CONSTRUCTION H & S
Risk assessment starts with concept
Speaking at an SAIA webinar in August, renowned CH & S academic, Professor John Smallwood, reminded designers of their statutory obligations to address construction health and safety early in a project.
The baseline risk assessment( BRA) should be addressed as early as the project“ idea” stage and presented to the client as part of the baseline risk analysis. Both the Draft 2024 Construction Regulations and the prevailing 2014 Construction Regulations require clients to prepare a documented design risk assessment for an intended construction work project.
Of concern, however, is that a design risk assessment is not specifically described in the definitions listed in the 2024 draft regulations. It is also impractical for clients to prepare such an assessment, since such a conceptbased risk assessment can only be conducted during the design process and should be the co-responsibility of the designer.
There should be two health and safety sets of specifications, each accurately described. The first should begin with the design concept and identify the hazards and risks it presents before the client signs off on the architectural plans and detailed specifications. It should include the hazards and risks identified during the BRA, together with the client’ s requirements. This is followed by the“ contractor” version to also include the risks and hazards identified during the BRA and the client’ s requirements, as well as those resulting from the designer’ s response to the client brief.
Smallwood points out that the Draft 2024 Construction Regulations are faulty because the responsibilities of designers are not specifically elaborated. While these responsibilities may be implied, in the construction world, unless they are listed, they cannot be assumed to have been addressed. There is also an alarming trend for the H & S file to be copied and pasted from the regulations, then closed out and stored on site in line with minimal compliance.
In short, the draft regulations need to be revisited. Surely the H & S file should be a“ living document”? – Ed.
42 spring 2026 | www. tobuild. co. za