Safety and responsibilities of construction sitesBuilding contractors Cape Town have many aspects that they are held accountable for. They are responsible for the construction of new buildings and the renovation of old buildings. They manage and organise all aspects of a building site as well as looking after the construction workers safety to ensure there are no accidents on site. This is done to ensure that the project runs smoothly and is finished by the predetermined deadline. (Information source: www.speedworx.co.za)
Besides the fact that contractors are used to manage and organise the building site and all the people and equipment within the site, contractors are also there for numerous other important reasons. An important role contractors play is to keep stakeholders up to date with the building progress or problems that might have occurred for the simple fact that they are paying for everything.
Obviously building causes a lot of environmental concerns, the sound pollution from the equipment that is used, rubble that’s not responsibly removed and the fossil fuels that is released by the use of dump trucks, excavators and cranes. Because of the environmental concerns another job of a contractor is to minimise the environmental damage as much as possible.
Other responsibilities contractors have is to try and forecast potential problems that may arise, identifying and estimating project issues like the necessary equipment needed to complete certain tasks, required materials and personal needs of the construction team. Contractors are responsible for making sure that all the safety protocols are in place. Construction sites have numerous safety threats and for this reason should have emergency protocols in place.
Examples of the emergencies that are common in the Cape Town construction industry is fires, weather, power loss and other possible medical injuries. Protocols for these emergencies follow below.
1. Fire:
The fire alarm should be activated and then the fire department should be called before you should not attempt to fight the fire. A pre-planned evacuation process should be followed. All the staff should be educated on this protocol, meaning they known where all the emergency exits are and what protocol to follow after they’ve left the site.
2. Weather:
Cape Town can have episodes of extreme weather which results in strong winds and very high rain fall in a short period of time. This can result in construction being postponed or put on hold.
3. Power loss:
In South Africa we have load shedding. Contractors in Cape Town should plan their work schedule around load shedding. Many contractors have alternative ways of generating energy such as a generator so that construction doesn’t have top stop.
4. Possible injuries:
There are many possible injuries that can occur on a construction site, thus there are protocols that are in place to make sure that the situation is handled smoothly. Employees should have CPR and first aid training to be able to assist an injured employee until the paramedics arrive.
Builders in Cape Town thus have to ensure that their employees know all the necessary protocol in case of an emergency. Responsible contractors train their employees according to the safety threats of a given project to ensure their safety.
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