SAFETY PROCEDURES AND ACCIDENT PREVENTION METHODS

SAFETY PROCEDURES AND ACCIDENT PREVENTION METHODS IN CONSTRUCTION SITES

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

The importance of the Construction Industry to national economies the world over cannot be over emphasized. According to Mike et al (2011), by 2020 construction will account for 13.2% of world GDP indicating an upward trend. This is seen in the provision of basic infrastructure such as road networks, commercial and residential buildings and facilities to the other sectors of economies. Also construction’s sizeable amount of economic growth is through backward and forward linkages since construction activities utilize goods and services from other industries. Employment creation by construction activities is another important aspect in economic development. In the Nigerian’s economy construction industry accounts for 5% of the country’s GDP and employs about 1 million people with an estimated annual wage bill of K.sh. 3.2 billion according to recent findings of the first quarter of 2011 by Nigeria National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS).

Despite the documented positive gains brought by the construction industry, there are negative attributes which are associated with construction work. Construction work is dangerous, the International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates at least 60,000 fatal accidents a year on construction sites around the world that is one in six of all fatal work related accidents. The global trade union federation puts the figure much higher at 108,000 with construction responsible for 30% of all work related accidents. In Britain for example a study report 2010/11 by Health and Safety Executive (HSE) states, the construction industry accounts for 27% of fatal injuries to employees and 9% of reported major injuries. This is illustrated by figure 1 below.Source; http://www.hse.gov .uk (2011) Figure 1 Comparison of fatalities in construction and other sectors of the economy – UK.In Nigeria, collapsing buildings while still in construction process trapping construction site workers has become a common occurrence, take for instance the killing of two workers and many injured at Spaki in Mombasa in April 2009 when a storey building in construction curved in burying alive many of the workers in a heap of concrete and steel ruble. (Construction risk management. Construction Review, Vol 18, 2006)

DOWNLOAD COMPLETE PROJECT MATERIAL