Architect and Builder June 2016 | Page 24

STEPHAN JULIUS Stephan Julius is the Founder and Managing Member of Frontline Safety Health and Environmental Consultants with 24 years experience in manufacturing, corporate and government SHE Systems. His qualifications include a National Certificate in Safety Management and was the appointed Health & Safety Agent at Cape Town Soccer Stadium (2010) and Related Works. He was awarded the ABSA/Wecbof Business Person of the Year in 2009. Stephan’s vision is to mentor Health & Safety Practitioners to reach their full potential in this specific field. Stephan obtained his Professional Construction Health and Safety Agent Certificate with SACPCMP (CHSA 014/2014) in February 2014. 021 914 7080 [email protected] www.frontlinesafety.co.za WHAT MUST THE CLIENT DO TO PREVENT POSSIBLE DELAYS? • The client must involve the agent during the design stage (steps: 1 to 3) as per SACPCMP, Construction Health and Safety Agent / Services. • Clients / developers, principal agents and architects are hereby informed that by the 7th of February 2017, all projects of the value exceeding R40 million or CIDB grading level 9 requires a Construction Work Permit application. • Based on the deadline and contract values above R40 million, it is envisaged that the DOL will be inundated and overwhelmed with permit application submissions; therefore early submission is paramount to prevent delays in permit issuing by the DOL. • The client must ensure that the professional team provides the relevant information to the agent timeously. • The appointment of the principal contractor must also be done at least 6 weeks before construction works is due to start. BENEFITS OF THE CONSTRUCTION WORK PERMIT • The Construction Work Permit application is currently only applicable if the construction value is R130 million or more. • For construction work with a value of less than R130 million no Construction Work Permit is needed and the principal contractor must complete the Notification of Construction Work as required by Construction Regulation 4. • The Construction Regulations 2014 acknowledge that health and safety issues should receive equal preferences similar to production and quality. • Designers are now encouraged to design buildings and to minimize risk during construction and even during the maintenance period. CONCLUSION I believe that if the professional team and the principal contractors comply with the Construction Regulations 2014, it will create and promote a health and safety culture and reduce the incident rate on construction sites. 22 Work Permit