How onsite safety is set to evolve in 2020 and beyond

Health and safety is a vital component in any working environment, but in the construction industry where there are often greater risks to workers, ensuring onsite safety best practice is of the utmost importance.

In today’s post, we’ve teamed up with No1 Packaging to take a closer look at how onsite safety rules, regulations and best practices are set to evolve in 2020 and beyond. From an increased focus on mental wellbeing to the incorporation of smart technology and AI, we’ll provide you with a comprehensive overview on how to set the building blocks in place for optimal safety and wellbeing on your building site.

More focuses on worker wellbeing

Over the past decade, prioritising worker wellbeing has become an increasingly important focus for businesses across all sectors, which includes the construction industry. After all, a happy and healthy workforce can not only reduce lost work days (and lost revenue) through sickness, but it will also increase your business’ productivity levels too.

Previously, construction health and safety has predominantly focused on addressing the physical health implications of construction work. However, there is seemingly a growing shift towards taking a more holistic and comprehensive approach to encompass both physical and mental health concerns.

This isn’t surprising when you look at the latest figures for 2019 released by HSE showing that 79,000 workers in the construction industry reported work-related ill health, of which 21% were attributed to stress, depression and anxiety related disorders.

In addition, construction industry charity Lighthouse Club has also reported a noticeable rise in the number of calls from construction workers and their families seeking mental and financial support. This all suggests there is definitely more to be done to tackle issues surrounding the long-term wellbeing of construction workers in 2020 and beyond.

In the short term, we’re set to see more companies openly speaking about mental health within the construction industry and putting processes in place that go beyond physical onsite safety – encouraging workers at every level to take responsibility for their overall health and wellbeing. Further down the line, it’s likely that employee wellbeing will become an intuitive and integral part of the construction industry culture as standard practice to optimise workforce productivity and safety both on and off site.

Increased use of AI and smart technology

Smart technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) have already been successfully integrated into a number of sectors such as supply chain management and manufacturing, but finally it’s the turn of construction to realise the potential of technological advancements for both efficiency and onsite safety.

In terms of how it can bolster site safety, the use of automated machinery and real-time data can allow construction site managers and workers to analyse site risks and progress quickly and safely.

Some exciting examples of how technology is being integrated into construction site work includes the use of drones that scan sites from above and identify potential risks – feeding up-to-the-minute data and imagery to a centralised computer. Similar innovations include robots that have the ability to quickly scan building sites to provide status updates on project progress – a faster and more accurate alternative to humans physically walking the site and reporting back.

Beyond this there are a whole host of emerging machine learning innovations, smart technology and risk analysis software that could have a significant impact on reducing risks to construction workers. From software that analyses real-time images to assess safety risks such as areas that could cause a trip or fall, to automated machinery that tackles hazardous, labour-intensive jobs, the evolution of technology in construction is set to continue.

Mastering the smaller details

While advancements in technology are beginning to make waves in improving onsite safety overall in the future, they typically require large investment and are often specifically honed in on particular safety aspects. With this in mind, it’s still imperative for construction site managers to master the fundamental (and sometimes smaller details) of every day health and safety in order to optimise their working environment.

Taking data from the same HSE report above, 54,000 non-fatal injuries were reported in 2019. Although figures from previous years indicate a downward trend, there are still significant areas for improvement to avoid slips, trips and falls, injuries from heavy lifting and falling from heights.

Ensuring sites are taking the most appropriate measures to assess these risks and manage the level of danger to workers is key here. Whether it’s ensuring visible safety signage for asbestos removal or upgrading safety hats and workwear, the importance of the smaller details onsite should continue to be a core focus for any size construction site to prioritise staff safety at all times.

With a continually evolving landscape that’s putting more emphasis on worker wellbeing, technological advancements and a greater attention paid to the basics, we hope these insights give you plenty of food for thought on how you can utilise them to create a safer construction site for the future.