Zolfagharian, S; Irizarry, J; Ressang, A; Nourbakhsh, M and Gheisari, M (2014) Automated safety planning approach for residential construction sites in Malaysia. International Journal of Construction Management, 14(3), pp. 134-147. ISSN 1562-3599
Abstract
Construction continues to be considered as one of the most dangerous industries in the world, in particular residential building construction. This paper aims at proposing an automated safety planning plug-in (ASPP) for project scheduling software applications to mitigate the occurrence of construction accidents. To achieve this aim, frequency and severity of the common construction safety hazards in residential buildings were investigated by distributing a questionnaire among various safety managers and construction managers in Malaysia. A total of 106 completed responses were received. The risk level associated to each hazard was calculated based on the relevant risk matrix. The ASPP extracts current construction activities from any computer-based schedule (Microsoft Project® in this paper) and identifies their risk levels as well as safety regulations and hazards related to each activity as a report. The reliability and usability of ASPP was tested in a case study. The ASPP was found to be efficient and helpful for rigorously complying with safety regulations and control potential hazards. The practical implication of this study is to improve construction safety by promoting the project managers' awareness of safety hazards and relevant risks as well as essential safety measures provided through a comprehensive report from which managers can review essential safety measures to prevent possible construction accidents.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | automated safety planning; construction planning; construction scheduling; risk assessments; safety hazards |
| Index terms: | residential building, Malaysia, project manager, case study, construction scheduling, safety measures, construction activity, risk assessment, residential construction, construction planning, manager, project scheduling, usability, construction manager, regulation, construction accident, questionnaire, construction safety |
| Subjects: | political science, environmental health, project controls, occupational health and safety management, Geography, health safety and environment, financial risk, construction integration, construction operations, construction planning, practitioner, construction type, profession, data collection methods, user-centered design |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Geographical Context, Business Strategy, Cost Management, Health and Safety, Construction Technology, Sustainability, Governance, Roles and Professions, Design Practice, Time Control, Site Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here