Comparative study of safety management in hong kong and zhejiang province

To ensure that the contractors have set up a safety management system, the HONG KONG government requires them to establish a management system. The key elements of the system are:

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  Safety policy
  
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  Safety organization
  
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  Safety and health training
  
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  Safety and health inspection
  
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  Personal protective equipment
  
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  Evaluation, selection and control of sub-contractors
  
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  Process control program
  
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  Safety committees
  
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  Safety promotion
  
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  Emergency preparedness
  
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  Job Accident/incident investigation hazard analysis
  
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  Health assurance program
  

To effectively carry out daily safety management missions, contractors must pay for the expenditure of preparing safety plans, holding safety meetings, and employing safety officer etc. The cost of safety management is pre-priced, which is fixed at 2% of the estimated contract sums.

According to the scheme, independent safety auditors carry out safety audits at quarterly intervals. The audit reports highlight the strength and weakness of the contractors’ safety management system. The score and comments are also included. If the contractor can achieve 70% of the scores, they can attain the pre-priced payment. If the score is less than 60%, they will be given an adverse report.

The purpose of safety promotion is to enhance the safety performance of contractors and the awareness of all building workers. The award scheme aims to encourage contractors to maintain a healthy and safe environment to workers.

Government will monitor and assess the performance of contractors by using both active system such as PFSS, ISAS etc, and reactive system, such as the monitoring of accident frequency rates, record of site safety convictions, etc.

A “carrot and stick” approach is adopted to manage site safety. Contractors with good performance are rewarded while contractors with poor performance will be punished. The regulation actions include the issue of warning letters and voluntary suspension from tendering.

1. 
   General rules
   

2. 
   Safety management
   

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  General rules of construction company
  
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  Professional training
  
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  Safety inspection
  
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  Hazard control program
  
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  Safety board
  
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  Arrangement on site
  
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  Roster management on special kind of work
  

3. 
   Detailed requirement on construction facilities
   

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  falsework
  
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  construction electricity
  
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  derrick
  
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  tower crane
  
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  middle and small types of construction facilities
  
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  safety net, safety belt, safety helmet
  
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  protection of holes
  

4. 
   Setting up a neat construction site
   

The regulation mentioned above is just a guideline. The company must comply with this regulation, and can formulate its own safety policy and safety plan according to its own conditions.

1. 
   safety management
   
2. 
   falsework
   
3. 
   safety helmet, belt, net and holes
   
4. 
   construction electricity
   
5. 
   derrick
   
6. 
   town crane
   
7. 
   middle and small types of construction facilities
   
8. 
   physical site conditions
   
9. 
   summary
   

Except for this “score list system”, the accident rate is another criterion for scoring. There are three kinds of results, i.e. excellent, pass, or failure. The safety supervision department, a department in the government, is responsible for this inspection.

Besides the content discussed above, the plan B has its own special safety system. For example, safety license management system, safety technology management system, construction safety requirement, safety performance award and penalty regulations, etc.

1. 
   To ensure it is suitable for realistic situations, the government should update the safety regulations from time to time.
   

2. 
   The government should set up a new system to encourage contractors to execute the safety management.
   
   • 
     The profit can be based on the safety performance. Safety performance and quantity of work are two foundations of getting pre-priced payment. Supervisors not only are in charge of the cost, process, work period and quality, but also take care of the safety performance on construction sites. So, a safety supervisor should be employed if necessary.
     
   • 
     The policy must enforce the functions of the safety supervision department. The department must inspect the sites periodically to ensure the contractors have complied with the regulations. The performance of contractors will be a reference criterion in future tendering. A contractor with good performance in safety will be awarded financially and he will have more chance of wining the future bids.
     

3. 
   The government should provide professional training to enhance the workers’ awareness of safety and prepare plans for preventing accidents and disasters. The government should also conduct examination for the workers.
   

4. 
   The workers’ bonus should be linked to their safety performance. The longer they work safely, the more bonus they can earn. It will encourage the workers to work under the safety regulations.
   

5. 
   The government should offer professional safety certificates to competent safety personnel in different specialization areas.
   

6. 
   The fines from unsafe sites could be used to fund a safety center. The main activities of this center include:
   

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  Participate in technical investigation of accidents to identify causes and take steps to avoid them in the future;
  
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  Create an accident databank with reasons, results, and methods of accident prevention;
  
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  Explain safety principles and their importance in every workplace;
  
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  Participate in international safety conferences and organize safety courses and provide training sessions for workers, engineers and managers at all levels of responsibility;
  
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  Conduct regional and state surveys about safety matters in all economic sectors and propose recommendations to improve safe working conditions;
  
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  Facilitate sharing of information and coordination among insurance companies.