Construction Health & Safety News, Advice and Information from PP Construction Safety

I Are project clients destined to take centre stage?

UPDATE JANUARY 2015 – See Summary of Regulations

There is now less than 9 weeks remaining to have your say on HSE proposal to revise CDM 2007. Our summary of what is proposed in CDM 2015 is set out below explaining client, designer and contractor duties.

HSE stress that CDM 2015 proposals seek to:

“maintain a strong focus on clients and encourage them to take an active role in ensuring that construction work being carried out on their behalf is planned and managed in the right way”

CDM 2007 exempts owner occupiers (‘domestic clients’) from client duties. This is contrary to the EU Directive and HSE therefore now propose to remove the exemption and place the new domestic client duties on the contractor (or PC where there is more than one contractor).

HSE are looking for effective, sensible and proportionate co-ordination of health and safety on ALL projects regardless of size or the type of client. The proposed guidance will make this clear and provide “associated enforcement expectations”.

In recent years HSE has highlighted that the majority of deaths now occur on smaller construction projects and that the regulator will be looking for client led improvements through a change in mindset and proper planning.

Useful Links

• Support for architects
• Challenge for builders and architects

PROPOSED RESPONSIBILITIES AT A GLANCE

ALL PROJECT CLIENTS: Where there is only one contractor

The duties of domestic clients must be carried out by the contractor whilst the duties of business clients must be carried out by the project client.

• Project Management Arrangements – make, maintain and review arrangements, suitable for persons with CDM 2015 duties, to ensure that construction work is carried out without risk and compliant with welfare requirements;
• Pre-construction information (PCI) – provide to each designer involved in the design of a structure and each contractor who is or might be engaged by the client;
• Construction Phase Plan (CPP) – ensure that a CPP is drawn up before the construction phase begins;
• Notify HSE – if site construction work scheduled to last >30 working days and have >20 workers working simultaneously at any point in the project or exceed 500 person days. Notify as soon as is practicable before the construction phase begins;
• Contractor training etc. – ensure the necessary information, instruction and training received and appropriate supervision to comply; and
• Cooperation with others – cooperate with any other person at the site or an adjoining site to enable others perform their duties etc.

DOMESTIC CLIENTS: Additional duties where there is more than one contractor

The above (carried out by PC) plus the following additional duties:

• Appoint Principal Designer (PD) – to carry out the PD responsibilities. Where no appointment is made the first designer appointed during the pre-construction phase is deemed to be appointed as the principal designer; and
• Appoint Principal Contractor (PC) – to carry out PC responsibilities. Where no appointment is made the first contractor appointed during the construction phase is deemed to be appointed as the principal contractor.

BUSINESS CLIENTS: Additional duties where there is more than one contractor

These business client must:

• Appoint Principal Designer (PD) – to carry out the PD responsibilities. If appointment not made the client must fulfill;
• Appoint Principal Contractor (PC) – to carry out PC responsibilities. If appointment not made the client must fulfill;
• Cooperation with others – cooperate with any other person at the site or an adjoining site to enable others perform their duties etc.;
• Compliance by PD and PC – ensure PD and PC comply with duties;
• Health and Safety File (HSF) – ensure PD prepares an appropriate health and safety file.

DESIGNERS

All designers on both domestic and business client projects are required to:

• Client awareness – do not commence work in relation to a project unless satisfied that the client is aware of duties;
• Elimination of risk – take account of the general principles of prevention and PCI when preparing or modifying a design to eliminate foreseeable risks;
• Risk reduction and control – if not possible to eliminate take steps to reduce and control risks through the subsequent design process;
• Residual risk – provide information about those risks to the PD and ensure information is included in the health and safety file; and
• Provide information – with the design about aspects of the design of the structure or its construction or maintenance to adequately assist others to comply.

PRINCIPAL DESIGNER (PD)

The PD must plan, manage, monitor and coordinate the pre-construction phase taking into account the general principles of prevention to ensure:

• Safety and health – project is carried out without risks to health or safety;
• PCI – provide assistance to the client in the preparation;
• Foreseeable risks – identification, elimination, or control of foreseeable risks;
• Cooperation – of all persons working on the project;
• Designers compliance – with their duties;
• HSF – preparation and revision;
• PCI – prompt provision in a convenient form;
• PC Liaison – e.g. information PC may need to prepare the construction phase plan;

 PRINCIPAL CONTRACTOR (PC)

The PC must plan, manage, monitor and coordinate the construction phase taking into account the general principles of prevention to ensure:

• Safety and health – project is carried out without risks to health or safety;
• CPP – drawn up as soon as practicable prior to setting up a construction site and updated, reviewed and revised so continues to be sufficient;
• Coordination – of the implementation of the relevant legal requirements to ensure that employers etc apply the general principles of prevention in a consistent manner and follow the CPP;
• Site Rules – drawn up ;
• Site induction – provide;
• Unauthorised access – prevent;
• Welfare – complies throughout the construction phase;
• Liaison with PD – for the duration of the project and in particular regarding any information which needed to prepare the HSF or may affect the planning and management of the pre-construction phase;
• HSF – is appropriately updated, reviewed and revised from time to time;
• Workforce cooperation – arrangements which will enable the principal contractor and workers to co-operate effectively in promoting and developing measures to ensure the HSW and checking effectiveness;
• Workforce consultation – consult workers in good time on matters connected with the project which may affect their health, safety or welfare; and
• Workforce information – ensure that workers can inspect and take copies of certain information.

CONTRACTORS

Do not commence work in relation to a project unless satisfied that the client is aware of duties. Contractors must plan, manage and monitor the way in which construction work is carried out in a way which ensures that:

• Safety and health – project is carried out without risks to health or safety;
• CPP – if there is no PC ensure drawn up as soon as practicable prior to setting up a construction site;
• Information etc – provide to workers any information and instruction so that construction work can be carried out without risk;
• Site induction – where not already provided by the principal contractor;
• Danger – procedures to be followed in the event of serious and imminent danger to health and safety;
• Risk information – provide information on matters identified by the risk assessment under regulation 3 of the Management etc;
• Training – provide employees with any health and safety training required(6) A contractor must not begin work on a construction site unless reasonable steps have been;
• Unauthorised access – prevent;
• Welfare – complies throughout the construction phase; and
• Directions and site rules – comply with those given by PD or PC

This article was posted on 8th April 2014