Implementation Of Safety Regulations Research Articles

Empirical assessment of fire safety in high-rise residential buildings in Vietnam and residents’ knowledge and awareness regarding fire safety

With increasing population, the demand for high-rise residential buildings has been increasing. The challenges posed by firefighting and evacuation during fires in high-rise buildings have attracted considerable attention. This study explores the fire safety facilities and management in high-rise residential buildings in Vietnam and the knowledge and awareness of residents regarding fire safety. These aspects were assessed using a questionnaire answered by residents of 32 high-rise buildings in Vietnam. The answers reveal that most residents had basic knowledge of fire safety in high-rise buildings, but their preparedness of a fire event was inadequate. It is recommended that the implementation of safety regulations and measures for reducing the risk of fires in buildings be enforced. Besides analyzing descriptive statistics, a multiple regression analysis was conducted to explore the key factors influencing the level of awareness and knowledge of fire safety among the residents of high-rise buildings. The results indicate that education level, gender, living floor, and participation in fire drills are the key factors influencing residents' levels of knowledge and awareness. The survey results serve as supportive reference for the relevant stakeholders for reducing the risk of fires and the resulting losses. Furthermore, this study offers valuable insights for future studies on high-rise residential buildings in Vietnam at larger scales.

Reviewing Measuring Health And Safety Management Performance In The Construction Industry

Purpose: The accidents on construction sites not only cause fatalities but also affect project performance severely in terms of delayed completion, cost overruns, reduced quality and eventually low productivity. This paper aims to identify the various components that form the measurement of a Health and Safety management performance framework for the construction industry.
 Design/Methodology/ Approach: This paper adopts an empirical research methodology based on literature review and secondary data gathered systematically from peer-reviewed journals. Content analysis was adopted in analysing the secondary data.
 Findings: Eight components of Key Performance Indicators in measuring Health and Safety management performance were identified in the literature and they are implementation of safety regulations, leadership, safety planning, safety compliance, performance measurement, risk assessment, safety inspection, and Safety Culture.
 Research Limitation/Implication: It focuses on the measurement of a Health and Safety management performance framework for the construction industry.
 Practical Implication: Compliance with the existing health and safety laws must be monitored regularly and effectively, and breaches of them should be taken much more seriously than it is at present. Management members must champion the crusade of good health and safety practices and motivate the employees through their visible leadership by wearing personal protective equipment, whenever they are at the construction site.
 Social Implication: Health and safety education programmes should be designed such that, they would consider individual cultural aspirations to try to shape them to suit the organizational safety culture.
 Originality/Value: Identification of components that influence the measurement of the Health and Safety management performance framework were reviewed.

Safety Management System (SMS) framework development – Mitigating the critical safety factors affecting Health and Safety performance in construction projects

The construction industry is known both for its significance in economic growth and its hazardous nature. The accidents on construction sites not only cause fatalities but also affect project performance severely in term of delayed completion, cost overruns, reduced quality and eventually low productivity. Statistically, poor safety performance is the main cause of the accident on sites due to the number of influencing factors. To improve safety performance, it is inevitable to investigate potential factors involved in safety management. This is a working paper and examines the relative importance of key factors influencing Health and Safety (H&S) performance and the rationale for developing a robust safety management system (SMS) that migrates all factors into one framework. This paper adopts an empirical research methodology based on literature review and secondary data gathered systematically from peer-reviewed journals. There are around sixty H&S factors and these have been assigned to cluster leadings forming six groups namely: ‘organisational’, ‘managerial’, ‘legislative’, ‘social’, ‘environmental’ and ‘personnel’ factors. In developing the rationale for the safety management system (SMS) framework it has become apparent that the effective safety performance can only be achieved through effective (1) implementation of safety regulations, (2) leadership, (3) safety planning, (4) safety compliance, (5) performance measurement, (6) risk assessment, (7) safety inspection, and (8) Safety Culture. These factors are interrelated with each other and they cannot be isolated, however, in order to significantly improve the safety performance target on construction projects, there is a need to re-alignment and re-balance the priorities assigned to factors influencing safety performance.

Limiting Ship Accidents by Identifying Their Causes and Determining Barriers to Application of Preventive Measures

When analyzing ship accidents, there may be doubts whether appropriate countermeasures had been taken to prevent known types of accidents. This study aimed to suggest possible solutions by investigating the status and issues associated with the implementation of countermeasures using importance–performance analysis (IPA), Borich’s needs assessment, and locus for focus models based on previously identified causes of the ship accidents. As a result, firstly, we confirmed that there is a need to enhance education and training on specific knowledge, understanding, and proficiency (KUP) regarding ship stability, emergency response, and type specific training. Secondly, we confirmed that there is a need for a system of monitoring a seafarer’s KUP even while onboard a vessel—that is, after completion of identified training. Additionally, it is necessary to improve the seafarers’ working environment, which is subject to regulations. Thirdly, difficulties in solving wrong practice parts of safety and efficiency, such as the costs associated with implementation of safety regulations, were identified as the main reasons for the causes of the “not amended yet” sector after accidents. Lastly, the tools that were employed in this analysis can be used to confirm the implementation status of the actions to be taken after a ship accident.

The Study of Implementation of Safety Regulation for Children in Radiology Department

During the last few decades in different areas of the world the cancer incidence in children has increased. Children are major users of imaging services. Since children are more sensitive to radiation therefore dose minimization for them is important. The aim of this study is to assessment of safety for children in diagnostic radiology units. This cross-sectional study was conducted in three public hospitals of Khoramabad Lorestan province. 385 check lists in Shohadaye Ashyer, Madani, Taaminegtemaei hospitals are investigated. The checklist has five items with various questions around radiation protection and safety related to patients. The information achieved by the checklists was recorded and entered into SPSS (version 22). Among the 385cases reviewed, 210 were boy (54.6%) and 175 girl (45.4%) patients. The mean age of patients was 6.14 years, ranging from 2 days to 12 years. Only Madani and Taaminegtemaei provided shield and warning posters. The use of shielding number in Shohaday eAshyer and Taaminegtemaeei hospitals is 87 (22.5%) and Madani hospital is 194 (50.3%). Patient dose reduction coincides with avoiding unnecessary exams, minimizing repeat images during exams, field size minimization and using appropriate shielding by performance this cases can be protect patient specially children. The use of gonad shielding in Shohadaye Ashyer hospital does higher rate than in Madani and Taaminegtemaeei hospitals.

Co-location of passive gear fisheries in offshore wind farms in the German EEZ of the North Sea: A first socio-economic scoping

Worldwide the renewable energy sector is expanding at sea to address increasing demands. Recently the race for space in heavily used areas such as the North Sea triggered the proposal of co-locating other activities such as aquaculture or fisheries with passive gears in offshore wind farms (OWFs). Our interdisciplinary approach combined a quantification of spatial overlap of activities by using Vessel Monitoring System and logbook data with a stakeholder consultation to conclude and verify on the actual feasibility of co-location. In the German Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the North Sea up to 90% of Danish and 40% of German annual gillnet fleet landings of plaice overlapped with areas where OWFs are developed. Our results indicated further that the international gillnet fishery could lose up to 50% in landings within the North Sea German EEZ when OWF areas are closed entirely for fisheries. No spatial overlap was found for UK potters targeting brown crab in the German EEZ. We further identified a number of key issues and obstacles that to date hinder an actual implementation of co-location as a measure in the marine spatial planning process: defining the legal base; implementation of safety regulations; delineation of minimum requirements for fishing vessels such as capacities, quotas, technical equipment; implementation of a licensing process; and scoping for financial subsidies to set up business. The stakeholder consultation verified the scientific findings and highlighted that all those points need to be addressed in a planning process. In the German EEZ we have shown that the socio-economic importance of spatial overlap varies within planning boundaries. Therefore we recommend an interdisciplinary bottom-up approach when scoping for suitable areas of co-location. Hence, an informed marine spatial planning process requires comprehensive and spatial explicit socio-economic viability studies factoring in also ecological effects of OWFs on target species.

Influence factors of effects of Chinese coal mine safety regulations in different stages

Through measuring the effects of coal mine safety regulations in what we have termed the recovering stage, the advancing stage with exploration, and the gradually stable stage, the different effects and their reasons are analysed and explained for the years 1980–2010. The study indicates that coal mine safety management began to recover from 1980–1990. However the death rate was stubbornly high. The implementation of safety regulations during the advancing stage reduced the incidence of mortality. However, the government policy in China became more focused on economic development, and the shortfall in energy fuel production resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of small coal mines. After 2000, the supervision system gradually stabilised and the regulations were improved, significantly reducing the mortality rate. By 2010, the mortality rate was China’s lowest for 30 years. So a complete, stable supervision system is required for regulations to be implemented effectively.

Behavior, Attitude, and Perception toward Safety Culture from Mandatory Safety Training Course

The construction industry is one of the most hazardous trades as far as work safety is concerned. Efforts have been made to improve safety in workplace. These efforts have focused on legislation, engineering failure, safety awareness campaigns, safety training, and unsafe behavior. After years of developing safety technologies and safety management systems in the industry, many organizations recognize that the safety culture within the industry has to be addressed if high standards of health and safety are to be maintained. Therefore, this paper investigated the relationship among people’s behavior, attitude, and perception toward the safety culture and evaluated the effectiveness of a mandatory safety training course in Hong Kong’s construction industry. A questionnaire survey and structured interviews were conducted. It was found that a good personal safety attitude, personal roles and commitment among workers, and low obstacles to safe behavior resulted in good perception of accidents. In addition, most of the participants in the mandatory safety training course understood the contents taught in the course and considered the course practical and useful. The results showed that workers paid more attention after completing the course; this indicated that a positive personal attitude toward the safety training course resulted in a positive personal safety attitude. Recommendations to improve the safety culture, effective mandatory safety training, and the implementation of safety regulations were also explored.

Construction workers’ perceptions of health and safety training programmes

As zero-accidents cultures expand in popularity, knowledge and implementation of safety regulations have become priorities for construction organizations. An expanded literature review revealed that many industry leaders have responded by increasing the frequency and content of health and safety training programmes; however the provision of training largely has remained consistent. Identifying workers’ conceptions of the training they receive is critical to the design and deployment of effective workplace education programmes. Utilizing a hybrid questionnaire of qualitative and quantitative components to assess perceptions and knowledge, data were collected from a sample (n = 121) representing construction professionals across the United States who had completed an OSHA 10-Hour Construction Safety Training Course. The data described a workforce dissatisfied with training effectiveness and characterized a widespread situation in which the distinguishing characteristics of adult learning had not been addressed by qualified trainers. Strong health and safety training programmes improve employee retention as well as compliance with health and safety requirements. Trainees are more likely to respond positively to training programmes when adult learning theories are integrated into safety trainer readiness programmes.

Evolution of pleural cancers and malignant pleural mesothelioma incidence in France between 1980 and 2005

The evolution of pleural cancers and malignant pleural mesothelioma incidence in France between 1980 and 2005 was analysed using data derived from the French network of cancer registries (FRANCIM) and the French National Mesothelioma Surveillance Program (PNSM). Mesothelioma proportions in pleural cancers were calculated by diagnosis year in the 1980-2000 period. Our results suggest that the incidences of pleural cancer and mesothelioma levelled off in French men since 2000 and continued to increase in French women. A decrease of the annual pleural cancer incidence average in men was noticed (-3.4% of annual rate of change) between 2000 and 2005. The proportion of pleural cancers that were mesothelioma was unchanged between 1980 and 2003 with an average of 86%. The age standardised incidence rate of pleural mesothelioma remained relatively stable between 1998 and 2005 with a slight falling trend. For women, the age standardised incidence rate of pleural cancers and mesothelioma increased during the period 1998-2005. Additionally, the proportion of pleural cancers that were mesothelioma increased during the same period of time. Finally, the increased trend observed in the incidence of pleural mesothelioma and cancers in women is credibly due to their under diagnosis in the 1980-1997 period. The comparison between the French incidence and the American and British ones shows that the decreasing trend in incidence of mesothelioma and pleural cancers in French men since 2000 is potentially associated with a lower amphibole consumption and by the implementation of safety regulations at work from 1977.