Figure 7. Every worker has a fundamental right to work in an environment that secures his safety and
health.
a. setting up an integrated team involving
client, designers, PC’s and contractors;
b. appointing a lead design consultant
(principal designer) to plan, manage,
monitor and coordinate the pre -
construction phase;
c. agreeing to a common approach to risk
reduction during design;
d. conducting regular meetings of all the
design team members with contractors and
others involved in the project;
e. reviewing developing designs regularly; and
f. making site visits, through which designers
can gain a direct insight into how the risks
are managed in practice.
Regular reviews of the designs involving all
members of the design team are particularly
impor tant in making sure that proper
consideration is given to buildability, usability and
maintainability. The client or those who will be
responsible for operating the building or structure
once it has been completed, should be involved
when discussing usability and maintainability,
so that proper consideration can be given to the
safety and health of those who will maintain and
use it. As in sport, for the construction project to
work out well, first build the team and then build
the project.
Conclusion
The success of any construction project must
not be limited to how much value it adds to the
client, designer and contractor, but also to the
workers who construct, operate and maintain
the ‘construction product’. This is because,
every worker has a fundamental right to work
in an environment that secures his safety and
health. Injuries and fatalities cause pain and
suffering; physical, emotional and financial loss
to the workers and their families, which can
last a lifetime. Taking the industry in its widest
sense to include all those who construct, clean,
repair, maintain, demolish and use buildings
as a workplace – decisions and actions of
professionals and designers may touch the lives
of many thousands of people. As professionals,
we have a duty to everyone.
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