Better planning could save 300 lives and avoid up to 500,000 accidents in Europe’s construction sector each year
News release - 27.10.2004
Up to 60% of the accidents on Europe’s construction sites and over 25% of the fatalities could be avoided by more careful design, planning and procurement before construction starts, according to a new report published by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.
Up to 60% of the accidents on Europe’s construction sites and over 25% of the fatalities could be avoided by more careful design, planning and procurement before construction starts, according to a new report published by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.
With over 820,000 accidents and 1,200 fatalities in the EU’s construction industry each year (1), this would cut the annual number of accidents by almost 500,000 and save over 300 lives.
Drawing on 16 case studies from 14 EU Member States, including two newly acceded countries, Poland and Latvia, the 126-page report, Achieving Better Safety and Health in Construction, highlights different ways that architects, engineers and others involved in the construction industry could cut the risks that builders and maintenance staff face. Currently, the industry has one of the highest rates of accidents in Europe, nearly twice as high as the EU industry average, costing the region up to €75 billion in health charges, lost time and other expenses.
The report, which is complemented by a summary factsheet in 20 languages, analyses good practice at three different stages of the construction process: project preparation, including design and procurement; construction; and maintenance. Examples discussed include pre-drilling holes into steel girders to eliminate the risk of them slipping and falling when lifted; regular on-site risk assessments during the construction phase; and designing lighting that is easy to replace and maintain, reducing the risk of falls and other injuries.
Although the authors of the report acknowledge that it is difficult to identify ‘universal panaceas’ for an industry as diverse as construction, they pinpoint three key ingredients for a successful safety and health programme:
- Project preparation: Good standards of safety and health start with the decisions made by the client who procures the construction work. Sufficient time needs to be given for the planning process and consideration paid to how the design will be constructed.
- Managing the construction phase: To create a sense of shared ownership, all parties involved in the construction process, from employers and employees to sub-contractors and workers representative bodies, should be consulted about the safety and health plans and have say in the formulation of the plans. This approach was successfully applied during the construction of France’s new national sports stadium.
- Training and monitoring: All players need to be convinced about both the risks and the solutions, supported by suitable, cost-effective training. Risk assessments and monitoring should be conducted using a simple and easy-to-learn system. A methodology used in Finland is held up as a shining example.
“It is well known that the high incidence of accidents and fatalities in Europe’s construction industry is closely linked to lax safety and health standards on construction sites, especially amongst small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs),” says Hans-Horst Konkolewsky, the Agency’s Director. “But this is not the only reason. Poor planning and design are equally responsible. Everyone involved in the construction industry, from architects and project planners to engineers, has an important role to play in solving this costly problem. Our report not only highlights this issue but, more importantly, sets out a framework for improving the situation, supported by examples of good practice from across the EU.”
Complementing the report, more examples of good practice, background information and links to related sites are available on a dedicated construction web feature at http://europe.osha.europa.eu/good_practice/sector/construction/ as well as on the European Week campaign site at http://ew2004.osha.europa.eu.
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Further information
Press contacts:
Andrew Smith, email: smith@osha.europa.eu European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, Tel: +34 94 479 57 33
Greg Haywood, email: haywood@osha.europa.eu European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, Tel : +34 94 479 35 39
Other enquiries:
European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, Gran Via 33, E-48009 Bilbao, Spain, email: information@osha.europa.eu, fax: +34 94 479 4383.
Notes to editors
- The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work was set up by the European Union to help meet the information needs in the field of occupational safety and health. Based in Bilbao, Spain, the Agency aims to improve the lives of people at work by stimulating the flow of technical, scientific and economic information between all those involved in occupational safety and health issues.
- The European Week for Safety and Health at Work, which will take place on 18-22 October 2004, is an information campaign designed to raise awareness and promote activities to make Europe a safe and healthy place to work. It is coordinated by the European Agency and will be run in the Member States, accession, EFTA and candidate countries. The Week is aimed at the workplace and all safety and health institutions and organisations, trade unions, companies, managers, employees and safety representatives are invited to take part and organise their own activities. These can include special audits and risk assessment activities in the workplace, organising training, distributing information material, launching a new workplace policy, suggestion schemes, encouraging participation of employees and their representatives or linking-up with other organisations, businesses or subcontractors to carry out activities in partnership. The slogan of EW2004 is ‘Building in Safety’. Visit http://ew2004.osha.europa.eu for more information.
- The report, Achieving Better Safety and Health in Construction can be downloaded from http://agency.osha.europa.eu/publications/reports/314/en/index.htm. A summary factsheet in the 20 EU languages is also available at http://agency.osha.europa.eu/publications/factsheets/. Printed copies of the publications can be ordered from the Publications Office of the European Communities ( http://publications.eu.int) and its sales agents.
(1) These figures are the latest available from Eurostat and refer to the 15 Member States of the pre-enlargement European Union.
