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A lesson on safety from the London Olympics

When the United Kingdom began the construction work for London Olympics 2012, the accident rates then in the industry suggested that we would suffer three deaths and more than 500 serious injury accidents, with perhaps a hundred workers having their lives changed by the way they were hurt.

The Stratford Stadium’s four-year build was a massive project with more than 12,000 involved. After 62 million hours of work, London 2012 was the first Olympics in the history of the Games to be completed without a fatality. Photo: Reuters

The Stratford Stadium’s four-year build was a massive project with more than 12,000 involved. After 62 million hours of work, London 2012 was the first Olympics in the history of the Games to be completed without a fatality. Photo: Reuters

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When the United Kingdom began the construction work for London Olympics 2012, the accident rates then in the industry suggested that we would suffer three deaths and more than 500 serious injury accidents, with perhaps a hundred workers having their lives changed by the way they were hurt.

The Stratford Stadium’s four-year build was a massive project. More than 12,000 workers were to be involved in the construction of the 80,000-seater stadium and the 2,818 flats built for the Olympic Village.

As the construction client responsible for London 2012, the Olympics Development Authority (ODA) set out to create a legacy. We set a target to make London 2012 the safest and healthiest built on record.

Eventually, after 62 million hours of work, London 2012 was the first Olympic in the history of the Games to be completed without a fatality. The onsite accident frequency rate was 0.17 per 100,000 hours — far below the building industry average of 0.55, and less than the all industry average of 0.21.

From a worker’s safety perspective, working construction at the London Olympics was the equivalent of working in an office.

CAREFUL PLANNING AT EVERY STEP

This award-winning performance was based on simple foundations that, with sensible adaptation, can be applied to building projects of any size and in any place. Behind each and every completed building and facility lie careful design, construction and consistent planning in ensuring those involved are protected and accounted for.

• Clear commitments to safety, with measurable objectives and targets. Part of the reason we got everyone to work to prevent deaths on site is that we declared that we wanted to build without a fatality.

• Leadership was provided with real impact at every level, from our Chief Executive to every sub-contractor. This wasn’t just making public pronouncements, there were very practical ways in which the leadership was structured to be decisive, to take action and make a difference.

• We encouraged designers to design for health and safety in construction, use and future maintenance.

• We planned every phase of work, profiled every risk and managed those risks in detail. It was this method of planning everything before working that repaid in quality, budgetary control and delivery on time as well as safety and health.

HEALTH, WELL-BEING AS CRITICAL AS ACCIDENT PREVENTION

We determined that although many more construction workers have their health damaged than are injured in accidents, it would not happen on our programme.

During construction, the ODA found that an overwhelming number of the 12,000 builders working on the Olympic facilities were living an “unhealthy lifestyle” and that many were significantly overweight. An occupational health report conducted showed that 3,360 (or 28 per cent) of the builders at the Olympic Park were classed as “obese”. A staggering 4,920 (or 41 per cent) were overweight and 29 per cent had high blood pressure.

We realised that many accidents were due to workers skipping breakfast after indulging in fatty takeaways the night before. Thus, in the one hour before lunch, workers’ minds were on what they were having for lunch rather than on the job at hand.

To encourage positive behaviour and keep safety at the forefront of workers’ minds, we looked at an alternative method and eventually offered healthy porridge for £1 (S$1.90). The result was better diets, lower accident rates and a general boost to health.

LEARNING LEGACY

The construction of Singapore’s venues and public infrastructure and London 2012 are intimately connected. London 2012 was fundamentally no different from other construction projects, and the initiatives and practices that worked for the Olympics can also be applied elsewhere.

Many of the safety procedures at the Olympic Park were not new but carried out by following established good practices. Daily activity briefings were mandated by the ODA, even at the smallest site. Onsite communication, no matter how small, was strongly encouraged.

The relentless effort towards leadership and worker engagement has also moulded safe work behaviours and embedded positive attitudes. These are things that have paid off to help us reap the rewards of having a more efficient and effective workforce.

The commitment by the Singapore Government sets the right direction. As recently echoed by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in a message during the World Day for Safety and Health at Work, Singapore is determined to safeguard workers’ well-being and enhance their productive capacity.

The approach ODA has adopted is relevant not only for the construction sector, but also for any workplace. With visible commitment and support throughout any project, every organisation can protect their workers and bring success to their business.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Lawrence Waterman (OBE) is Past President of Institution of Occupational Safety and Health, Head of Health and Safety for the Olympic Delivery Authority.

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