Impact of COVID‐19 on health and safety in the construction sector

Abstract

Construction has been significantly affected by COVID‐19 yet is critical to the post‐COVID economic recovery. Specifically, construction needs to be constantly aware of safety and risk balanced with timely project delivery. Guidance for COVID‐19 must therefore be implemented in a way that reflects working practice and pressures. There is, however, a potential knowledge gap regarding the practical feasibility and impact of applying COVID‐19 measures within construction, made more difficult by factors such as the temporary nature of projects and complex working arrangements. This article presents a commentary on safe construction during, and beyond, COVID‐19, covering the human factors challenges and practicalities of implementing COVID‐19 measures. We observe that while guidance is strong on risk management, understanding of how best to implement this guidance is not yet stable. Also, care must be taken that implementing guidance does not detract from general safety, which is also challenged by increased pressures on delivery arising from COVID‐19. There may, however, be opportunities for safer working practice arising from new awareness of health, hygiene, and safety risk. The role of safety leadership is overlooked in guidance yet is vital to ensure safe application of COVID‐19 working practices. The key message is that COVID‐19 needs to be integrated and promoted within a general risk management approach, in part because this takes account of differing priorities regarding safety risks, rather than overly focussing on COVID‐19, and also because the effectiveness of COVID‐19 mitigations can be amplified by integration with pre‐existing safety processes.

Opportunities and Challenges for Construction Health and Safety Technologies under the COVID-19 Pandemic in Chinese Construction Projects

“…The pandemic, however, is perceived to bring some positive outcomes. These outcomes include an increase in technology adoption, cleaner sites, closer collaboration between project stakeholders, and a shift toward a more resilient supply chain [ 6 , 13 ]. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the technology transformation in the construction industry, stimulated investment in technologies [ 24 ], and facilitated the adoption of advanced digital technologies [ 25 ].…”

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the technology transformation in the construction industry, stimulated investment in technologies [ 24 ], and facilitated the adoption of advanced digital technologies [ 25 ]. The technologies used on construction sites under COVID-19 have also improved communication among project stakeholders and thus enhanced project efficiency and productivity [ 13 , 26 ]. Rapid deployment of advanced digital technologies might help prevent and mitigate the adverse impacts of a similar pandemic in the future [ 27 ].…”

“…An in-depth investigation of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on Chinese construction projects is lacking. Prior research on pandemic management focused mainly on general “dos and don’ts” H&S measures [ 7 , 12 , 13 ] or “fourth industrial revolution” technologies [ 10 ]. The role of H&S technologies in managing the pandemic on site and the issues associated with technology adoption has not been well documented, especially in Chinese construction projects.…”

Role of a Digital Last Planner® System to Ensuring Safe and Productive Workforce and Workflow in Covid-19 Pandemic

“…The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has forced production environments (especially in the construction domain) to become more sensitive regarding the safe working environment (Stiles et al, 2021;Wu & Wang, 2020).The arrival of the pandemic resulted in all industrial and social activities being temporarily suspended. To successfully reopen societal and industry social distancing measures had to be implemented to safeguard the population from disease transmission.…”

Impacto das medidas para controle da COVID-19 nos canteiros na Região Metropolitana de Salvador

“…Para combater a propagação da COVID-19, diferentes países, estados e municípios vem adotando medidas de mitigação de risco variadas (BRUIN et al, 2020), e apesar das recomendações de minimização das interações humanas por meio do distanciamento social, algumas atividades, tal como a construção civil, são impossíveis de serem realizadas online (ARAYA, 2021). Além disso, a construção é vista como uma parte vital para estimular a economia pós COVID-19, portanto, há uma necessidade de garantir que esta atividade possa retornar rapidamente com segurança e de maneira flexível (STILES, GOLIGHTLY;RYAN, 2021).…”