From our 25+ years of experience providing waste services at the construction site in Houston, we have a strong appreciation for the safety concerns of construction managers. With a pandemic added into the mix, it’s more important than ever that construction site managers are up to speed on current safety precautions and practices for 2021.
OSHA and the CDC have provided valuable information on how best to navigate these times. We want to relay the most important construction safety tips to support your safety efforts, training, and best practices.
In addition to COVID-19 prevention, there are new safety solutions being rolled out by the Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) directors to make construction site safety stronger in 2021. Keep reading for the latest information.
Construction Site Safety Training Programs & Trends for 2021
1. Construction Safety Trends
With each passing year, there is valuable new information about the primary safety risks at the construction site. As you know, being the individual who oversees projects and the team’s safety includes the responsibility to continue to assess risks, learn from incidents, and find ways to avoid them in the future.
With that in mind, some common safety trends for construction managers to consider in 2021 include the following:
- Maintain work environments where every worker is asked to identify and report hazards to construction management to ensure continued awareness. Safety is a team effort.
- Provide training on driving safety at the construction site. Across the U.S., there are approximately 772 fatal driver-related injuries at the construction site each year.
- Provide fall protection equipment and support for the immediate removal of spills. Falls are the most common type of injury-related incident on construction sites.
- Focus on the continual re-training of workers to ensure better compliance.
- Emphasize awareness and prevention programs to identify workplace substance abuse.
- Embed more trained safety professionals on-site.
2. Consider Incorporating New Equipment & Technology
Every year, the EHS reviews common accidents that occur in the workplace and determines where they should be directing their funds to support adequate protection strategies. The industries they are majorly focusing on for 2021 are construction, engineering, and manufacturing. Here is some of the equipment and technology that their budget is supporting:
– Personal protective equipment (PPE). PPE provides individuals with their own sensors that monitor and collect data on a person’s location and safety risks. This “smart” equipment displays the user’s heart rate, steps walked, and blood pressure (as well as calories burned).
Advanced devices will also check blood alcohol & oxygen levels, sweat levels, and vital signs. This information is relayed to the manager’s own device, helping them to determine safety risks and if workers need to take a break.
– Autonomous vehicles. These self-driving cars eliminate the need for people to get behind the wheel and risk their safety at the construction site. They are designed with sensors and software so they can adjust to weather conditions, avoid hitting objects or people, and anticipate potentially dangerous situations down the road.
While not every construction site is ready to embrace this type of new technology, consider the opportunity to have discussions with internal stakeholders about pilot programs or other introductory types of programs to gauge the viability of these technology options.
3. Consider New Training Programs
There are many construction safety training programs available to keep yourself and your crew informed. If you are looking for a training program, make sure to evaluate them based on reviews, specialties, core features, and how long the training will take. Here are some great options that we found for your consideration:
- OSHA provides different levels of construction safety courses. View their calendar.
- ClickSafety was founded in 1999 and was the first Outreach Training Provider to offer OSHA training online.
- Pure Safety is used by over 2,000 organizations with courses that help to improve safety in the workplace, sustainability, and overall business performance.
- 360training offers safety classes specifically focused on confined spaces, transportation, and heavy equipment.
4. COVID-19 Safety & Prevention Construction Site Tips
Last year’s pandemic has changed the way each company in every industry addresses safety and health precautions in the workplace. People everywhere are being told to wear masks, maintain social distancing, and do their best to avoid sharing the same tools.
Employers and managers are encouraged to also focus on the mental health of employees, as many of them are experiencing heightened anxiety and depression. This presents a safety risk at the construction site because there is no room for distractions.
Some overall safety precautions that relate to COVID-19 at the construction site include having guidelines for the following:
- Required handwashing.
- Regularly cleaning and disinfecting the work environment.
- Standard PPE.
- Policies for when employees should come into work and must stay home.
- Signs with instructions and rules for health and safety on-site.
- The ability to self-report mental health issues that could impair a person’s ability to perform their duties.
5. Utilize Our Waste Services at the Construction Site
A significant safety risk on construction sites is not having adequate solutions to keep the waste under control. At Gainsborough Waste, we offer roll-off dumpsters and additional services to help you keep the construction site clean and your team protected.
By maintaining a clean workspace where waste is disposed of in the proper locations, your team will be better equipped to perform their work with less risk of injury.
Additionally, our team receives continuous training on how to follow safety protocols when coming on-site to a customer’s location to provide waste services. Consider our team an extension of your construction team.
Contact Gainsborough Waste for Construction Site Services
We believe these construction safety tips will help you maintain a safe and efficient construction site in 2021. Let us help by providing waste services at the construction site.
We offer 20-yard, 30-yard, and 40-yard roll-off dumpsters supported by the fastest turnaround time in Houston. Call us to schedule delivery and we will quickly coordinate the delivery of roll-off dumpsters to your construction site.
Call us at 713-785-8050 to speak with one of our waste experts. You can also email [email protected] or complete our contact form. Let us know your need at the construction site so that we can help you out.
