By: Engr. Irvine O. Sumagang

Construction site is one of the most hazardous worksites wherein a large number of workers is employed. 

Per DOLE-Bureau of Working Condition’s data, the construction industry figured among the sectors with very high frequency of work accidents.

High work accident statistics in the construction industry is an indication that generally, there is a low level of awareness in occupational safety and health among workers, supervisors, contractors, and owners in the industry. 

Because construction work often involves a dynamic working environment, hazards can change daily and need to be systematically managed.

Global OSH Situationer

• At least 60,000 fatalities occur at construction sites, around the world, every year
• 1 fatal accident occurs every 10 minutes
• Around 17% of all fatalities at work (1 in every 6) are construction fatalities
• With a highly mobile population of workers and different contractors working on dangerous construction sites at the same time, construction continues to be a major cause of death and disabilities.

What is Safety?

• Safety is a freedom of oneself from hazard
• Safety is a control of hazards to attain an acceptable level of risks
• Safety is a control of hazards through injury prevention & damage control

ACCIDENT

• An occurrence or event that is unexpected, unforeseen, unplanned, and unwanted that could cause damage, injury, and loss

INCIDENT (OR NEAR MISS)

• An event that gave rise to an accident or had the potential to lead to an accident.

HAZARD

• Any existing or potential condition in the workplace which by itself or by reacting with other variables, can result in the unwanted effects of injuries, property damage, deaths, and other losses.

HAZARDS are grouped into two broad categories, namely:

• Those dealing with safety —— injuries.
  • Those dealing with health —— illnesses.

4 TYPES OF HAZARDS

• Physical Hazards (noise, illumination, ventilation).
• Chemical Hazards (gases, fumes, vapors, mists).
• Biological Hazards (virus, germs, bacteria).
• Ergonomic Hazards (prolonged standing).

Primary Causes of Accidents

• Unsafe Act – The human action that departs from a standard or written job procedure or common practice, safety rules, regulations, or instructions.
• Unsafe Condition – The physical or chemical property of a material, machine or the environment which could result in injury to a person, damage or destruction to property or other forms of losses

Unsafe Acts vs. Unsafe Conditions

Accident is

• 98% — preventable

                        88% —  is unsafe acts

                        10% —  unsafe condition

• 2% —- non preventable

PLUMBER

• SYNONYMS: Installator, pipefitter, pipelayer, pipeline maintenance and repair worker

Definition and/or description

• Assembles, installs and repairs metal, plastic, ceramic and other pipes, fittings and fixtures of heating, water and drainage systems.
• Cuts openings in walls and floors to accommodate pipe and fittings, using hand- and power-tools.
• Cuts and threads pipe using pipecutters, cutting torch and pipe-threading machine.
• Bends pipe by hand or by using pipe-bending machine.
• Assembles and installs valves, pipes and fittings.
• Joins pipes by use of screw, bolts, fittings, adhesive, solder, braze and caulks joints.
• Installs and repairs plumbing fixtures such as sinks, commodes, bathtubs, hot water tanks, tank heaters, dishwashers, water softeners, garbage disposal units, etc.
• Opens clogged drains.
• Mends burst pipes.
• Replaces washers in leaky faucets.
• Secures pipes and fixtures with brackets, clamps and hangers; may weld holding fixtures to steel structural members.
• May operate equipment for locating leaks, test pipes and other plumbing fixtures for structural integrity, etc.
• May insulate piping or water tanks in hot-water or steam-supply systems.

Task

• Aligning; assembling; bending and straightening; boring; bracing; brazing; breaking (walls, floors); burning (old insulation or coatings); carrying (pipes, fixtures, equipment); caulking; cementing; chiseling; clamping; cleaning; coating (pipes); connecting; covering; cutting (pipes and fittings or opening in walls and floors); digging; dipping; ditching; dismantling; draining; drilling; driving; dumping; emptying; excavating; fastening; filing; filling; fitting; flame cutting; fixing; gluing; hammering; heating; immersing; installing, insulating; joining; jointing; laying; levelling; lifting; loading and unloading;
• locating (leaks, pipe position); loosening; marking and measuring; maintaining; mending; operating (tools); opening; painting; positioning; pouring (cements); pulling and pushing; pumping; repairing; replacing; rubbing; sanding; sawing; screwing; scrubbing; securing; sealing; setting; shoveling; siphoning; smoothing; soldering; spraying (coatings, paint); spreading (mortar); squeezing; taping; tapping; testing (for leaks); threading; tightening; transporting; trimming; welding; wrapping; wrenching.

Primary equipment used

• Borers; chisels; drills; hammers; headlamps; leak-detecting instruments; pipe-bending machine; pipe-threading machine; pliers; saws; screw-drivers; shears; shovels; wrenches. Some of the tools may be battery- or mains-operated.

Industries in which this occupation is common

• Agriculture;
• boilermaking and maintenance;
• chemical and related industries;
• construction (including building repair and maintenance);
• industrial equipment manufacturing;
• laboratories;
• municipal services;
• pipeline (including water, gas, oil, etc. supply lines) construction and maintenance;
• shipbuilding;
• water-heating equipment manufacturing;
• water desalination.

HAZARDS

Accident hazards

• Falls from height (from ladders, scaffolds, and roofs); falls into ditches;
• Falls on level surfaces (slips and falls on wet and slippery surfaces);
• Injuries (and possible asphyxiation/suffocation) as a result of cave-in of ditches;
• Cuts, stabs, pinches, bruises and finger crushing from hand tools and machinery;
• Cuts and stabs from broken sanitary china;
• Blows on the head from pipes, overhead bars, corners, etc., particularly in confined spaces or in low-ceiling cellars and passages;
• Foreign particles in the eyes, particularly during drilling or insulation (dismantling work);
• Injuries to feet from falling tools or pipe sections;
• Burns from hot or corrosive liquids emitted from burst pipes or connections;
• Burns from portable blowtorches used for soldering and brazing;
• Electric shock and electrocution from portable lamps and electric tools;
• Fires and explosions as a result of using mobile electric lamps or tools in confined spaces (e.g., inside cisterns) containing combustible-gas residues;
• Drowning in accidental flooding of pumping stations (water, sewage);
• Sprains and damage to internal organs (e.g., hernia, bursting of small blood vessels) as a result of overexertion;
• Bites and stings by rodents, insects, mites, etc.;
• Poisoning by phosgene (colorless poisonous gas) released from chlorinated solvents at high temperatures (e.g., in the presence of flames, arcs, burning cigarettes, etc.), particularly in confined spaces;
• Poisoning by toxic gases released in sewage systems (e.g., sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, indole, etc.).

Chemical hazards

• Contact dermatitis from exposure to various components of drainage and sewage liquids, from exposure to solvents and other components from glues and pipe cleaning fluids (especially when working with plastic piping);
• Irritation of the respiratory system and the eyes from exposure to acids, alkalis and various proprietary corrosive liquids used to unclog piping;
• Oxygen deficiency or exposure to asphyxiant gases when working in confined (e.g., crawl) spaces;
• Irritation of respiratory tract and possible damage to the lungs from exposure to asbestos, mineral fibers and other inorganic aerosols or fibers when applying or dismantling piping insulation or asbestos pipes.

Biological hazards

• Exposure to a wide variety of micro-organisms, parasites, etc., in sewage, stagnant water (especially stagnant warm water), sanitary installations, etc., with risk of legionnaires’ disease(bacterial pneumonia: a virulent and sometimes fatal form of pneumonia caused by a bacterium and spread mainly by the water droplets in air conditioning system), giardiasis (it is usually caused by drinking contaminated water and result in severe diarrhea and vomiting), cutaneous Larra migrans dermatitis, etc.

Ergonomic and social factors

• Exposure to excessive damp, cold and heat (e.g., in cellars, or in construction, agriculture and other field work);
• Lower back pain;
• Heat stress when wearing vapor-barrier suits;
• Wrist problems due to overexertion in threading and cutting work; calluses on the knees (“plumber’s knee”) because of prolonged work in a kneeling posture.

HAZARD CONTROL

1. Engineering control
2. Administrative control
3. Use of Personal Protective Equipment

Engineering Control

• Substitution – replacement of highly toxic materials with a less toxic one
• Isolation – segregating a hazardous operation or isolating a worker into a control booth; particularly useful for jobs requiring few workers
• Modification of the Process and/or Equipment
• Maintenance of Equipment
• Ventilation

Administrative Control

• Workers’ rotation
• Reschedule hazardous work to reduce exposure of other workers
• Employee Education

Factors in Selecting Use of Personal Protective Equipment

1. Adequate for the hazard in question
2. Of proven good quality and efficiency
3. Resistant to air contaminants
4. Checked for validity
5. Fitted for the worker concerned
6. Should be designed to provide minimum interference with the job being done
7. Well maintained, cleaned, and routinely inspected

Addendum

 Notes

1. Increased risks have been reported, in the case of plumbers, of leptospirosis; bronchial carcinoma; liver cirrhosis; lung cancer; cancer of the esophagus; oral and oropharyngeal cancer; liver cancer; non-Hodgkins lymphoma; laryngeal cancer; pleural mesothelioma; cancer of the tongue; prostate cancer.
2. When working in laboratories, in the chemical industry, or in sewage systems, plumbers are exposed to all the chemical and biological hazards relevant for those workplaces. In welding, brazing or soldering operations, plumbers are exposed to all hazards of welders, solderers and brazers. In gluing work, plumbers are exposed to the hazards of gluers.