% of these caused an absence of more than three days
• 24% resulted in an absence of seven days or longer

Though these numbers have been falling steadily in recent years, more can be done to prevent accidents on construction sites. In this article, you’ll learn five strategies to help reduce incidents on your construction sites.

What are the most common accidents on construction sites?

In 2017/18, there were 4,919 non-fatal injuries to employees on construction sites. Understanding the causes of these injuries is the first step to reducing them. The most common causes of accidents on construction sites are:

·Falls from height

In first place, and causing a third of all construction site accidents, is falls from height. Typically, these happen because of unsecured ladders or scaffolding (or failing to follow basic scaffolding regulations). Common injuries include broken bones, back injury and death.

·Slips, trips and falls on the same level

In a close second place, and the cause of 30% of construction site accidents, is slips, trips and falls on the same level. Loose cables, unmarked holes, and equipment left laying around are common reasons for these accidents. The types of injury sustained range from cuts and bruising to fatality, depending on the worker, how and where they fell, and how they landed.

·Injuries caused by handling, lifting and carrying

Typically, these types of injury are caused by poor technique or inappropriate training. Injuries may occur suddenly or over a period of time, and are most commonly either back or musculoskeletal disorders. The risk of accidents is increased by factors such as carrying loads that are too heavy, tasks involving awkward posture, and man-handling materials on uneven ground.

·Struck by moving or flying/falling objects

Materials falling from above, often when being transferred between tiers of scaffolding, are also a major cause of injury. Moving objects, such as those on cranes, can hit an injure workers, too. Typical injuries range from cuts and bruises to brain damage and death, and one of the main causes of this type of injury is poor communication.

·Vehicles

Accidents caused by construction site vehicles tend to fall into three main categories:

• Poor vehicle maintenance
• Poor driver training and work practices
• Poor communication

On construction sites, an accident involving a vehicle is likely to lead to a serious injury, leading to loss of productivity and compensation claims which the constructor is likely to lose. (See our post “Workplace transport safety checklist” for advice about vehicle maintenance to improve your health and safety processes.)

·Defective equipment

Poorly maintained tools and equipment are likely to malfunction and cause injury. If this happens, it will be deemed the owner’s responsibility. If you have supplied equipment and it causes injury because it has been poorly maintained, you will be liable for compensation.

·Excessive noise

OK, construction sites are generally noisy places. There is not a lot you can do about this – it’s not like you can reduce the noise by wrapping everything in cotton wool! However, you should provide ear defenders to help protect workers from the long-term damage caused by exposure to excessive noise.

Strategies to prevent accidents on construction sites

There are five main strategies that will help your site to reduce accidents – perhaps even become accident free.

1.      Plan to reduce the risks from on-site hazards

Before work is started, inspect the site and take action to make your workplace safer:

• Conduct a health and safety audit
• Make sure your employees understand the hazards on-site
• Carry out health and safety risk assessments
• Create a culture of health and safety in your construction business

By recognising and understanding the hazards that exist, you can plan to prevent the risks turning into accidents and injuries. This plan should be incorporated into training and team meetings.

2.      Provide health and safety training to employees and contractors

Health and safety training should be provided to all employees, no matter their experience. Give general and site-specific training to educate workers on specific risks and how to reduce them. Remember that equipment and vehicles should only be operated by trained and qualified employees.

Your training should also include training in the policies and procedures that you have produced for every job and task on-site. As part of our health and safety consultancy services here at Integral, we helps companies like yours to meet their obligations to provide health and safety training that complies with the requirements of UK health and safety laws, rules and regulations.

3.      Raise awareness with regular team meetings

Frequent team meetings are an opportunity to ensure that all workers are aware of the hazards and risks they face, and the measures and precautions they should take to mitigate them.

Make it best practice to discuss the need to be alert, discuss accidents that have occurred and how they could have been prevented, and make sure that all workers understand their role in prevention of accidents while working on the construction site.

4.      Supply personal protective equipment (PPE)

PPE is essential on construction sites, and there is a legal obligation to provide it where necessary. PPE is used as a last resort in the workplace, after all other options to eliminate the risk have been exhausted.

On construction sites, it is impossible to eliminate many hazards and risks, and so the use of PPE will help to keep your workers safe. PPE that may be required includes:

• Hard hats – to protect the head from falling/flying objects and collisions
• Hi-vis clothing – to increase visibility
• Gloves – to protect hands from sharp objects, hazardous substances, and when handling equipment and materials
• Safety footwear protective toe caps – to protect feet from heavy and sharp objects
• Safety goggles – to protect eyes from flying debris
• Ear defenders – to help prevent ear injury from excessive noise

Remember, PPE will not eliminate hazards, but is designed to reduce the seriousness of injuries should an accident occur.

5.      Keep the construction site tidy

It is difficult to keep construction sites tidy, but every effort should be made to do so. Making sure tools are stored away and that materials are not strewn around will help to prevent slips, trips and falls. Hiring a labourer to keep a site tidy could help to reduce accidents, injuries and expensive compensation claims.

Make sure, too, that scaffolding is erected properly, ladders are secured, and guardrails, toe-boards and nets are used as necessary.

In summary

The HSE has estimated that the cost of workplace injuries and work-related ill health in the construction industry totalled between £856 million and £1.27 billion in 2016/17. Around 400,000 working days are lost each year in construction because of injuries at work.

How many days is your construction business losing because of workplace-related injuries?

Contact Integral today for a no-obligation consultation, and learn how we can help you improve health and safety on your construction sites and reduce the financial impact to your business.

As health and safety consultants and experts in our field, it’s essential that we remain up to date with what’s happening in the market. Laws and regulations change. Best practices are continually evolving.

Our monthly Health and Safety News Roundup is our pick of the news items and articles that we’ve read over the past month. We hope you find this month’s selection as informative and thought-provoking as we do.

This month, the news items that have caught our attention most include two articles discussing Brexit and health and safety, and other articles that look at health and safety in offshore environments, food production and farming. Click on the headlines to read news that includes:

• Interesting technology developments that could be brought into the workplace to improve health and safety procedures and help companies comply with evolving regulations. How about using drones to prioritise health and safety, or 3D visualisations to help workers become better acquainted with new or restricted workplaces?
• A warning to farms that the HSE will be undertaking targeted inspections on farms across the country. As farming has by far the worst health and safety record in the UK, farmers would be advised to seek a health and safety consultation rather than risk a hefty fine.
• Confirmation that health and safety fines are trending up, and fast. In 2014, the average fine was £29,000. In 2017/18 this had increased to £147,000, with companies now routinely fined more than £500,000 for health and safety breaches.
• Several photos published in The Sun show how workers around the world cheat death – could these examples happen in your workplace? We hope not.
• In Brexit news (we couldn’t not mention it, could we?), companies that make or import chemicals will need to register on a new UK system that will replace REACH.

As always, plenty to get your health and safety juices flowing, whatever industry you work in. Click on the headlines to reveal the full article.

·      6 ways technology will change health and safety in the workplace

An interesting summary of health and safety law in the UK and US since 1970, followed by a look at a few products that have been introduced in line with evolving health and safety requirements. Could your company soon be using drones, AI, and autonomous vehicles in its pursuit of complying with health and safety regulations?

·      Farmers warned to be ready for health and safety inspections

Farming businesses have been warned to be ready for upcoming health and safety inspections, and those that fail to manage workplace risk will face serious penalties. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has announced that it will be undertaking a programme of targeted inspections on farms across the country.

·      What’s new in health and safety?

A brief look at the new laws in health and safety in the UK – including news about the increasing size of penalties for breaches of health and safety regulations, and new guidelines for gross negligence manslaughter that could lead to up to 18 years in prison if found guilty.

·      Construction company fined after fatal fall

Working at height is one of the biggest sources of accidents in UK workplaces. A London-based construction company has been fined £300,000 after being found guilty of several breaches of the Health & Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, which led to the death of a worker.

·     Health and safety would have a field day on these building sites

A gallery of photos from around the world shows workers seemingly cheating death.

·      Pub company fined for health and safety breaches

The UK’s fourth largest managed pub company has been fined £100,000 plus costs for an accident in which a worker broke several fingers while preparing to unload a drinks delivery.

·      UK to replace REACH if no deal on Brexit

The United Kingdom government has issued guidelines for businesses that make or import chemicals, in case of a no-deal Brexit by March 29^th. From that date, chemicals would have to be registered to a new UK system, according to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. (For health and safety tips if your company uses chemicals, read our article ‘10,300 reasons you must carry out a Risk Assessment if your employees use chemicals’.)

Would you like to be among the first to receive this roundup every month? Click here to be added to our email list – and no, we won’t send any spam!

As health and safety consultants and experts in our field, it’s essential that we remain up to date with what’s happening in the market. Laws and regulations change. Best practices are continually evolving.

Our monthly Health and Safety News Roundup is our pick of the news items and articles that we’ve read over the past month. We hope you find this month’s selection as informative and thought-provoking as we do.

This month, the news items that have caught our attention most include two articles discussing Brexit and health and safety, and other articles that look at health and safety in offshore environments, food production and farming. Click on the headlines to read new that includes:

• The potential effects on health and safety regulations and practices that Brexit may cause companies in the UK. Will H&S amendments published in draft form in July 2018 have the desired effect? The British Safety Council is demanding that high standards are maintained.
• The HSE has warned that ‘flimsy’ procedures are to blame for leaks in the offshore industry, and has noted several shortcomings in crucial areas, including equipment and audits. It has now met with representatives of Oil and Gas UK, and various offshore health and safety managers, and together they are now working to improve health and safety records and working practices.
• Two food companies have recently been fined for health and safety offences. A baked goods manufacturer has been fined £150,000 for failing to do enough to protect workers from exposure to flour dust – a reminder that the HSE is very serious about health and safety standards in the food industry. The other fine was levied on a potato farming company, for breaches of Working at Height Regulations which led to serious injuries sustained by an employee falling from height.

As always, plenty to get your health and safety juices flowing, whatever industry you work in. Click on the headlines to reveal the full article.

·      How will Brexit affect health & safety?

With only weeks to go until we leave the EU, it’s important to understand just how Brexit will affect health & safety. What’s going to happen? Which H&S regulations will be affected? How will it all affect your H&S team’s processes and procedures? What do you and your team need to do now in order to be compliant?

·      Britain’s high health and safety standards must be protected after Brexit, demands British Safety Council

The British Safety Council reiterates its demand that the UK’s withdrawal from the EU must not in any way erode the progress made in the UK over the last four decades on workplace health, safety and welfare standards, together with the protection of workers’ rights and product safety.

·      Flimsy procedures to blame for leaks, watchdog says

Weaknesses in procedures aimed at preventing major North Sea gas leaks have been identified in a review by the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

·      HSE, offshore industry working together to prevent spills

HSE recently met with representatives of Oil and Gas UK and the health and safety managers of several of the UK’s offshore producers to discuss how the industry plans to improve process safety leadership, audits and assurance.

·      Bakery fined more than £150k for health and safety offences

A manufacturer of baked goods has been fined more than £150,000 for health and safety offences involving long-term exposure to flour dust.

Potato firm fined £40,000 after worker seriously injured

A Scottish farming company has been fined £40,000 for health and safety breaches after an employee sustained serious injuries in a fall from height.

·      Health and Safety Executive calls for ‘new attitudes’ on farm safety

Agriculture has the poorest record of any industry in Britain, and latest figures show that 33 people were killed in agriculture across Britain in 2017/18 – around 18 times higher than the rate for all industry fatal injuries.

As 2019 gets underway, the Health and Safety Executive is calling for ‘new attitudes’ on how farmers can reduce on-farm injuries and fatalities. Farmers are being told they must pay closer attention to how they manage workplace risk or face serious penalties.

·      Stonework company fined for failing to guard dangerous machinery

A stonework company has been fined for failing to comply with an enforcement notice served by a health and safety inspector, requiring it to guard a stone-cutting saw.

·      Care home fined when worker severely injured after falling down a lift shaft

A privately owned care home has been fined after an employee sustained severe injuries following a fall from height. The company allowed its employees to operate a lift by opening the doors with a screwdriver. An employee entered the lift backwards and fell approximately four metres to the ground, as the platform had not been raised to the landing.

Would you like to be among the first to receive this roundup every month? Click here to be added to our email list – and, no, we won’t send any spam!

As health and safety consultants and experts in our field, it’s essential that we remain up to date with what’s happening in the market. Laws and regulations change. Best practices are continually evolving.

Our monthly Health and Safety News Roundup is our pick of the news items and articles that we’ve read over the past month. We hope you find this month’s selection as informative and thought-provoking as we do.

This month’s news highlights how well UK industry is doing with health and safety, while also showing how much further we have to travel to what must be the ultimate goal: zero injuries and deaths in the workplace. Striking news includes:

• After last month’s news that Amazon has suffered 440 H&S accidents since 2015, it has been reported that Amazon’s Peterborough warehouse called for an ambulance on average once every three weeks between June 2015 and June 2018. However, Amazon quotes that the Health and Safety Executive has reported that Amazon suffers 40% fewer injuries than the UK average for transportation and warehousing companies.

• Do you think ‘early finish Friday; would stop UK construction workers taking health and safety risks and rushing jobs on a Friday afternoon to get to the pub earlier? This is what Protecting.co.uk believes, after discovering that three quarters of construction workers rush their jobs at the end of a week.

• As the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement has been finalised, if not quite signed off yet, we couldn’t not mention the ‘B’ word. British manufacturers have lobbied government via a report titled Making Health & Safety Work for UK Business – Manufacturers’ Concerns in a post-Brexit World. It wants the government to ensure that the current health and safety landscape is maintained after the UK leaves the EU.

• An article in ThisWeekinFM discusses digital innovations, and asks if they could aid health and safety, improving accountability and reducing risks and injuries. Do wearables, drones, and monitoring equipment have a place in your company to help keep remote workers and others safe?

As always, plenty to get your health and safety juices flowing, whatever industry you work in. Click on the headlines to reveal the full article.

·South Western Railway criticised by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall after …

South Western Rail is one of the only train companies in the UK which does not let … I bought a smaller cup but refused due to health and safety rules. Surprised …

·HSE releases Great Britain’s annual injury and ill health statistics

Annual statistics from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) show 1.4 million … and ill-health statistics report can be found at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/

·The number of ambulances called to Amazon’s Peterborough …

“All of our sites are safe places to work and reports to the contrary are simply wrong. According to the UK Government’s Health and Safety Executive, Amazon

·UK workers admit to carrying out sloppy work on a Friday

A survey of UK construction workers undertaken by legal consultant … down the line, they also open up a can of worms when it comes to health and safety.

·INDUSTRY CALLS FOR UK TO KEEP EU HEALTH & SAFETY …

Britain’s manufacturers are appealing for the current health & safety landscape to be maintained when the UK leaves the European Union, with existing worker .

·Can Connected Systems Benefit Health & Safety?

… a great advance to the large number of mobile and remote workers in the UK. … This is revolutionising the way health and safety professionals do their jobs

·Steel fabricators fined after employee received multiple fractures

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company did not have a safe system of work in place to avoid this kind of incident.