Multi-organisational approach to safety training: the case of a Finnish Safety Training Park

Abstract

Studies across trades suggest that occupational accident and injury rates and costs are higher than average in the construction industry. There is, a need for innovative and cost-effective occupational safety approaches. The Finnish construction industry and its key stakeholders have introduced a new safety training concept, called the Safety Training Park (STP). The STP consists of fullscale training points that use new training methods to stimulate individual safe behaviour and safety climate changes within work groups and companies. The Safety Training Park in Northern Finland (STPNF) was designed, constructed, and financed through a collaborative process that included over 80 organizations. A realistic evaluation approach was applied to document the effectiveness of STPNF training from individual and organizational perspectives. Results indicate that the dialogical STP approach with several information sharing channels fits the target groups. Evidence regarding effectiveness at the organizational level is also discussed. Cost-benefit calculations show that the multi-organizational coalition model enables efficient occupational safety and health training with reasonable costs.

Safety Climate Perceptions in the Construction Industry of Saudi Arabia: The Current Situation

“…Building information modelling applications that focus on safety education and training can also augment safety climate [ 101 ]. Also, new training methods such as safety training park can be adopted to develop safety climate within organizations [ 102 ]. Strong commitment to safety measures by management will require sufficient financial and moral support.…”

Designing Impactful Construction Safety Training Interventions

“…These emotional responses in turn translate to superior learning and risk aversion, which are fundamental to discourage risktaking behavior in construction workplaces. Other efforts have used physical dummies to represent realistic incidents involving pieces of equipment, construction material, and tools to demonstrate safety risks and appropriate safety measures in a range of activities, which include excavation operations, work in proximity to powerlines, and lifting and hoisting [73,74]. Training efforts that focus on educating workers on the proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and equipment operation are also common [40].…”