Impact of Quality Management and Safety Culture on Construction Performance
Chapter One
Aim And Objectives
This paper is aimed at examining the relationship between quality and safety and to explore how quality and safety can be operationalized in the construction industry.
The following are the objectives to aid the achievement of the aim:
To examine the current state of safety practices on building construction projects.
To examine factors affecting site operatives from using safety wear on construction sites.
To evaluate the decision-making pattern of contractors in ensuring quality during the design and planning stages.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Introduction
The chapter is reviewing renowned authors’ published and unpublished works on issues regarding safety practices, compliance and management on the construction sites. Sub topics will covers area such as the operation of Nigerian construction industry, health and safety management, challenges facing the implementation and compliance with health and safety practices, safety performance and productivity, the roles and importance of various code and regulations on safety practices, among others shall be considered.
Alli (2008) defined Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) as the study of the expectation, acknowledgment, assessment and control of hazards emerging in or from the work environment that could impede the safety of operatives. Safety policy is a strategy and commitment together with the arrangements on ground to create adequate safety education among workers on hazards related to their work and the role an individual/person needs to play at work settings in ensuring healthy working conditions. The goal and essence of establishing safety practices’ code and regulations on construction sites is to prevent, eliminate, curb, limit and total eradication if possible, the occurrence of accidents and injuries during and after the construction processes and as well train site operatives on safety programmes that will put all these in place.
Historical Background about the Operation of the Nigerian Construction Company
Construction activities is believed to have been in existence as humanity, while building project in Nigeria started as early as 1930’s. Construction activities were executed via public works department (PWD) and Royal Army Engineers who later became (Nigerian Army Engineers). The only means of project execution then was through direct labour. However, British and Italian construction companies were first to be engaged as contractors in the Nigerian construction industry in the 1940’s (Olowookere, 1985). Construction industry is also considered as labour intensive because, labour cost amounts to 40-65% of the overall cost of a project according (Rao, Sreenivasan and Babu 2015).
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODS
Introduction
This section justified the procedures the study adopted to achieve research aim and the formulated objectives. The literature review findings informed survey components of this research work and this includes a review of journals, articles, textbooks, and other published and unpublished materials which were considered relevant to the stated aim of this research work. The procedure for data collection and analysis were explained. The study is descriptive in nature and designed to obtain information from operatives concerning safety practices and the effects of safety wears on their operation in building production process. It also described the research configuration, contemplate populace, the sample frame, sample size and its qualities, the inspecting strategies received, sources and instruments of data accumulation, data analysis and presentation.
Research Design
Research design is a template for testing an outcome of a study in order to exercise control over factors that may stand against the validity of the findings Burns and Grove, (2003). This research engaged desk review of related literature covering a period of 16 years (2000-2016). The study adopted survey research design, with the help of structured questionnaire to the Professionals, Contractors and Artisans (both skilled and unskilled) that operate in Lagos State, Nigeria. By adopting survey research author believed that it is proper as accumulation of information will not be more than one case and at a particular point in time to gather a group of quantitative or quantifiable information regarding at least two or more variables (Bryman, 2012). This research critically assessed and analyzed health and safety practices in relation to effects of safety wears on workers operation in execution of construction projects. The research methods was designed into three phases, the preliminary phase, established background information on the subject of health and safety through literature search and reviews. The next phase focuses on direct observation and interview, based on the established background and literature review. The third phase developed some of the key issues captured in the previous phases into Likert scale questionnaire.
Study Population
The need to select the representative sample from the population size that will be dealt with in this research study cannot be over emphasized. The population for this study covers medium scale construction companies that operate in Lagos State. The choice of Lagos State was based on its fast growing in development and increase in the demands for housing unit both for residential and industrial purposes. Lagos Islands being a coastal zone has enjoyed tremendous increase in modern construction activities and development such as: Eko Atlantic city, Lekki free trade zone, Dangote petroleum refinery, Lekki deep sea port and Lagos Island international airport (Ogunde, et al., 2017). However, the choice and distribution of the questionnaire were limited by space of time require to complete the study.
Furthermore, Lagos State fairly represent an open market of construction companies for all and sundry. Thus, most of the Nigerian locally owned construction contractors that register with the Federal Registration Board of Nigeria shown that over 80% have their addresses in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt as adopted by Fagbenle, Aderemi, and David (2004) and Olaleye (2008).
It can be stressed further that a standard construction site will have a Site Manager, Supervisors to manage activities of workers on their various sites (CDM, 2007:2015)
CHAPTER FOUR
ANALYSES, PRESENTATION AND INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS
Introduction
This chapter was centered on data analyses, presentation and discussion of results obtained from the field survey as detailed in chapter three. The analyses and argument are in line with the stated aim and objectives in an attempt to answers the research questions raised in chapter one. Secondly, the section provided statistically test on whether to accept or reject the proposed hypotheses and relationship among the listed variables for the study.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
This chapter summarised findings of the study with a view to give closing remarks of the research, recommendations and also identified area for further research.
Discussion of Findings and Justification of Research Objectives
Objective one examined current state of safety practices on building construction projects
The result presented on Table 4.3 compared the mean scores of the professional and site operatives’ perception on how health and safety are currently practiced on construction sites with the overall mean score ranking. Out of eighteen listed parameters, five most frequently embraced among the site practice parameters listed on project sites were provision of temporary fence at the boundary of the site and provision, provision of accidents prevention strategy and safety consciousness on site, development and frequent review of safety policy for building projects, daily safety briefing, provision of first aid box, safety gadgets site accommodation and welfare facilities. All of these are within the capacity of the construction company, any attempt to improve and subscribe to this practices the longer way it will go in solving the challenges confronted by the industry. This consistence with George, Geoffrey and Matthew (2013) finding that stressed the need for construction company to provide adequate awareness particularly on each project, that will covers an outline of the project, a top to bottom survey of the safety are necessitated and desired, clear arrangements and systems, disciplinary activities, substance manhandle testing policy and proactive management methods needed for the project.
In contradiction to recommendation of Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (CDRM, 2005:2015) engaging resident safety manager on construction sites was lowly ranked, it was not surprising but only justified the outcome of low percentage of respondents who are safety managers, effort must be focused on engaging safety managers on each construction projects, because they are trained to implement construction safety and ensure workers compliance with safety practices on site. This supported Bust, Finneran, Hartley and Gibb (2014) finding that professionals’ interests must be enhanced towards management of safety and use of safety education programs must be put in place for projects executions within construction participants as one of the real needs to upgrade construction project safety, but against the recommendation of McDonald (2003) that all site should have safety manager, they must demonstrate strong will to ensure both behaviour and compliance of employees with safety requirements are positively influenced by his/her role.
Furthermore, setting safety guidelines into conditions of contract was found to be averagely practiced in the construction industry this was contrary to provision of Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (CDRM, 2005:2015); Famakin and Fawehinmi (2012) and Umeokafor et al., (2014) recommendation that client should use health and safety records as a required document for prequalifying contractors. In order to prevent equipment failure from overuse and overload examination of scaffold, equipment and tools before the start of work by safety manager was in agreement with (Asfahl, 1999) finding.
Objective two Examined on Factors Preventing site Operatives from using Safety wears on Construction sites
Result presented in Table 4.4 on the factor affecting site operatives from using safety wears. Five top ranked using Relative Important Index from thirteen listed factors are: adaptability of workers to safety practices as it was against the traditional practices and training, unethical practices of worker due to human attitudinal peculiarities and traditional practices, insufficient instructions about the working condition, inadequate and ineffective supervision by safety personnel on site, unsafe practices of worker due to religious assertions. All of these factors are within the control of the safety or site manager and if averted it will go a long way in addressing the issues of safety practices.
It is therefore not surprising that workers have problem adapting to safety practices especially the use of safety wears, firstly it was not part of their training during apprenticeship, and subjecting them to use this gadgets mighty requires time, training and close monitoring techniques, this was in agreement with Osonwa Eko and Ozah (2015) finding as training on the use of safety wears would create awareness on the implications of hazards on workers’ health.
However, there is still a gap on effective supervision by safety personnel on site and knowledge on hazards management, proper training on the effective use of safety wears by site/safety managers as they were perceived factors preventing safety practices as suggested. This was contrary to Abdelhamid and Everett (2000) recommendation as contained that safety department of each contracting company should ensure continuous monitoring of safety wears and to also frame comprehensive purchase policy.
This call for more importance to be attached to supervision and controlling of workers on the use of safety wears, while workers must have adequate knowledge on associated risk to their tasks. This stressed the need to agree with Ismail, Doostdar and Harun (2011) finding that site managers need to conduct enlightenment programs among their workers to get them familiar with the necessities safety consciousness on site.
It is also important to stress the fact that site operatives lacked proper training on the effective use of safety wears on sites as this has resort into ineffective communication between safety personnel and workers. Olele (2014) recommended that regular workers training on skills would enable safety managers and workers in identifying hazards and addressing safety related issues. This simply means, for Construction Company to avert this current challenges, good safety policies, workable hazard management and construction programme must be properly communicated to the operatives that will use them. Consequently, willingness of the workers to meet their daily was disregarded as it was least ranked this mean the factor slightly affected operatives from using safety wears, as against Aniekwu (2007); Koehn, Kothari and Pan cited in Awwad, et al., (2016); Guldenmund, Cleal, Mearns (2013) and Umeokafor et al., (2014) opinion, that unemployment have made workers to disregard compliance with OSH in accepting risky jobs.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the outcome of the study showed the need for constant re-evaluation of safety practices of the construction companies in the study area because of its vital contributions to economy development. It is evident that this study outcomes explored advantage of proactive approach in managing safety practices by examining effects of using safety wears on workers operation thereby curtailed possibility of accidents on counteractive action against future mishaps. Assumption must not be made when recruiting workers especially for companies that have workable control systems and safety policy. It is of utmost importance to ensure that every new workers employed on project sites are given necessary awareness talk regarding safety practices and use of safety wears.
More proactive measure must be put in place right from the planning stage by the clients and their representative to avert possible risk associated with their project this is a stage where all contract documents such as priced bills of quantities by registered Quantity surveyor, Contract drawings by Architect, Builders’ document by licensed builder, condition of contract etc. are prepared. Therefore adopting sustainable strategies that will eliminate possibility of accident and the builders or contractors stating the degree of confidence at which the work could be executed will go a long way in addressing the issue of safety practices.
However, based on personal observation on sites, safety implantation and compliance has been so much neglected and suffered great set-back due to the willingness of the workers to meet their daily output and the goal of site manager in ensuring workers’ wages justified their output, secondly, level of hunger also contributed to workers willingly undertaken risky jobs as means of survival or maximize their wages on construction site
The findings of this study has pointed out the need for the construction industry to review their safety policies and make systematic approach to accommodates some of the critical points raised regarding the issue of safety practices challenging Nigerian construction companies. This depicted that the variables influenced each other greatly and cannot work in isolation. It equally underscored the importance of their collective interplay in improving safety performance of construction workers.
Furthermore, high demand for improvement of safety practices and use of prescribed safety wears on construction site, safety training must be taking serious most especially the site operatives that are more vulnerable to accidents, this will help them to know the safety demands of each construction projects. Safety inspections should be conducted on sites and any identified hazards should be taken care of as soon as detected
Therefore workers must be trained on safety awareness, risk identification, hazard management, use of safety wear, use of first aid and proper use of varieties of safety equipment, such as fall arrest systems because no matter how good safety policy of construction companies is without passing knowledge or safety awareness to the workers the policy may failed and accident will persist. The study established positive relationship which suggest that training of workers on safety knowledge and use of safety wears were related.
Recommendation
The following recommendations were made on improvement strategy on safety practices among the construction workers as a rationales for this study and to serves as additions to existing knowledge, availability of literature and reference documents on the subject of health and safety practices in Nigeria and world at large.
- Clients are advised to use past record on health and safety performance to prequalified contractors.
- Construction managers should engage the use of safety audio, video and visual displaying gadgets on site to demonstrate safety consciousness among workers. Workers who are majorly vulnerable to accident on site can be controlled with this approach on sites, this might include appointing a personnel that will keep reminding workers about their safety.
- Construction managers should be embraced strategic approach on site such as: creating safety awareness, safety briefing, include safety matters right from the planning phase, set safety guidelines into conditions of contract, reward workers that exhibit excellent safety performances.
- Training and appointment of resident safety personnel/manager that will implement safety policy and form a monitoring control system that will keep reminding workers that they are absolutely responsible for their safety on site using public address system throughout the working hours.
- Also in-house safety training, provision of safety booklets in various languages and ensure effective waste management on site can reduced accident to barest minimum on site.
- The industry can also form partnership with the government and Professional bodies’ regulatory team for site inspection at a regular interval on construction stage this will collaborates the effort of contractors’ safety manager to ensure safety practices are compiled with and documentation of any case of accident, towards building a safe working environment in enhancing successful project delivery.
- Construction manager should adopt require site base training for the operatives especially on the use of safety wears while safety managers should regularly attends safety training course.
- The study also seek for improvement on the involvement of safety managers’ and suggest at least one safety managers each on every project site.
- It is on this note the study call for an improved channels of communication between site managers and workers, to ensure that the objectives and safety needs for each of the projects are well communicated to site operatives
- However, in improving safety practices among the workers, non-financial rewards and award could be instituted to workers that exhibited excellent safety performance among others. Lastly, implementation of safety code in execution of building production process should be improved, considering the manner workers disregard safety practices as pointed out by the finding of the study.
- Finally, Government should intensive their effort towards safety implementation by partnership with professional bodies in the built environment to organizing special training on health and safety practice on construction site for the tradesmen, Nigerian Institute of Building (NIOB) has started already.
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