Developing an electronic system to enhance building safety audits

Abstract

The ability to prevent accidents can enhance construction sites as safer work places. The key to preventing accidents is effective risk identification and management, requiring performance feedback via a structured, transparent and auditable assessment process. Current measures of safety performance have not improved safety levels on worksites in Singapore. The problem is a lack of a standard protocol or audit tool that can assess objectively the effectiveness of a construction firm's safety management system. This research note introduces an electronic method for safety auditing through a more efficient mode of data collection and transfer. A survey and on-site trial audit were conducted to validate the system. The findings show that an electronic system can enhance the safety auditing process, resulting in safer work places. © 2007 University of Sydney. All rights reserved.