Atkinson, A R and Westall, R (2010) The relationship between integrated design and construction and safety on construction projects. Construction Management and Economics, 28(9), pp. 1007-1017. ISSN 1466433X
Abstract
The occurrence of accidents and injuries continues to be a major problem in construction worldwide. Even though accident statistics have been improving in most markets there are significant areas requiring further attention. The extent of integrated working between designers and constructors may be an instrumental factor. A comparison is undertaken of the accident performance of 55 large construction projects in the UK, with varying levels of design/construction integration as represented by procurement path. Although a statistical relationship between high levels of integration and low levels of accidents was weak, a follow-up interview study provided strong support, suggesting that a lack of significance was related to the unreliability of the statistics available. The interview study also indicated reasons for this link. A key element in improved safety was seen to be better communications and a more positive relationship between designers and constructors. Further research into designing for safety for all procurement paths is recommended.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | accidents; architectural design; integrated working; safety |
| Index terms: | integration, construction project, architectural design, integrated design and construction, interview, injury, large construction project, statistics, markets, low level, designer |
| Subjects: | measurement and scaling, health conditions and diseases, organizational analysis, construction integration, design practice, organizational theory, production management, economic analysis, mathematical modelling, profession, data collection methods |
| Topics: | Roles and Professions, Business Strategy, Health and Safety, Project Management, Research Practice, Organizational Design, Design Practice |
| 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