The Theory of Zero Incident Safety Management

Abstract

Despite the dramatic improvements in construction safety made over the past few decades, the construction industry as a whole is still nowhere near reaching the Zero Injury goal, let alone the Zero Incident goal. The purpose of this paper is to provide an approach to continue improvements of safety performance in order to reach the Zero Incident goal. Since the concept of "Zero Injury" emerged in the 1990s, increasing numbers of owners and contractors have achieved the Zero Injury goal on construction projects. The key to these achievements is the Nine Zero Injury Principles established by Construction Industry Institute (CII). However, the research on which the Nine Zero Injury Principles relied is questionnaire survey rather than theoretical analysis. Without theoretical analysis supporting the research, the conclusions are often challenged, making the concept of Zero Injury difficult to promote throughout the industry. Thus, there exists the need to develop the theory of Zero Incident Safety Management (ZISM) and re-define the concept of "Zero Incident" to provide theoretical insight into the practical application of ZISM techniques and make Zero Incident more acceptable. Drawing on previous theories of construction accident causation and prevention, a new update accident causation theory was developed. This research then identified the management factors that can eliminate the corresponding accident causation factors. Developing the theory of ZISM can not only helps construction leaders deeply understand and accept the concept of Zero Incident, but also guide how to make Zero Incident come true. To facilitate the most rapid implementation of the Nine Principles, a ZISM standard benchmark tool with leading metrics was created. This tool can be easily used to assess the extent of implementation of safety program in construction projects.