Affecting Construction Safety Research Articles

How Can Conflicts with Supervisors or Coworkers Affect Construction Workers’ Safety Performance on Site? Two Cross-Sectional Studies in North America

A safety plateau in the construction industry has been reported in the US and Canada, which has prompted researchers to seek new factors affecting construction safety performance. Tapping into advancements in the theory of human and organizational behaviors can yield valuable new perspectives. Therefore, by leveraging the advancement of the Job Demand Control Support model in the field of occupational safety and health, this paper firstly tested the impact of one newly added hindrance stressor (i.e., interpersonal conflicts on construction sites) by researchers on organizational behaviors on the safety performance of construction workers, based on two cross-sectional studies in the US and Canada. Differentiations were made between conflicts with supervisors and conflicts with coworkers. One personal resource factor, i.e., individual resilience, was also considered in this paper. A “causal” chain that shows the mitigation impact of individual resilience on conflicts with supervisors or coworkers, and the adverse impact of conflicts with supervisors or coworkers, on unsafe events were found to hold true for both US and Canadian construction sites, based on the results from measurement invariance tests and structural equation modelling. Recommendations regarding how to improve construction workers’ individual resilience and reduce interpersonal conflicts on site, thereby reducing safety incidents on site, are provided.

Crack Detection of Concrete Based on Improved CenterNet Model

Cracks on concrete surfaces are vital factors affecting construction safety. Accurate and efficient crack detection can prevent safety-related accidents. Using drones to photograph cracks on a concrete surface and detect them through computer vision technology has the advantages of accurate target recognition, simple practical operation, and low cost. To solve this problem, an improved CenterNet concrete crack-detection model is proposed. Firstly, a channel-space attention mechanism is added to the original model to enhance the ability of the convolution neural network to pay attention to the image. Secondly, a feature selection module is introduced to scale the feature map in the downsampling stage to a uniform size and combine it in the channel dimension. In the upsampling stage, the feature selection module adaptively selects the combined features and fuses them with the output features of the upsampling. Finally, the target size loss is optimized from a Smooth L1 Loss to IoU Loss to lessen its inability to adapt to targets of different sizes. The experimental results show that the improved CenterNet model reduces the FPS by 123.7 Hz, increases the GPU memory by 62 MB, increases the FLOPs by 3.81 times per second, and increases the AP by 15.4% compared with the original model. The GPU memory occupancy remained stable during the training process and exhibited good real-time performance and robustness.

Characteristics of resistivity variation in deep granite and in-situ detection applications

During the construction of deep vertical shafts, water inrush and flooding accidents are prone to occur, which seriously affect construction safety. Accurately determining the groundwater conditions is a prerequisite for effectively controlling water hazards and conducting risk management. In order to ensure the accuracy of the resistivity method in deep vertical well water exploration construction, a combination of indoor rock physics, mechanical testing, and on-site engineering measurements was used to analyze the influencing factors of granite resistivity. The corresponding relationship between resistivity and formation integrity was revealed, and water exploration experiments were conducted in the working face of deep underground mines. The results show that: (1) Rock resistivity is influenced by metallic minerals, saturation, temperature, ion content of fracture water, and joints. Regarding deep subsurface detection issues, the main factors affecting the detection results are water content and rock integrity. (2) During the loading process, rock resistivity exhibits significant stage response characteristics, which are closely related to rock integrity and damage accumulation. (3) A degradation model for aquifer zoning based on resistivity benchmark line was established. When the formation resistivity is higher than the benchmark line, it indicates a well-integrated formation with low water content. (4) Resistivity cloud maps and zoning degradation models can be used to visually determine and evaluate the occurrence status of formations and the effectiveness of grouting.

Study on the Mechanism of Safety Risk Propagation in Subway Construction Projects

Under the development trend of complexity and systematization of metro construction, there is an increasing number of risk factors potentially affecting construction safety, which has led to frequent accidents in metro construction projects, and the road to high-quality and sustainable development of metro construction is full of challenges. One of the essential reasons is that the propagation mechanism of safety risk factors in metro construction under hidden and delayed effects is not yet clear. This paper combines the theory of complex network and propagation dynamics and constructs a subway construction safety risk propagation model based on considering the hidden and delayed characteristics of construction safety risk propagation, which reveals the dynamic propagation law of subway construction safety risk and puts forward feasible coping strategies. The findings evince that the delay time T significantly affects the propagation behavior of risk and the achievement of the equilibrium state in the network. The transmissibility of the risk factor within the hidden state holds a pivotal sway over the entirety of risk propagation, and the latency in transmission significantly expedites the propagation of risk throughout the network. It is recommended that project managers monitor and warn safety state nodes and hidden state nodes to block the spread of risk in the network and control the delay time of risk in the network in time to reduce the probability of risk occurrence. This study significantly promotes the resilient management of safety risks in metro construction.

Proof of Concept for Methodological Framework Including Point Clouds in the Non-Destructive Diagnosis of Historical Masonry Structures

ABSTRACT The diagnosis of cultural heritage structures is a challenging and delicate task. It involves the evaluation of potential pathological situations, the understanding of the origin of displacements and deformations, and the assessment of the state of conservation of building materials. Destructive and minor destructive techniques are mostly prevented from being used in the context of historical constructions and the complementary use of non-destructive techniques is often the only viable solution. This paper addresses the possibility of employing point clouds, widely used for representation aims, as a source of information to identify the deterioration patterns that can affect construction safety. The proposed methodology includes two approaches following a perspective based on simple and recurring elements that form the complex and unique shape of historical buildings. The geometry of structural elements guides the choice towards the computation either of the Z-coordinate of each point of the cloud or the Euclidean distance between the point cloud and an elementary non-deformed geometry fitted to it. By investigating several case studies and diverse deterioration patterns, the proposal establishes a framework to employ point clouds, together with other techniques, as an effective tool to support the diagnosis of heritage structures.

Ground Settlement Law, Jacking Force Prediction, and Control Countermeasures for Large-Section Rectangular Pipe Jacking of National Highway Underpass

The rectangular pipe jacking method is an efficient, green, trenchless technology for constructing urban underground space. However, some problems, including the high jacking resistance, the instability of the tunneling face, and excessive ground settlement during the large-section rectangular pipe jacking for the underpass of national highways, seriously affect construction safety and traffic. Based on the engineering background of the large-section rectangular pipe jacking in constructing the subway entrance tunnel of Guangzhou Metro Line 7, this work adopts the methods of theoretical calculation, numerical simulation, and engineering application. Five kinds of mechanical models for pipe soil slurry interactions in rectangular pipe jacking are analyzed. An evaluation of the applicability of the jacking force prediction of the different models is conducted. Moreover, the ground settlement law for the large-section rectangular pipe jacking for the underpass of national highways under different influencing factors, including slurry sleeve thickness, grouting pressure, and earth chamber pressure, is revealed. The control countermeasures of the ground settlements, such as installing a waterproof rubber curtain for the tunnel portal, pipe jacking machine receiving techniques, thixotropic slurry for reducing friction resistance, and soil stability at the tunneling face, are carried out. The results show that there is no need to install an intermediate jacking station in the large-section rectangular pipe jacking project with a jacking distance of 63 m. The most reasonable thickness of the thixotropic slurry sleeve is about 150 mm. The most reasonable grouting pressure range is 600–700 kPa. An earth chamber pressure of about 153 kPa is more reasonable to control the soil stability of the tunneling face. The engineering practice shows that the maximum ground settlement of the national highway during jacking is 10 mm. The maintenance effect is excellent, and the traffic operates normally.

The impact of human behaviour on the (un)safety of the construction site

A construction site is a space where construction workers use the right materials, tools and machinery. They are required to have the knowledge and skills to work safely, as their behaviour has a huge impact on the safety of the entire construction site.All activities affecting the safety of the construction site should be preceded by a review of the legal conditions in the field of safety and health protection and, above all, by familiarisation with the design documentation of the facility. The document defines all the elements of the building object, construction equipment and works, land or plot development, function, form and construction of the building object, its energy and ecological characteristics, as well as the proposed necessary technical and material solutions showing the principles of connection with the surroundings and the conditions of use of the building object.Based on an analysis of the documentation, it is recommended to proceed with the development of a Health and Safety Plan or an IBWR manual. And to draw up an action plan for behaviour affecting construction safety. The work presents a network model and schedule for the execution of the works; schedules for employment, operation of machinery, and supply of materials; site development plans drawn up for the successive stages of construction; diagrams and descriptions of the organisation of the construction management and site management.A typical technology and organisation design used should include: in the field of technology: technical characteristics of the construction project and the conditions of its implementation; a list of the elements of the object or processes that make up a specific project with an indication of the sequence of their execution and size; a description of the technology of the basic processes specifying the methods of their execution; the selection of machinery and auxiliary equipment and transport units; drawings of forming devices, scaffolding and other special constructions necessary for the adopted technology and the technology of execution of specific construction processes in atypical conditions.The SDS and IBWR instructions being developed and the action scheme for behaviour affecting construction safety should find wide practical application.Based on the analysis, an OHS plan and an IBWR instruction were developed. An action scheme for behaviour affecting construction safety was developed.

Research and Practice of Risk Early Warning Technology for Lost Circulation with Drilling under the Conditions of Geological Engineering Information Fusion: The Example of the Yuanba Area

In the Yuanba area, many lost circulation accidents occur due to the complex geological structure, broken strata, and developed fractures, which seriously affect construction safety and drilling costs. Therefore, the Yuanba district is the focus of this paper. Firstly, a three-dimensional geomechanical model is established through multi-source information fusion to identify the main geological risk factors of lost circulation, according to the data on drilling and well logging in the operation area. Then a risk warning model and evaluation methods for loss circulation, based on geological engineering data fusion, are established, through which the characteristic parameters of various loss of circulation risks can be calculated in real time, parameters along the well trajectory can be extracted and compared, and thus, the risk of lost circulation is warned and analyzed in real time. The early warning of lost circulation risk can be achieved during drilling operations, which can improve the drilling efficiency and shorten the drilling cycle as a result.

The Security Cost as Part of Construction Safety Cost: Case Study of Flats Construction

Indonesia is currently experiencing a rapid increase in infrastructural development, including the construction of flats. This has led to a rise in construction-related accidents due to the lack of an appropriate safety budget for projects and further worsened by the separatist movement, theft, and vandalism, specifically in the eastern part of Indonesia. Therefore, this research aims to prove that factors, such as construction location and building height, affect construction safety costs in flats. The research found that safety costs consist of 3 parts, namely general, specific, and security costs. The construction safety cost was simulated using Monte Carlo analysis, which showed the amount of safety cost in flats construction in Eastern Indonesia, is higher than the Western part. Furthermore, the safety cost for more than 3-storey flats is higher than those for 3-storey. This shows that the location affects the cost of additional security. In addition, the building height also affects construction safety costs due to differences in the scope of work contained in the WBS.

Factors Influencing Safety on Construction Projects (fSCPs): Types and Categories.

Due to the fact of activity, environment and work dynamics, the construction industry is characterised by high accident rates. Different initiatives have emerged to reduce these figures, which focus on using new methodologies and technologies for safety management. Therefore, it is essential to know the key factors and their influence on safety in construction projects (fSCPs) to focus efforts on these elements. Through a systematic literature review, based on PRISMA methodology, this article identifies, describes and categorises 100 factors that affect construction safety. It thus contributes by providing a comprehensive general framework, unifying previous studies focused on specific geographic areas or case studies with factors not considered or insufficiently disaggregated, along with an absence of classifications focused on understanding where and how factors affect the different dimensions of construction projects. The 100 factors identified are described and categorised according to the dimensions and aspects of the project in which these have an impact, along with identifying whether they are shaping or immediate factors or originating influences for the generation of accidents. These factors, their description and classification are a key contribution to improving the systematic creation of safety and generating training and awareness materials to fully develop a safety culture in organisations.

Investigation of Factors Influencing the Construction Safety of High-Speed Railway Stations Based on DEMATEL and ISM

To explore the influencing factors and mutual influence mechanism of the construction safety of China’s high-speed railway stations, this study takes the Hanghuang high-speed railway Fuyang station as the subject and studies 17 risk factors in 4 categories affecting construction safety based on system safety theory, and the interaction relationship and degree among the factors were analysed. Based on DEMATEL (Decision-making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory) and ISM (Interpretative Structural Modelling) methods, through a questionnaire survey, the logical relationship among the influencing factors is quantified. Then, the influencing degree, influenced degree, centrality, and causality of the influencing factors were calculated, and a multilevel hierarchical hybrid model is established to systematically analyse the influencing factors and the mechanism of high-speed railway station construction. The results show that the factors of construction safety risk are summarized as 3 main factors, 6 important factors, and 7 direct factors and personnel factors and management factors need to be controlled with emphasis. In addition, some measures are proposed. This research provides a theoretical basis and method for preventing accidents and improving the safety of high-speed railway station construction.

Analysis of Key Points in Safety Supervision and Management of Construction Site

Construction projects must be carried out efficiently while ensuring the safety of the construction site. The safety management of the construction site is the key to the advancement of construction projects and is a manifestation of the good development of the construction engineering industry. Therefore, the construction unit must reasonably control the safety supervision of the construction site. At present, the government and other relevant departments also attach importance to the rights and interests of migrant workers at construction sites. The construction industry needs to take relevant measures to explore safety management measures at construction sites in terms of factors affecting construction safety and legal regulations. This can provide a construction foundation for the smooth implementation of building construction.

Experimental Study on the Effects of Stress-Induced Damage on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Soft Rock

After rocks are damaged under stress loading, the changes of their microstructural and mechanical properties are major factors that affect construction safety in geotechnical engineering projects. Studying the microstructures and mechanical behaviors of stress-damaged rocks can help better guide construction and reduce construction risks for geotechnical engineering projects. In this study, a sandstone was first artificially predamaged and then subsequently subjected to scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis, computed tomography (CT) scanning, and uniaxial compression testing. Afterwards, the rock microstructures were three-dimensionally (3D) reconstructed, and the pores were classified and characterized based on their diameters. Moreover, the microstructural and mechanical parameters of the rock were subjected to significance analysis. The results showed that as the stress-induced damage ( σ i ) increased, the uniaxial compressive strength ( σ c ) of the soft rock decreased by 13.7–31.8%; as σ i increased from 11.2 to 19.6 MPa, the elastic modulus (E) of the soft rock increased by up to 28.8%; and as σ i increased beyond 19.6 MPa, there was a significant (22.3%) decrease in E. Stress-induced damage significantly affected the spatial distribution of the pores’ structure of the soft rock. Changes in the spatial structure of the pores led to the formation of cracks. The microstructural parameters of the stress-damaged soft rock were correlated with its mechanical parameters.

Relationships among factors affecting construction safety equipment selection: structural equation modelling approach

ABSTRACTThe construction industry is ranked the first in terms of accidents. Use of appropriate construction safety equipment helps reduce accidents. This study utilises the structural equation modelling to examine relationships among key factors affecting construction safety equipment selection. The approach considers measurement- and structural-models. The measurement-model confirms key factors and their relationships, while the structural-model examines relationships directions. Questionnaire survey is utilised to collect data. Respondents include managers and operators from medium- and large-sized construction companies. Six key factors are confirmed with the measurement-model results, including (1) Safety-related Policy, (2) Equipment Design, (3) Personal, (4) Supplier Agreement, (5) Supplier Support, and (6) Cost Value factors. They relate with employers, employees, and suppliers to select construction safety equipment that match with company’s policy and employees’ need to reduce chances of accidents. The structural-model results reveal directions of relationships among key factors. Safety-related Policy is the most important factor, as it influences other factors. Equipment Design and Personal factors are crucial when selecting construction safety equipment, as they influence Supplier Agreement and Supplier Support factors, which in turn, affect Cost Value factor. Construction companies can utilise the results to understand key factors affecting construction safety equipment selection, and make better decisions.

Study on the Outburst Scheme of a Shallow Buried Bias Tunnel in Yunnan

Improper construction of the tunnel entrance is likely to cause collapse and affect construction safety and damage the ecological environment. Aiming at the poor stability of surrounding rock at the exit position of Xiaoguanzhuang tunnel, on the basis of investigating the geology and driving scheme near the tunnel, the asymmetric distribution of axial force of cross-section structure under shallow eccentric pressure is obtained through numerical simulation, and the maximum axial force is applied at the left arch waist and right arch foot. According to the analysis results, the surrounding rock should be reinforced in time, and the import section should be dealt with in the design stage to ensure construction safety and efficiency, and provide reference for future construction.

A resilience safety climate model predicting construction safety performance

Safety climate has the potential to affect construction safety performance. The current focus of construction safety climate research has been on management commitment, safety rules and procedures, housekeeping and safety equipment, supervisor and coworker safety perception. However, other aspects, such as reporting and preparedness, that are also critical to safety performance, are rarely measured. In the meantime, safety plateau in the construction industry has been observed in many countries; and there are less and less injury data, which has made safety performance prediction more and more difficult. All of this has necessitated us looking for a new approach. Resilience, that is a concept under development, has shown its ability to continuously improve safety performance. Thus, to enhance the existing safety climate model, this paper developed a concept called Safety ClimateResilience (SCR) by introducing resilience to safety climate. SCR is measured by seven dimensions including management commitment, supervisor safety perception, coworker safety perception, learning, reporting, anticipation, and awareness. Based on 431 self-administered surveys from 68 construction sites in Ontario, Canada, SCR measure model was validated and the interactions of the seven factors of SCR model were also investigated. This paper leads to several conclusions. First, a resilience safety climate model was built and firstly applied to the construction industry. Second, commitment from all organizational levels, from top management, to site level, and to individual level, is the key to promoting a better safety performance. Third, safety awareness is the most important individual factor affecting the safety performance of construction workers.

Critical Success Factors for Safety Management of High-Rise Building Construction Projects in China

This study aims at identifying the critical success factors (CSFs) for safety management of high-rise building construction projects and exploring interactions among such CSFs. Study data were sourced from semistructured interviews and a questionnaire survey administered in China. The study constructs a third-order CSFs system containing six CSFs: management measures, management organization, technical and management plan, worker safety behavior, safety environment, and worker safety quality. Among these, management organization is found to be the key factor affecting construction safety management performance, while worker safety behavior is a factor with a direct impact. Implications for practice are proposed. This study enriches the existing literature on the CSFs and performance evaluation of construction safety management in high-rise building construction projects. Safety performance of high-rise building construction projects can be effectively enhanced by improving the professional competence of safety management organizations.

Construction safety factors assessment through Frequency Adjusted Importance Index

The construction industry is plagued by numerous accidents and fatalities due to improper implementation of safety measures. Globally, researchers have concluded that the construction environment is the most hazardous when compared to other labor enforced industries. Construction is a temporary project-based industry, however, the injuries sustained to workers and stakeholders involved are permanent. Rigorous measures need to be taken to ensure a safe atmosphere on-site and laws governing implementation of safety management programs need to be enforced internationally. The objective of this paper is to identify what is perceived to be the most influential safety attributes affecting the construction industry. After a review of the literature, a list of 40 safety attributes was produced and presented in a survey. The survey was distributed online and sent to various experts in the construction industry. 238 complete responses were received and analyzed by Frequency Adjusted Importance Index, Spearman's Rank Correlation, T-Test. As a result, “use of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) and following safety rules and procedures,” and “providing safety trainings, campaigns and awareness to employees by contractor, “were ranked as the most important safety attributes. The main contribution of this study can be summarized as ranking the safety attributes considering both their importance and frequencies as perceived by various groups of industry professionals and identification of influential attributes affecting construction safety which have significant level of agreement among various groups in the construction industry.

Key Factors Affecting Construction Safety Performance in Developing Countries: Evidence from Cambodia

Although proper safety management in construction is of utmost importance; anecdotal evidence suggests that safety is not adequately considered in many developing countries. This paper considers the key variables affecting construction safety performance in Cambodia. Using an empirical questionnaire survey targeting local construction professionals, respondents were invited to rate the level of importance of 30 variables identified from the seminal literature. The data set was subjected to factor analysis. Correlations between the variables show that five key factors underlie the challenges facing the local industry; management and organisation, resources, site management, cosmetic and workforce. It is found that the forefront construction professionals (top management and government authorities) should take more responsibilities for further improvements in safety performance on project sites. Findings and recommendations of this study may be useful to construction professional who are seeking ways to improve safety records in developing countries.

REVIEW AND ADOPT A TOOL FOR MEASURING SAFETY CLIMATE IN INTERNATIONAL CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

The construction industry is deemed to be one of the most dangerous industries worldwide due to its special characteristics of production process. Globalization has brought about an increasing number of construction companies involving themselves in the international construction market. Due to involvement of participants from different countries and regions, international construction projects possess complexities from national, organizational and individual perspectives which may affect construction safety management adversely and lead to unsatisfactory safety performance. Safety climate, defined as “a unified set of cognitions regarding the safety aspects of the organization”, is often considered to be a predictor of safety behavior and performance. After conducting a comprehensive review of existing literature related to safety climate measurement in construction sector, this study highlights several conditions for selecting suitable safety climate instruments specific in international construction projects.