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Recycling is a key way construction sites should try to minimise their impact on the environment. Sites should try to recycle as much material as possible and work with external partners if necessary. See the examples below for how one site addressed this: Hard hats are mainly made of polypropene and should be replaced for health and safety reasons every…

When conducting utilities works, contractors must be mindful of interfering with existing utilities and causing a safety hazard. These works can also often cause disruption to the local community, which sites should take measures to minimise. See the examples below for how one site addressed this: The contractor has developed small circular discs which are colour coded to easily identify…

Sites which leave a positive and long-lasting legacy for their local community are making a great contribution to improving the image of the construction industry. See the examples below for how one site achieved this: A Community Fruit Garden has been created on wasteland in a prominent location near the metro station. This initiative has contributed to the site’s carbon…

Contractors should be seeking new ways to enhance on-site safety, ensuring all their employees have the adequate equipment to protect them on-site. See the examples below for how one site addressed this: A company employee designed a ‘Safety Sleeve’ after suffering an arm injury when reaching into the void above the ceiling. The ceiling void is often full of metal…

Construction projects based in a school have a particularly good opportunity to engage with their local community and advance the efforts to improve the image of the industry. See the examples below for how one project achieved this: The site coordinated and worked with the school, subcontractors, suppliers and volunteers from the Woodland Trust. They built a timber learning area…

Safety policies should be reinforced and understood on site so that all personnel are aware of their importance. See the examples below for how one site took this a step further: To emphasise the importance of labelling live and dead electrical services properly, the site staged a mock incident. This involved selecting a time when an electrocution incident was deemed…

Health and safety is a priority on a construction site, factoring in the wellbeing of every operative on site. New technologies can play a vital role in tracking and managing on-site health and safety. See the details below to find out more about a new health and safety app: The Berkeley Innovation Fund awarded £2 million to the development of…

Keeping the community updated on site news and developments is crucial to fostering positive relationships with local residents. Newsletters are the typical format for these updates, but this can prove difficult for partially-sighted people. See the examples below for how one site addressed this: A site engineer developed an audio version of their monthly newsletter. The audio newsletter was created…

Workforce training is crucial in maintaining safety standards on site. Contractors should seek interesting ways to engage operatives and ensure they understand and retain knowledge. See the examples below for how one site addressed this: The project developed 360 degree videos, and safety and environmental scenarios shot on site. The videos can be viewed by operatives on smart phones mounted…

Contractors must take extra care when conducting excavation works, as the risk of disturbing underground cables presents a safety risk and possible increased costs. See the examples below for how one site addressed this: The site purchased a new JCB bucket called a Rhinoxbuckets Uni-Tusk blade, which is designed not to disturb cables it may come across in trenches. The…

Personal Protective Equipment is necessary on a construction site and all personnel should be able to wear it regardless of their gender or religious background. See the examples below for how one site developed inclusive PPE: Muslim women often commit to dress modestly in Hijab or Burka, which can come into conflict with PPE requirements. A Muslim female employee decided…

Community engagement goes a long way towards improving the image of the industry. Sites based in schools have a particularly good opportunity to enthuse young people about construction and help tackle perceptions at an early age. See the examples below for how one site went the extra mile to engage their school: The site designed an educational mobile game specifically…

Traffic Marshal duties at construction sites tend to focus on the management of HGVs. The Development Impact Team at TfL has surveyed these methods and identified opportunities to enhance activity. As frontline personnel, marshals are in a good position to observe and report potentially unsafe or inefficient activities. These include; poorly managed HGVs or traffic management layouts, bad driver behaviours…

Environmental awareness and carbon reduction is increasingly important when tendering for projects. Contractors must demonstrate a commitment to reducing their carbon footprint. See the examples below for how Laing O’Rourke won National Grid’s first contract with carbon weighting: The contractor implemented a number of modifications to the build design to reduce material use and ensure carbon reduction. At the tender…

The use of new and emerging technology can aid the construction process by helping to visualise the completed works. This technology can therefore be an excellent planning and training tool. See the examples below for how one site addressed this: The contractor uses augmented reality to visualise utilities before excavation begins. Combined with utility information from STATS companies and PAS128…