Safe design
A safe design process is important in building and construction to prevent risk of injury at the construction, use and demolition stages of a structure.
Safe design is a process defined as the integration of hazard identification and risk assessment methods early in the design process to eliminate or minimise the risks of injury throughout the life of a structure being designed. It encompasses all design including facilities, hardware, systems, equipment, products, layout and configuration.1
Safe design is everybody’s business - from clients to designers to constructors.
'An introduction to safe design in building and construction' introduces the practice. View the video here: SafeDesign1.wmv
The Federal Safety Commissioner and safe design
The Federal Safety Commissioner encourages the building and construction industry to strive for a higher level of safety. Guidance on this is provided in the Federal Safety Commissioner’s Safety Principles and Guidance, which includes safe design as a principle.
Safe design is part of the Australian Government Building and Construction OHS Accreditation Scheme (the Scheme) for contractors seeking to work on Australian Government building and construction projects. The Fact Sheet – An Introduction to Safe Design provides examples of how contractors applying to the Scheme, or independently of the Scheme, can demonstrate planning for safe design. The examples indicate the importance of communication and documentation in safe design. More detailed guidance on applying to the Scheme, and addressing the Scheme criteria, is available in the Documentary Evidence Guide to the Scheme.
The Federal Safety Commissioner Resources for Australian Government Agencies is a guide which aims to develop expertise in construction procurement and management of OHS through identification of processes and strategies to improve and integrate safety into construction projects. The guide is about driving safety using a model client approach and provides information on how model clients can incorporate safe design into their projects.
The FSC is promoting safe design through education by sponsoring a group of engineering students to participate in the Associated Professional Certificate in Safety in Design.
Read the case study.
Additional references on safe design
A range of additional guidance is available on safe design.
The Australian Safety and Compensation Council (ASCC) provides information and advice on safe design applicable to those involved in a range of industries, in its Guidance on Principles of Safe Design for Work.
The ASCC has also released an educational resource for undergraduate engineering students, Safe Design for Engineering Students, which is recommended to a wider audience as an introduction to the subject.
Guidance on management of safety on construction sites, including principles of safe design, was released by the Cooperative Research Centre for Construction Innovation and Engineers Australia in the Guide to Best Practice for Safer Construction: Implementation Kit.
1Australian Safety and Compensation Council, Guidance on Principles of Safe Design for Work.