Project owner, a powerful part of safety eco-system

Mr. B A Madhukar, Director, Potential Project Managers Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. B A Madhukar, Director, Potential Project Managers Pvt. Ltd., shares exclusively with Built Expressions that by setting mandate, expectations and adequate resources for a zero accident project, his company has achieved more than 10 million safe man-hours in a single project spread over three years and without any instance of workers requiring hospitalisation over the last six years.

BE: How important is EHS factor at a construction project and how is it accommodated at tendering stage?

BAM: Every construction project has three important considerations optimum time for delivery being a given and they are Quality, Cost & EHS aspects. I have read somewhere that while constructing the Taj Mahal, thousands of people died due to non-existent safety standards at that time. We have moved a lot since those days and today, our clients and Client’s clients increasingly decide on collaborating with a certain agency only based on presence of strong systems & processes to mitigate the risk of EHS non-conformances on a project.

Pp Rope Slab Preparation Area

Loss of life or limb besides providing hazard-free working environment both during & post construction stages is considered an essential requirement & this is accommodated right at the tendering stage by having elaborate discussions with all stakeholders of the project & arriving at the project mandate highlighting the expectations of clients and their end-users. These are clearly documented as part of the vendor pre-qualification stage itself giving a significant rating to vendor's track record and system compliance. Vendors scoring low on EHS hence lose out in a plain playing field of equals, other things being equal. Once the pre-qualification establishes compliance to basic expectations, the standards to comply like ISO 14001 & ISO 18001 as well as the relevant requirements of regulatory agencies would form the basis of tender documentation. 

BE: What are the best safety practices to be adopted at a construction site based on your experience as a reputed Project management Consultant?

BAM: There is no quick fix or one size fits all solution to ensure implementation of best practices in a construction project. The process starts with analysis of the risks associated with safety in a particular project. Factors to be considered include but not limited to whether work is carried out underground or with deep excavations, in confined areas or if project is a high rise, are effluents like bentonite that need to be treated prior to disposal are part of project have an impact on safety management system to be adopted at a site. Attention to detail at this stage in identifying & documenting potential risks & its mitigation go a long way in ensuring bringing in awareness among all stakeholders. The emphasis is more on prevention rather than on containment of safety issues. Accordingly, following are some dos & don’ts which may be handy as a starting point:

BE: How can one achieve 'Zero Accident' completion of a project? What are the kinds of strategies adopted in your projects to achieve this status?

BAM: As can be seen from above, a zero accident project does not happen by accident or chance but by meticulous planning, effective implementation and continuous monitoring. We have achieved more than 10 million safe man-hours in a single project spread over 3 years as well as couple of ongoing projects logging in half a million safe man hours each without incident. There has not been any instance of anyone on our project sites requiring hospitalisation in the last 6 years or so. This is the result of commitment of team, focus on making the site operations completely safe and we have been fortunate to be working with project owners who walk the talk by willing to spend reasonable amount on EHS enforcement.   This is where, the project owner, being the most influential part of the eco-system plays a major role in setting mandate, expectations and adequate resources for a zero accident project. So far, MNC Owners & those with exposure to best practices, due to precedents set elsewhere or process requirements have a much better record in achieving this but the trend is shifting now with many local project owners also realising the tangible & intangible benefits of a zero accident completion and taking steps to move closer to perfection. The bar is definitely raising.

BE: What in your experience is the effectiveness of safety measures in reducing Construction Accident Rates?

BAM: As said earlier, we have seen significant reduction in incidents & accidents in managing projects. All projects carry risks and challenge lies in reducing infinite risk to finite & once there, drilling down to control. One successful project leads to another and so on. The results so far are very encouraging and perhaps the time is not too far when we can expect best practices from around world being implemented in all projects rather than in a select few projects as is being done right now. The regulatory framework is there, the intent is there and a little bit more commitment from all of us can get us there.

Emergency Mock Drillshifting

BE: What kind of compensation policy is included in the contract document?

BAM: There are several mechanisms in which a contractor is compensated for the investments he makes on EHS practices in a project. In some forms of contract, we provide a pricing option for contractors to quote. In some others, the contractors are provided with incentive (generally as percentage of the contract) for ensuring zero accident performance. Whereas these are tangible ones, there are other (and much larger) intangible incentives to the contractor like a happy & healthy workforce, recognition from Owner leading to repeat business saving on business development cost, premium being paid by Owners for working with an accountable contractor and recognition by the government & authorities. The contractor for main civil works in one of the projects, Chemizol, where we are the project management consultants, was awarded the best Safety Site 2013 by Government of Karnataka, giving much recognition in industry & professional circles which would also act as a big incentive to the contractor to keep up the good work.

BE: How important is Activity Hazard Analysis in India?

As a subject, analysing each activity for its hazard quotient and taking a preventive view based on the severity would be the most desired way of managing risks to the project. However, considering the complexity of such a study, I would suggest the following categorisation of Hazards & pigeon holing each of the activities under different heads would be the first & easier step towards same.

BE: How is the scenario of construction safety in India when compared with developed countries?

BAM: There is a mixed view when compared with sectors within the construction industry. I can say we are almost on par with best practices from around the world when it comes to projects involving MNC clients with legacy systems & processes with strong emphasis on implementation & enforcement. Some of these sectors are in IT / ITES workspaces, pharma, space technology, biotechnology & automobile industries, R&D centres where our industry has made rapid strides in implementation of global EHS best standards. On the other end of the spectrum, there are projects in other sectors like housing, industrial and some public sector projects which are perhaps about 15 years behind in terms of awareness & implementation.

This can perhaps be explained by lack of enforcement by the concerned regulatory authorities or the project owners. Even best contracting companies are guilty of having dual standards citing “the client is not insisting of safety” indicating that we still some way to go before we can claim to be fully conscious of our responsibilities on this front. We also need to have many more training institutes with high quality trainers adept at giving a practical & hands on training to meet the ever increasing need for EHS professionals in our industry. This training infrastructure shortfall coupled with an effective regulatory framework is something that developed countries like Singapore & Germany seem to have addressed prior to setting high standards of EHS in construction industry.  

BE: As PMC's , How can a safe design process improve construction productivity?

BAM: A worker typically spends a minimum of about 60 hours per week in making his ends meet. Assuming, he has a shelf life of about 35 years that it is a very long time for him spending at site working in the exposed conditions at site. When unchecked, he is bound to catch some chronic illnesses like chest & eye infection, high stress levels, skin irritation to name a few all of which affect his productivity. Risk-Environment Impact Assessment Forms can be designed for each critical activity & implemented to ensure due diligence prior to commencement of activity. Designing a safe work environment striking a balance between the individual, the hazard, social responsibility and financial outlay that can be set aside, though tough to achieve will lead to long term sustainable practices good for the society as a whole.

A common EHS code or handbook for all construction projects in a particular region, say Karnataka, devised by group of concerned professionals including Developers, Architects, Consultants, PMCs, EHS professionals, Government representatives and associations like BIA, INSTRUCT and others can be a good starting point that can be taken up by Built Expressions as an initiative to raise the bar and improve awareness in this area.