Trends of Occupational Fatal and Nonfatal Injuries in Electrical and Mechanical Specialty Contracting Sectors: Necessity for a Learning Investigation System

Abstract

The specialty electrical and mechanical contracting sectors provide crucial services and perform functions that are vital to the products delivered by the construction industry. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the causes of fatal and nonfatal injuries in these specialty construction sectors over time as well as their effects on the level of safety performance in the industry. Accordingly, the most prevalent causes of fatal and nonfatal incidents in the mechanical and electrical sectors are investigated and presented as a longitudinal study from 2005 to 2015. The trends in occupational injuries in these sectors over this period of time are also compared to the trends reported in previous studies. The results from this study show that the direct causes of fatal and nonfatal injuries in the electrical and mechanical fatal and nonfatal injuries differ from those found in the construction industry in general. However, the electrical and mechanical construction industry trends identified in this study are similar to previously reported trends. The similarities between the current findings and those of previous studies highlight real shortcomings in the safety management approaches within the construction industry. Based on the findings of this study, a learning investigation system has been proposed to improve safety performance among electrical and mechanical specialty contractors.

Bayesian Network Models for Evaluating the Impact of Safety Measures Compliance on Reducing Accidents in the Construction Industry

“…Identifying the measures that are predictive of safety performance is crucial to evaluating workforce safety performance. To effectively perform this task, effective safety values, practices, and responsibilities were identified in several studies [3,5,11,12,15,20,26,[33][34][35]. For instance, Abudayyeh concluded that weekly working hours, safety budget, and dedication to safety regulations are essential indicators for an effective safety system [3].…”

Analysis of the Average Duration of Sick Leave Due to Electrical Contact in the Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sectors in Spain (2013-2019)

“…The analysis of the evolution of the ADSL for severe accidents due to indirect electrical contact in Spain during the study period shows that the highest year-on-year ADSL for this type of accident is observed in the secondary sector (143,58), followed by the tertiary sector (64,96) and the primary sector (54,43). However, in the previous analysis of total electrical accidents nationwide, the ADSL in the primary sector was higher than the other sectors, mainly because this type of accident did not occur in several of the years studied.…”

“…The main objective of this study is to determine the impact and seriousness of occupational accidents in different economic sectors. Given the seriousness of injuries caused by accidents due to electrical contact [40][41][42][43], we have included this type of accident in our analysis in order to verify whether its consequences are the same or equivalent in different economic sectors.…”