All the scaffolding in the world won’t save a worker in a hurry

Another rush’ factor not often spoken about is the tendency to hurry on a Friday afternoon or near enough ‘knock off’ time. Some workers may want to be done for the day or the weekend – so they can make a fresh start when they return to work.

A natural consequence of a New Zealand construction industry under pressure will be deadlines to get projects done, pressure from clients or supervisors and a temptation to do multiple tasks at a time.

Defined by researchers as ‘schedule pressure’, the rush to meet deadlines can result in cutting corners, including safety corners.

In the report, Effects of Schedule Pressure on Construction Performance – in the Journal of Construction Engineering and Management – researchers recommend the following actions to reduce the hazards of haste:

1. Set attainable and realistic schedules.

2. Management and supervisors should collaborate with the workers on the ground when setting realistic work schedules.

3. Site managers should actively plan to reduce disruption and interruption in how they manage materials procurement, site layout, workspace design and resources to reduce the risk of interruptions and disruptions.

There’s little doubt that deadlines can erode safety and promote risk-taking. When workers take risks – because they think it will only take a few seconds to get a job done (instead of the 15 or 20 minutes it will take if they follow safety processes) — the result may be painful.

Safety equipment, like properly constructed scaffolding, exists for a reason. It saves lives. Another thing that saves lives is to slow down, slow down, slow down – only when working at a pace that allows you proper situational awareness can you be confident of staying safe.