Healthy attitudes

Heathrow Terminal 5 presents a variety of health and safety risks, including working at height, lifting operations and confined spaces. The health and safety of the 6000 operatives involved have been put high on the list of client BAA’s priorities. As a result, certain construction methods have been used to reduce safety risks, as well as increase productivity. For example, prefabrication has been adopted where possible for the whole project. Among other advantages, this means that roof sections can be assembled off-site, without the need for operatives to work on scaffolding.

Members of the T5 team are also encouraged to develop technologies to reduce accident risks. M&E contractor Amec has worked to increase the safety of its operatives, producing solutions to reduce the risks to workers. The Amec Personal Step is one example. Paul Westie, Amec’s safety manager on T5, explains: “We always have access problems when we install services. Often, we can’t use tower scaffolds due to restricted space and it is difficult to work on ladders.”

The Personal Step was researched and developed by the Amec Building and Facilities team. It allows users greater ease of movement, with stability and the ability to use tools safely and effectively. “Operatives use the Personal Step in areas where access would normally be difficult. We now have about 75 of these in use at T5,” says Westie.

As a result of BAA’s thorough approach to health and safety, which is carried through to all its contractors, T5 has been one of the safest construction projects in the UK. In 2004, the project had two periods of one million accident-free hours; a 12% reduction in reportable incidents between 2003 and 2004; and a 45% reduction in minor injury rates.

However, a commitment to health and safety means more than adopting off-site working. Much of the T5 philosophy is based on sharing information and co-operation. Individuals are appointed to teams that include managers and worker representatives. All site operatives can raise points with representatives, which are taken up at regular team meetings. These safety committees will discuss issues such as ‘near miss’ incidents. As a result, areas where accidents almost occurred can be examined, and methods developed to avoid future problems.

Westie says that the client has always prioritised health and safety. He explains: “It has introduced initiatives here that I never thought I would see in construction. One example is the Incident and Injury Free (IFF) programme. This is an individual-based system, where operatives can stop work as soon as they believe it’s no longer safe to do so. The supervisor is called to sort out problems, and if they can’t then it’s escalated to the next level of management.”

Also, working teams meet for a daily activity briefing. Work to be done is discussed and potential safety risks highlighted. Checks are made with individuals, so that everyone understands how to carry out the project safely. Everyone can ask questions or make suggestions on how to improve safety aspects. “One example of how this helps is with access changes,” says Westie. “On-site access routes change all the time, and so do fire escape routes. The daily meetings ensure that everyone knows where these routes are and that there is no confusion. We also use exclusion zones, which mean that if you and your team are working in that area, no one else can come into that part of the site, which greatly reduces the risk of accidents.”

But not all construction projects come close to this kind of thinking. The latest figures from the HSE show that over 70 people are still killed every year as a result of construction work; occupational ill health adds to the death toll.

Construction is a low profit margin industry. Even though construction workers are legally entitled to a safe working environment, the drive to minimise costs has sometimes put health and safety at the bottom of the industry’s priority list. Now, however, there are a number of drivers that should encourage the industry to put health and safety at the top of the agenda.

New legislation on corporate manslaughter may make construction leaders sit up and take notice. But there are also strong financial arguments that a healthy workforce is a productive one. Accidents cause lost time, higher insurance premiums, compensation claims and legal costs.

Also, the current move in construction towards partnering means that a firm’s health and safety record will be looked at very carefully by potential clients in future. Your record reflects your working attitude and ability to produce high quality projects. The T5 project has been an excellent example of this, with contractors signing up to new ways of working, and new attitudes to their operatives’ safety.

The key aspect that makes a health and safety policy work is good communications. Westie says: “The message has to come from the top of the organisation, with a clear health and safety policy, and that has to be communicated thoroughly.

“If there’s one message that I would take away from working on T5, it’s that safety does work. If you talk to people and communicate the health and safety message clearly, they will work safer and better.”

With the recent death at T5, its faultless safety record seems to have come to an end. But if such a terrible accident can occur on this site, where everyone is focused on health and safety, imagine how much more likely it is to happen on sites where safety is less of a priority. How much attention are you paying?