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Mitigating Construction Risks with Advanced Training Techniques

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Construction is consistently ranked as one of the riskiest jobs in the United States. Fluid workforces, high-risk scenarios and a communication disconnect between home office and front-line workers all result in the very real possibility of serious injury or even death.

One of the major challenges in the construction industry is getting information and training to the front-line workers who face the most risk, but are often the least informed. Company emails and company-issued phones go as far as the foremen but do not always make it down to the crew themselves. Training is not always readily available or is more compliance-based than it is practical for the day’s work. This creates major risks for front-line workers, contractors, insurers and anyone involved with ensuring construction projects are safely and accurately completed. As a result, the construction industry is increasingly turning to new virtual and mobile technology tools. In an effort to improve its communication and training practices and provide critical information to its workers.

Visualizing High-Risk Scenarios

New, interactive modules are allowing safety teams to offer more effective and engaging job-site training in the form of videos, quizzes, virtual reality and 3D simulators. Exposure-based training platforms can also provide a “hands-on” experience, giving front-line workers the opportunity to encounter different situations while in a safe environment.

For example, a 3D simulation of a “hazard hunt” tests workers by having them identify all of the potential hazards on a building such as tilt, unsafe conditions and proximity to power lines and how to mitigate those risks. Fire safety prevention can be made into an immersive experience to help a worker identify the proper fire extinguisher based on the simulated fire, increasing the likelihood that they will make the right choice in the event of an emergency.

Simulations can also take tradesmen step-by-step through the process of working on specific tasks, allowing them to learn the process from start to finish and monitoring for the most common risk exposures. To become a signalman when working with cranes, the current process is to watch videos and memorize the hand motions. With simulators, workers can now be put into specific scenarios and learn how to proceed in the safest way and without endangering the person or equipment. Ultimately, new exposure-based training helps workers overcome any natural inclinations that put them in harm’s way and increases their awareness of all the risks of a specific task or job site.

Facilitating Effective Communication

Construction workers may be on a site for three months, or they might work on a job for one day. In both cases, contractors take on the same level of risk when it comes to ensuring each employee is appropriately trained. And with a workforce that is constantly in motion, construction managers face the challenge of tracking who has been trained on what. Paper filing systems and limited access to the training records while onsite can lead to oversights when it comes to identifying improperly trained workers.

Virtual training allows contractors to more easily track exactly who is trained on what, and store the important documents in a digital archive. By keeping critical information readily available digitally, onsite managers can more quickly confirm and step in if someone is not properly trained and manage overall communication for the duration of the project even as the job site’s workforce changes.    

Builders are also using digital communication platforms to address the communication disconnect between the home office and the front-line workforce, and in order to reduce the risk of miscommunication. These apps allow teams to send messages, emergency alerts and even just-in-time training videos that can highlight safety hazards specific to the job site to individuals or entire crews in an instant, helping to reduce unnecessary work stoppages and operational friction. They can also deliver micro-training refresher courses so that workers can better retain and implement the new knowledge and skills they have learned.

By deploying new types of digital training techniques, companies can improve communication and provide the front-line workforce with the right information to make safe decisions on a job site, reducing overall risk and most importantly, ensuring that their workers get home safely.

FIU Bridge Collapse Due to Negligence, OSHA Claims

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According to a new Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) report, negligence from almost every party involved led to last year’s collapse of a pedestrian bridge at Miami’s Florida International University, killing 6 and permanently disabling one other. The pedestrian bridge project was supposed to pose lower risk of disruption thanks to a construction method called “accelerated bridge construction,” intended to minimize the time and risk involved on-site by performing much of the work off-site and then relocating it. Yet, according to the report, almost all parties involved shared some fault for the collapse, most notably FIGG Engineering-Bridge Group, the firm that designed the bridge.

On March 15, 2018, the bridge collapsed onto the street below, where multiple cars were waiting at a stoplight. FIGG Engineering-Bridge Group had designed the bridge and engineering firms Louis Berger and Bolton Perez and Associates provided additional design checks. Miami-based construction firm Munilla Construction Management (MCM) managed the bridge’s construction off-site and relocated it to the school using the accelerated bridge construction method.

OSHA says that FIGG produced a “deficient” design and the company’s attempts to seal cracks in the bridge led to its collapse.

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FIGG reportedly also ignored MCM workers’ concerns about the bridge’s growing cracks, saying that it had examined them and did not find anything troubling. Given this response from FIGG, OSHA wrote that MCM should have exercised “independent judgment with regard to implementing necessary safety measures” to address those growing cracks and close the street below. OSHA also said that the road should have been closed immediately as FIGG attempted to repair the cracks—work that, as the Miami Herald reported, put additional stress on already-faulty and weak internal support cables.

According to the OSHA report, at a meeting with all construction participants on the day of the collapse, FIGG’s lead engineer “acknowledged that his computations could not replicate the cracks and, therefore, he did not know why the cracks were occurring.” Upon being told that the cracks were widening daily, he “stated more than once that the cracks did not present any safety concerns.
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” The engineer had also reportedly called the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) three days before the collapse to claim the same.

The report also calls into question Louis Berger’s independent review of the bridge’s designs, noting that the firm’s “constrained” budget and time led to deficiencies in the firm’s analysis, including not examining the post-installation construction phase, during which the collapse happened. OSHA said FIGG violated FDOT requirements by not requiring Louis Berger to conduct the full examination and failing to provide the firm with necessary documents.

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Bolton Perez and Associates was reportedly aware of the cracks in the bridge, but failed to follow DOT requirements to “exercise its own independent professional judgment,” and did not recommend that the street be closed.

After the incident, victims filed 18 lawsuits against 25 companies connected with the collapse, with depositions beginning in May 2019. According to the Miami Herald, MCM declared bankruptcy and in May, the judge overseeing its bankruptcy approved a $42 million insurance settlement for victims and their families. Additionally, FIU has designated that its $5 million insurance payment should go to the victims. FIGG released a statement this week calling the OSHA report “factually inaccurate and incomplete,” citing “flawed analysis.” A National Transportation Safety Board report is forthcoming, but may not be released until 2020.

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BIAA Hopes to ‘Change Your Mind’ About Brain Injuries

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March is Brain Injury Awareness Month in the United States. According to the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA), at least 5.3 million Americans live with a disability related to a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and with 280,000 attributable hospitalizations and 2.2 million emergency room treatments, the economic cost exceeds $82 billion annually. Furthermore, a staggering 137 people die in the U.S. daily because of TBI-related injuries.

Workers in the construction industry experience a large number of occupational brain injuries, with falls being a major driver. Though the direct link between falls and brain injuries is highly suggestive, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates that fatalities caused by preventable falls from elevation continue to be a leading cause of death for construction employees, accounting for 366 of the 971 construction fatalities recorded in 2017.

According to the BIAA, falls are the leading driver of TBI-related injuries (40.5%), followed by being struck by or against an object (15.5%) and motor vehicle accidents (14.3%).

But there are preventative steps that employers and workers can take to reduce the risk of brain injuries, and BIAA is spreading the word in advance of Brain Injury Awareness Day on March 13 with its Change Your Mind campaign.

“Any employee may slip and fall in the workplace, or something may fall from a shelf and strike an office employee,” Susan H. Connors, BIAA president and CEO told Risk Management Monitor. “Employers should take precautions such as ensuring adequate lighting, moving heavy items to bottom shelves, maintaining handrails in stairs, taping down rugs, even/dry flooring, and making sure steps are brightly marked.”

The day will be marked on Capitol Hill, where a Congressional Brain Injury Task Force will meet to coordinate and support federal resources, grow the force and bolster research. Connors said that as in years past, there will be an awareness fair, congressional briefing, and reception, but employers who cannot attend can still take part by:

  • Contacting their Congressional representative to join the task force.
  • Plan to host an event in March to increase awareness and understanding about brain injury, to remember someone lost to brain injury, or even to celebrate a loved one’s recovery.
  • Download the #ChangeYourMind collateral and distribute among your organization and use the stamp to raise awareness, advocacy, or funds for a brain injury-related cause.

“Identifying, implementing, and enforcing safety or risk management protocol is essential and effective regardless of the industry,” Connors said. “The programs in place likely vary based on the position, but common trends may be requiring safety harnesses, protective wear, regular breaks, and/or safety audits or assessments by more than one (or even two) employees on infrastructure.”

Brain injuries are often causes of depression and even suicidal tendencies, which is why Connors said the BIAA actively works to act as a resource for victims.

“The most dangerous and prone cases are those with a mild brain injury, like concussions, who do not receive treatment and/or do not understand why they are feeling depressed and alone,” Connors said. “Suicidal behavior is enhanced by the presence of depression, impulsivity, hopelessness and chronic pain in the face of TBI.

Providing a more compassionate and user-friendly service delivery model of care to ensure timely care and individualized treatment reduces needless frustration and risk.”

Connors added that BIAA’s National Brain Injury Information Center (NBIIC) is also a resource staffed by brain injury specialists, and the Suicide Prevention hotline is available around the clock for people having thoughts of hurting themselves.

Information on Brain Injury Awareness Month, including educational material and downloadable collateral, is available at www.biausa.org/ChangeYourMind.

2017 Workplace Fatality Statistics Released

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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2017, a total of 5,147 fatal work injuries were recorded in the United States. And while this data marks 43 fewer casualties than in 2016, employers should note that it is still an increase of more than 300 in both 2014 and 2015.

The continued high rate was fueled by the frequency of transportation incidents (2,077) and 887 fatal falls, which marked their highest level in the 26-year history of the census.

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Another key finding involved overdoses of drugs and alcohol while at work.

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Unintentional overdoses due to nonmedical substances while at work increased 25% from 217 in 2016 to 272 in 2017. The BLS noted that this was the fifth straight year in which unintentional workplace overdose deaths have increased by at least 25%.

The National Safety Council (NSC) released a statement in reaction to the BLS data, saying that it was “disheartened to see a small rise in unintentional, preventable worker fatalities.” The NSC’s statement continued:

“Once again, the data clearly show we are not doing enough to mitigate the risks of these everyday killers. At work, leadership should set the tone and engage all employees in safety, identifying hazards and measuring safety performance using leading indicators to ensure continuous improvement.”

Additionally, the BLS found:

  • Contact with objects and equipment incidents were down 9 percent (695 in 2017 from 761 in 2016) with caught in running equipment or machinery deaths down 26 percent (76 in 2017 from 103 in 2016).
  • Fatal occupational injuries involving confined spaces rose 15 percent to 166 in 2017 from 144 in 2016.
  • Crane-related workplace fatalities fell to their lowest level ever recorded in by the census, 33 deaths in 2017.

Clearly, the fatality rate of some occupations remains alarmingly high. Below are the 10 most dangerous jobs in America for 2017, according to the BLS and the fatal work injury rate (per 100,000 workers).

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