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16 August 2005 - Designers Failing to
Understand Duties
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Further to the Health and Safety Executive's (HSE's) designer
initiative in March 2003, which allowed HSE inspectors to identify and raise
awareness of designer duties under CDM, it was found that in approximately one
third of cases, designers had little or no understanding of their duties.
The initiative was carried out by HSE inspectors in the North of
England and Scotland, where pre-arranged on-site visits were arranged with
designers and planning supervisors to assess the designers element of controlled
risk with working at height during construction.
The inspections were not aimed at enforcement, but more to
identifying bad practice and raising awareness of design duties under CDM, in a
bid to reduce the ever rising falls from height injuries and fatalities.
Designers duties include avoiding any foreseeable risks to
workers during construction and cleaning and maintenance of the completed
structure. They must also provide any information which allows any
remaining risks to be controlled by others.
Of the 123 major projects visited during inspections, the
following factors were identified:
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Designers did not appreciate their duties under CDM.
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Many had very little knowledge of other legislation,
particularly the Construction (Health, Safety & Welfare) Regulations 1996 (CHSW).
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Only one third of the designers seen were considered by
inspectors to have sufficient knowledge of CDM to allow them to adequately
fulfill their duties as a designer.
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Only 8% of the designers seen had received any training on CDM.
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This initiative, was for many, the first time they had been
asked to justify their design decisions in the context of Regulation 13 of CDM.
Leader of the initiative, Mr. Nic Rigby, HSE Construction
Inspector commented:
"The results of this exercise indicate just how far from the
required standard many designers actually are.
"HSE inspectors found that where design risk assessments had
been prepared, many were of poor quality and added little if anything to the
safety of the construction process.
"Inspectors reported that designers were often abdicating
their responsibility to reduce risk in relation to work at height by leaving it
to the principal contractor, without first considering how they could change the
design in a way which would make it safer to build, clean or maintain.
"Many designers viewed the safety harness as the panacea for
protection against all work at height risks, without giving any consideration to
the possibility of eliminating the need for work at height, reducing the risk
through the use of work platforms with good standards of edge protection, or
providing more collective forms of fall protection such as nets or air bags."
Mr. Kevin Myers, Chief Inspector of Construction said of the
results:
"It is of serious concern to HSE that many designers are
still failing to understand and act on their responsibilities to protect those
affected by their design decisions. If the construction industry is to improve
its health and safety performance further, all duty holders, including
designers, must do more to reduce risks on site, particularly in relation to
falls.
"This initiative is part of our intervention strategy
targeting all CDM duty holders, not just site contractors, and it has revealed
that many designers need to improve their understanding of how to comply with
Regulation 13 of CDM. The HSE will continue to work with industry to bring about
these improvements, but designers can also expect that where we find them
failing to meet their responsibilities, we will take enforcement action."
Further information on the Designer Initiative and report can be
viewed from the HSE webpage by clicking the following:
Health and Safety in Construction. Designer Initiative.
Article by Alexandra Johnston
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