The Health and Safety of Those Working - Term Paper Example

Table of Contents

1.0 INTRODUCTION2

2.0 CONTENT3

2.1 THE SITE LAYOUT DESIGN FOR THE PROJECT3

2.2 MATERIALS IN BULKS: LAYOUT AREAS5

2.2.1 General Requirements for Handling Bulky Materials5

2.3 TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT7

2.3.1 Monitoring of the over-dimension heavy vehicle movements7

3.0 CONTEXT8

3.1 OFFICES AND WELFARE FACILITIES8

3.2 WELFARE FACILITIES9

3.3 SPECIFIC ISSUES RELATED TO THE BUILDING CONSTRUCTION SITE9

3.4 ORGANIZATION ISSUES10

3.4.1 The building occupants10

3.4.2 Machinery10

3.4.3 Materials10

3.5 TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT11

• 1.0 INTRODUCTION

In any given working environment the health and safety of those working and those around the area is paramount to the ideal global view of safety of the environment (Lingard & Rowlinson 2005). Therefore in this particular report I will try to examine the best approaches to the health and safety of the in a commercial buildings where people have rented offices.

The study intend to carry out a thorough scrutiny of the health and safety measures in the work environment while majoring on a building site layout design, their formal and informal health management systems, the project management organizational structures and the broader workforce culture as well as the project management systems which describes the nature, operation systems and performance of their health and safety management strategies in office place (Lingard & Rowlinson 2005).

The ultimate goal in this report will be to unravel the specific types of health and safety management mechanisms. Among the questions that this report intends to answer includes:-

What type of health and safety management systems to distinguish in a building site layout design?

Which specific design areas require much attention in terms of safety measures?

What are the characteristics of the type of health and safety measures that are applicable in the designated areas?

Another area of interest will be to ascertain the how health and safety management mechanisms as stipulated within UK legislation is integrated into broader working environment and the alternative ways in which the integrated health and safety management approach will be explored by the workforce or rather the occupants of the finished of the constructed building(Zhang, et al., 2013).

The other important aspect in line with health and safety within the construction site is the literacy level of the workers as well as the population therein prone to the risks that are being fought. According Harris and McCaffer (2013), the discipline behind health and safety measures has history of adoption of the prevailing management theories and techniques. Therefore, the necessity of legislation in place to ensure compliance to the outline health and safety measures outline in a construction site.

• 2.0 CONTENT
• 2.1 THE SITE LAYOUT DESIGN FOR THE PROJECT

While designing a site layout for a given project, there are a number of issues that need to be taken into consideration least the entire project turn out to be a disaster. As stated by Hughes and Ferrett (2015), among the issues that the project management team ought to factor in before deciding on the layout of the site in relation to health and safety as stipulated under UK legislation includes:-

To ensure that the chosen area has a health and safety plan as well as accident and incident investigation that meets specific standards of the environment as per the UK legislation. This aspect is vital based on the fact the a site chosen for a construction project is prone to so many risky factors that must be assessed and proper management put in place to counter the risks that may arise therein.

For instance, in designing a new building site proper feasibility study of the area should be done prior to the project commencement so as to arrest the issues of health and safety.

As stated in the UK House & Safety Executive, the layout of the site ought to be given a proactive approach to safety-integrated design and organization. The usage of virtual environment that is often underpinned by a knowledge-oriented constraint management system (CMS) is often considered useful in this regard and it forms the basis of a prototype system, that is, the safe site, so as to assist site managers in the process of designing safe site layouts (Zhang, et al., 2013). The potential benefits associated with the prototype system often include the followings:-

An interactive design tool that can be used to assess a variety of site layout configurations

A major scope for minimizing accidents on site through better site layout designs

A training tool for teaching inexperienced engineers aspects of safety on construction sites

Use of the system as a design support system for construction managers

A virtual environment that provide a highly visual demonstration of safety problems that can go undetected when other site layout design techniques used

Encouragement of a proactive approach to construction safety management

Potential for carrying out dynamic situations of site operations

In order to achieve the above benefits, further development of the system will focus on the detailed implementation and testing of the inference mechanisms and improvements to the user interface. These are often undertaken in close collaboration with the industry partners on the project.

• 2.2 MATERIALS IN BULKS: LAYOUT AREAS

As stipulated in the UK Health & Safety Executive, in every construction site, the construction materials requires proper handling, storage as well as disposal.Those regulations specifically addresses the requirements necessary for storing the building materials in an open yard, stacking bagged materials, storing materials in bulk, storage of lumber, storage of bricks and masonry blocks (Tombs and Whyte 2013).

• 2.2.1 General Requirements for Handling Bulky Materials

According to Tombs and Whyte (2013), the bulky materials in a new building site should often be stored in a planned and orderly manner so as not to endanger employee safety while in the construction site. The building construction management team should ensure stacks; tiers and the piles are stable and stacked to aid in safe handling and loading of these bulky materials within the site layout area.

Likewise, those bulky materials that might be hazardous in nature should be stored in accordance with the UK health and safety requirements measures.

A proper storage of these bulky materials such as iron sheets, rolls of steel, bags of cement and timber often health to discourage rodent infestation while minimizing unnecessary stumbling by the workers in the construction site. As stated by Wang, Toppinen and Juslin, (2014), immediate cleaning up of spills and leaks help to reduce possible habitats of these rodents that are always prone to cause diseases besides destruction of some of the bulky building materials such as the timber materials

Although, in most cases these bulky materials are often stored in open yards due to inadequate storage space, proper attention to the combustible materials among them, power lines, access and fire protection should often be considered as follows:-

Fire protection mechanisms; it is recommended that portable fire extinguisher equipment rated 2-A:40-B:C should be provided at specific marked locations within the yard so as to ensure that the nearest extinguisher is not more than fifty feet away for a class B hazard or 75 feet away for a class A hazard (Wright and Brown 2013)

Combustible Materials: It is a requirement that stack combustible bulky materials be secured. The stacks and the piles are often required to be not more than 16 feet high. Those combustible bulky materials are normally required to be kept at least 10 feet away from the site of the new building structure (Wright and Brown 2013).

Accessibility: As outlined by the UK Health and Safety Executive, the driveways between and around the combustible bulky storage piles should be at least 15 feet wide. It is encouraged that the drive way around and to the site of the new building kept free from the accumulation of bulky materials or rubbish. The project management team should use a map grid system of 50 by 150 feet when planning the driveways to the site along the open-yard of the combustible bulky material storage areas (Wright and Brown 2013).

Power lines: As stipulated in the UK building regulations, the bulky building materials such as steel rolls, timber and cement bags should never be stored under the power lines or in those areas that may block egress or emergency equipment (Wright and Brown 2013).

• 2.3 TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT

According to the UK Health & Safety Executive, project construction managers should have proper mechanisms in place with regard to all the construction activities including the implementation and maintenance of the various temporary traffic management arrangement and have the qualifications depicted under the “Traffic Controllers’ of this plan.”

According to Zhou, Whyte and Sacks (2012), the initial Project team organizational structure is appended to the Project Management Plan (PMP) as well as overall roles and responsibilities as outlined in both PMP. The specific responsibilities for the project manager includes:-

Ensuring all the incidents caused by site activity and incidents on public roadway that are unrelated to the construction activity are reported

Ensures that the project’s road safety and traffic management objectives are achieved

Monitoring, measuring and recording traffic queue lengths, including the maximum traffic queue lengths in each direction and the total occupancy or stoppage time

Maintaining and adjusting traffic control measures and devices so as to assist prevailing traffic flows, minimize lane and shoulder occupancies and any lost traffic flow delay durations and queuing

• 2.3.1 Monitoring of the over-dimension heavy vehicle movements

Basically, project management team should therefore strategize to have proper mechanisms to manage traffic movement of trucks supplying building materials. In the event that, the trucks supplied the materials are not properly directed, there is could be possibility of vying off the truck way and this could result in accidents that can easily cause serious damages (Wang, Toppinen and Juslin 2014).

As outlined in the UK Health and Safety regulations, project managers should have well-structured plan on how to manage traffic in their construction sites.

• 3.0 CONTEXT
• 3.1 OFFICES AND WELFARE FACILITIES

In the construction of a new building, the structural design of the offices as well as welfare facilities ought to be given priority based on the fact that they are the important features of the building. According to Harris and McCaffer (2013), in the working environment of a construction company, there are many chemical substances used. These chemical substances may include cleaning agents, fungicides, cement, paints, solvent and many others. They are hazardous in many ways including poisoning, casing fire, and explosions. They might cause harm through swallowing, absorption by skin, or inhalation. Below is the safety, measures to be taken to avoid these:

• Chemicals that are harmful should be replaced with those less hazardous.
• Proper exhaust ventilation should be done
• Protective equipment should be won before handling chemicals including gloves, boots, eye protective
• Chemical containers should be kept safely and in a secured place
• Avoid inhaling fumes that come from these chemicals as well as cement
• Always seek treatment in case of effects of chemicals like bun
• Right actions should be taken in case of spillages from chemicals such as soaking

In the case of noise within the construction, sound insulating screens, ear plugs should be won by those working at the site. The outlets of exhaust should be fitted with silencers (Zhang, et al., 2013).

• 3.2 WELFARE FACILITIES

The welfare facilities here entail drinking water, washing, accommodation, shelter, and others. These facilities should be available to ensure the well-being of these workers. The presence of a person trained on first aid in incidences of the accident; fire appliances and training workers on how to handle a fire in case of its outbreak. Necessities like food and water should well treat and well-cooked to avoid incidences of a disease outbreak (Zhang, et al., 2013).

• 3.3 SPECIFIC ISSUES RELATED TO THE BUILDING CONSTRUCTION SITE

As outlined by the UK Health & Safety Executive, a site chosen for the new building should be free of environmental calamities which might pose as a threat to the humanity expected to occupy the new building. These includes issues like linkages of gases, chemical effluent in the offices or any biological factors which might affect the occupants.

In order to meet these requirements, the UK government amended the Building Regulations 2000. According to Wright and Brown (2013), the changes came into effect in 2006 and are applicable to the construction of new buildings as well as renovation of the existing buildings with a total surface area of over 1000m. Some of these changes were aimed to reduce carbon emissions by 25% from 2002 standards in new buildings, equivalent to a new reduction of 40% from pre-2002 levels.

Likewise, upon completion the new buildings should be subjected to two tests; air permeability like gas linkages and pressure testing as well as commissioning of the building services systems. These will works towards ensuring the safety of the occupants of the erected building since insulation of the building will have improved.

• 3.4 ORGANIZATION ISSUES
• 3.4.1 The building occupants

While putting up a new building, facilities should be erected based on the projected populations to occupy the premises. It must take in consideration office spaces between one offices to another. On the other hand, disabled people should also be catered for by providing alternative route to the building for them (Tombs and Whyte 2013).

• 3.4.2 Machinery

The building contractor should have an appropriate plan in place of managing machines that might be of necessity in the new building. As advised by the UK government, machines such as generators should be erected in place that will not disturb population in terms of the noise impact that may damage people’s ears (Tombs and Whyte 2013).

• 3.4.3 Materials

It is recommended by the UK government that new building elements such as upper floor slab, windows, and roof & external walls should meet an overall ‘A’ rating as outlined in the Green Guide to Specification ‘A’ (BRE 1998)

The paints or even the wall coverings should be as low as possible or free of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), at the same time, insurants made of ozone-depleting substances should not be used (Tombs and Whyte 2013).

• 3.5 TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT

In Lingard and Rowlinson (2005), there are many tools used in construction for different work including axes, shovels, crowbars, hammers and wrenches. The following measures should be taken for their use:

• They should be properly fixed and regularly checked for cracks
• They should be kept free of dirt and grease and the moving and adjustable parts be oiled to avoid rusting and tear and wear
• Sharpening of cutting edges to avoid use of many efforts during work
• Ensure that the tools are safe and secure by keeping them in boxes, racks
• Tools that have been damaged should be repaired or replaced with new ones.

Lots of machines used in construction cite involve many hazards. There are those that use power i.e. electronic equipment which requires training before use. The use of wielding machine, for instance, needs training and use of protective devices.

There is larger equipment used in the construction of lifting appliances and lifting gears. They should be handled only by competent people and overloading avoided at all cost. To make them stable, appliances should have a proper installation. The drivers and operators of these tools must pass the regulations expected of them as per the regulations before being allowed to operate these machines Zhou, Whyte and Sacks (2012).