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Ikpe, E, Hammond, F and Proverbs, D (2008) Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) of construction health and
safety management: a theoretical discussion.
In:
Dainty, A (Ed)
Procs 24
th
Annual ARCOM
Conference,
1-3 September 2008, Cardiff, UK, Association of Researchers in Construction
Management, 1035-1043.
A COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS (CBA) OF
CONSTRUCTION HEALTH AND SAFETY
MANAGEMENT: A THEORETICAL DISCUSSION
Elias Ikpe
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, Felix Hammond, David Proverbs
School of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton,
WV1 1SB. UK
Research in construction health and safety has focussed on improving management
strategies and policies that can effectively improve safety performance. The Health
and Safety Executive (HSE) in 2005 developed on-line interactive tools for
contractors to assess the cost of accidents to their organisations. Although providing
good guidance, these tools developed do not provide sufficient detail to specifically
assist contractors and designers in developing effective and efficient health and safety
management systems. Therefore, it is considered important to develop a methodology
to enable contractors to assess the true costs of accidents and the associated benefits
of accident prevention as part of pre and post contract project evaluation. A
framework is proposed based on an examination of economic viability of
management of construction health and safety. The method developed incorporates
accident cost elements, health and safety measures and benefit elements to improve
decision making processes and guide contractors and designers in developing efficient
and effective construction health and safety management practices.
Keywords: accidents cost, benefits, cost-benefit analysis (CBA) framework, safety
measures.
INTRODUCTION
The construction industry contributes significantly to UK economy representing some
10% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employing 1.5million people (NAO,
2005). This is a significant figure, and one, which underlines the industry’s real
importance, as concerned with the provision of the country’s essential infrastructure
and ‘backbone’. These essential infrastructures include: the water we drink, the roads
we use, the buildings we live and work in, and are designed and produced by the
construction industry. The well being of the industry is essential; its ability to compete
with the best in the world market, to attract the best talent, and to have an attractive
image and reputation is key (HSE, 2004).
There were 77 fatal injuries and 4,430 major injuries to construction workers in
2006/07, equivalent to a rate of 3.7 per 100 000 workers. Of the 77 deaths, 50 were
employees and 27 self-employed. In 2006/07, 32% of worker fatalities across all
industry occurred in construction. Based on an average of the past five years,
construction fatalities account for around 30% of all worker deaths (HSE, 2007).
In the past decade, many parties in construction have become focussed in finding
ways of curbing construction related injuries and fatalities (Joyce, 2001). Most of
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