The City of Toronto has selected Stantec, a global leader in sustainable design and engineering, to provide engineering services for Phase 5 of the City’s Basement Flooding Protection Program (BFPP). This multiyear program, which began in 2006, helps reduce the risk of flooding through improvements to the sewer system and overland drainage routes, which can face increased pressure with heavy rainfalls.

For the latest phase of the BFPP, Stantec will design and implement storm sewer, sanitary sewer, and storage sewer projects to help protect the basements of residents’ homes from major flood impacts. These sewer resiliency solutions will also mitigate the risk of surface flooding within the city. The firm previously provided expertise for Phase 3 of the program.

“Stantec’s team brings two decades of successful partnership on this program for the City of Toronto,” said Denise Costa, program manager for Stantec. “Our past experience supporting the City means we are already familiar with the program’s requirements. We appreciate the opportunity to do meaningful work that improves the lives of Toronto residents—helping keep their basements safe during storms.”

Stantec has over 65 years of experience designing and implementing storm and sanitary sewer system improvements across North America. The firm understands the challenges of designing infrastructure within highly urbanized areas, such as our work on the Orleans Watermain Link in Ottawa, the Nose Creek Sanitary Trunk Sewer Upgrade in Calgary, and the South Surrey Interceptor Johnston Road Section in Vancouver.

Learn more about Stantec’s Conveyance work.

LAN has previously performed a comprehensive Arc Flash Study Program for more than 2,700 TxDOT facilities located in 250 of the 254 counties across the state of Texas and is pleased to provide TxDOT with the same quality service once more.

“LAN is proud to support TxDOT’s commitment to safety in all its locations by providing this critical analysis,” according to Vice President, Business Group Director for LAN Jeffrey R. ThomasPE, CEM, CEA, CHC.

The project’s scope of work will include a comprehensive Arc Flash Study and analysis of the primary electrical service and distribution system for most of the TxDOT facilities around the state. As part of this project, LAN will provide reports of findings and recommendations for corrective actions necessary to bring the facilities into compliance with current OSHA, NFPA and NEC standards. In the past, TxDOT has used this information to implement LAN’s recommendations. These recommendations include improvements to lower potential arc-flash incident energy levels, replace aged equipment and alert TxDOT of conditions of imminent failure. The improvements occur mainly when a facility does not have a discrete disconnecting means between a transformer and distribution panel.

Without a discrete disconnect, the distribution panel may have dangerous potential energy requiring a higher degree of protection than needed when a disconnect is provided.

As Derq became one of the new 25 organizations across the public and private sectors to be recognized by the USDOT in taking action to reverse the crisis that is killing more than 40,000 people on American roads each year, there are now more than 100 Allies in Action who are committed to taking specific, tangible steps to actively reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on America’s roads and streets, expand the adoption of a Safe System Approach and a Zero Fatalities vision across the nation, and transform how we as a nation think about road safety. 

The USDOT launched the National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS) in 2022 in response to the crisis of roadway deaths in America, which had been steadily rising since 2010 before they surged in 2020. While the last four quarters have shown small decreases in traffic fatalities, according to preliminary data, Derq will now be able to work directly with the USDOT and other Allies in Action to share progress, review case studies of notable practices, and even encourage new commitments to continue identifying opportunities to improve safety on a national scale.  

Derq’s “Real-Time Perception and Connectivity AI Platform” addresses the burning needs in driver, pedestrian and cyclist safety, where accurate and reliable detection of traffic violations, pedestrian compliance issues, and road-user conflict (near-miss) data is of the utmost importance for transportation agencies and city officials to enable up-to-date analysis of safety issues.  

Through Derq’s “Automated Safety Performance Monitoring” solution, the company is committed to working with cities, communities, and even road owners and operators to seamlessly integrate its technology with new or existing road infrastructure to support improved road monitoring with enhanced safety measures. The technology provides real-time predictive alerts for road users, connects directly with traffic controller systems, and provides an understanding of danger zones in traffic systems where repeated events occur.  

Additionally, Derq will provide local and state agencies with a safety scoring framework, developed using data from existing traffic cameras and signal controllers, to better understand where safety issues are happening in real-time. The company will also continue to educate agencies about safety technology and how to obtain additional funding to implement these technologies at scale though industry conference presentations and webinars, like the one it facilitated with ITS America in June 2023. 

“Derq’s number one priority every single day is to eliminate all road fatalities and we are incredibly honored to align our mission with the U.S. DOT and the National Road Safety Strategy in the continued nationwide efforts of moving toward Vision Zero,” said Dr. Georges Aoude, CEO and Co-Founder of Derq. “We are committed to growing our partnerships with agencies across the nation to leverage our technological solutions in creating safer and smarter roads for all.” 

For more information on Derq’s commitment to action and to view the other Allies in Action, please visit www.transportation.gov/nrss/allies-in-action. 

About Derq 

Derq is an award-winning MIT-spinoff powering the future of roads for safer and more efficient movement of road users and autonomous vehicles. Through its proprietary and patented technology, Derq provides cities and fleets with an artificial intelligence (AI) platform that powers advanced analytics and connected & autonomous vehicle (CAV) applications to help them improve road safety and better manage traffic. Derq has been recognized as an industry leader by the WEF and has received a number of awards including the 2022 Global ITS Innovation Award, AI company of the year at SXSW 2019, and Top Road Safety Innovator for Vision Zero in 2020 by Together for Safer Roads. For more information, please visit www.derq.com or contact info@derq.com. Derq is a trademark of Derq Inc.

About the National Roadway Safety Strategy  

The Department of Transportation’s National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS) outlines the Department’s comprehensive approach to reversing the rise in traffic fatalities and serious injuries on the nation’s highways, roads, and streets. The NRSS follows through on the Department’s commitment to safety through priority actions that target the most significant and urgent problems in roadway safety. The NRSS’s Call to Action invites every organization and individual to participate in taking part and sharing how they will actively reduce deaths and injuries on America’s Roadways, expand adoption of the NRSS’s 5-pronged Safe System approach and a zero fatalities vision, and transform how we as a national think about road safety. More information on the NRSS and voluntary commitments from early adopters can be found here.

This packed symposium will explore design concepts, tools, and approaches for fire-safe buildings, and highlight the role of fire safety in sustainable design and education. Speakers will share engineering solutions on topics related to sustainable building design, reducing embodied carbon, fire performance of sustainable construction products, fire testing, fire service opportunities, holistic building performance design, building information modeling (BIM), and more. The event will also present insight into external living walls, battery/energy storage systems, façade systems, photovoltaics, mass timber, and more.

The symposium will include opening remarks from SFPE President Jimmy Jönsson, FSFPE, on the Society’s new position statement that confirms SFPE’s commitment to engineering a sustainable and fire resilient built environment.  Symposium Co-Chairs Brian Meacham, PhD, PE, CEng, FIFireE, FSFPE, and Grunde Jomaas, PhD; along with SFPE Interim CEO Chris Jelenewicz, PE, FSFPE, will deliver opening remarks. The full program and speakers are as follows:

• Designing for Sustainability and Fire Safety, by Jakob Strømann-Andersen, Henning Larsen Architects
• Gaps in Science, Policy, and Legislation, by Chris Trott, Foster + Partners
• The Impact of Fire in the Context of Sustainability, by Birgitte Messerschmidt, Director, Research. M.Sc., National Fire Protection Association
• Framework for Sustainable and Fire Resilient Buildings (SAFR-B), by Margaret McNamee, PhD, Professor, Lund University
• External Living Walls – Sustainable and Fire Safe? by Wojciech Węgrzyński, PhD, Instytut Techniki Budowlanej
• Batteries and Energy Storage Systems, by Daniel Joyeux, Efectis
• Fire Performance of Façade Systems, by Jose Torero, FSFPE, PhD, CEng, University College London
• Fire Safety of Building Applied Photovoltaics and Building Integrated Photovoltaics – from Testing to Implementation in Standards, by Giombattista Traina, MSc, Eng, Istituto Giordano
• Research Facts and Myths Related to Mass Timber, by Rory Hadden, University of Edinburgh
• Life Cycle Assessment of Wooden Buildings in Europe, by Erwin Schau, PhD, InnoRenew CoE
• Fire Safe Design with Timber, by Joachim Schmid, Ignis Consulting
• Mjøstårnet – Timber Fire Safety in Practice, by Leif Tore Isaksen, Sweco Norway AS
• The FRISSBE Project and its Research Advancements Towards a Fire-Safe Sustainable Built Environment, by Grunde Jomaas, PhD, Andrea Lucherini, PhD, & Ulises Rojas-Alva, PhD, FRISSBE, Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Institute (ZAG)
• AFireTest – Future of Design-optimized Fire Testing, by Ruben Van Coile, PhD, Ghent University
• Energy Storage System Research: Fire Fighter Response Safety Sean DeCrane, Director, Health and Safety, International Association of Fire Fighters
• SFPE Foundation and the Grand Challenges in Sustainability & Resilience, by Natalia Florez, PhD, Stellenbosch University
• Educating Sustainability Conscious Fire Safety Engineers, by Bart Merci, PhD, Professor, Ghent University
• Holistic Building Performance Design, by Benjamin Ralph, MEng PGDip PhD FIFireE FIMechE CEng, Foster + Partners
• Role of BIM in Sustainable and Fire Resilient Design, by Michael Stromgren 

The symposium will also include panel discussions on the role of fire safety in sustainable design, fire safety challenges of sustainable technologies, the role of timber in a sustainable built environment, and more.

This SFPE Engineering Solutions Symposium is being held partnership with FRISSBE and made possible with the support of Danfoss Fire Safety and Evox; a limited number of sponsorships and exhibit opportunities are still available. 

Early-bird registration discounts are available through October 27. To learn more or to register for the SFPE Engineering Solutions Symposium on Mass Timber, visit www.sfpe.org/fssbdsymposium today. 

To protect its workers from the extreme summer heat, Western Specialty Contractors manages a heat illness training program and a safety hotline for its employees.

As part of the program, training is provided to all employees and supervisors who work in high temperatures. Training topics include: how heat can affect the body, how to identify the signs and symptoms of various heat-related illnesses, and what to do if a co-worker is experiencing symptoms of a heat-related illness. Western also regulates the hotter environment by providing water and shade to workers and by having supervisors and safety managers monitor the heat index so that the proper protective measures can be taken.

“It is important particularly during the summer months that outdoor workers drink plenty of fluids to help prevent dehydration, which is the primary cause of heat cramps and heat exhaustion,” said Cameron Samuel, Assistant Safety Director at Western Specialty Contractors.

Samuel, who has training and experience managing the health and safety of outdoor workers, offers the following tips for preventing heat-related illnesses on a construction jobsite: Drink water frequently and drink enough water that you never become thirsty. Drink water or other non-caffeinated, electrolytic beverages and make sure that your drinks are always cool, not room temperature. Adding a lemon slice to water can make plain water more drinkable.

• Wear light-colored, loose-fitting, breathable clothing made from natural materials such as cotton. Avoid wearing non-breathing synthetic clothing. Wear safety glasses with UV protection, sunscreen and brimmed hard hats.
• Gradually build up to heavy work. If possible, do the hardest work during the coolest time of the day. Workers who are suddenly exposed to working in a hot environment face additional hazards to their health and safety. New workers and those returning from time away need to be extra careful in making sure they stay hydrated.
• Take more breaks in extreme heat and humidity. Move to the shade or a cool area such as an air-conditioned building or car when possible but try not to go in and out of air conditioning too much as it will make it harder for you to adjust to the heat. Use cooling fans whenever possible.
• Select your lunch carefully. Junk food is high in fat and preservatives and will put a high caloric load on the digestive system. Try eating a bigger breakfast, so you’re not as hungry at lunch. Eat light lunches that include fruits, vegetables and salads.
• Keep an eye on your co-workers and be alert for signs of heat exhaustion. Early symptoms include lethargy, disorientation, stumbling, dropping tools, slurred speech or unresponsiveness. Heat stroke is a medical emergency requiring a 911 call and immediate cooling.
• Check your urine frequency and color throughout the day. Water intake is adequate when urine is clear or light yellow. When the desire to urinate is less than twice per day and/or you are producing a dark yellow urine, you may be dehydrated.

By training employees on the early signs of heat exhaustion, taking the proper precautions, and employing tips like the ones listed above, outdoor workers can greatly reduce the risk of heat-related dangers.

About Western Specialty Contractors
Family-owned and operated for more than 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects, and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective, corrective measures that can add years of useful life to a variety of structures including industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational and government buildings, parking structures, and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology. For more information about Western Specialty Contractors, visit www.westernspecialtycontractors.com.

CAN Geotechnical Project Manager Andy Pope said: “Our work here involves a two-pronged approach. The first priority is to make the area safe by identifying and removing any loose material (chalk and flints), which we are achieving by using light hand-scaling tools on an area of about 5000 metres. Once this has been completed, we will be carrying out a geotechnical inspection, which will provide a detailed report on the condition of the chalk face to give an informed assessment of the area.”

Andy said it had been challenging to evaluate the scale of the project until the six-person team could access and examine the cliff face. The work on the cliff began on 20 February and was paused on 7 April with 50% of the project complete. This is to avoid intrusive work on the chalk cliffs during the bird-nesting season. The project will resume in September.

He said: “In terms of technical and safety considerations for a project like this, we’ve had to align our rigging at the crest to allow for the constant movement of ropes (two 50-metre ropes for each operative), which is essential to hand scale the cliff face. For our rigging, we are using 4×4 vehicles and 8T excavators. This means that, instead of installing anchors 660 millimetres deep into the chalk cliff tops, CAN operatives have used purposely immobilised 4×4 vehicles and the excavators to create rigging that is both safe and efficient, with minimal disruption to this sensitive environment.

“It is extremely satisfying for the team to work on a project of this nature. The chalk cliffs are part of our heritage and synonymous with the region and specifically Brighton. To ensure everyone can safely appreciate the beauty of the cliffs, we need to understand the extent and the nature of the erosion and the particular challenges this will create, especially in terms of public safety, given the use of the popular Undercliff Walk.”

CAN, an RSK company, is working with RSK Geosciences on the project, with their colleagues responsible for the geotechnical inspection. CAN is carrying out the work for FM Conway as part of a project for Brighton and Hove City Council.

               Dry dock accidents have occurred many times over the last two decades, attributable to inadequate maintenance and inspections. The intent of this standard is to minimize the risk to personnel and the ships being drydocked. In addition, emphasis on maintenance and inspection provides the insight for facility owners and operators to enable repairs before the catastrophic loss of their capital assets.

This standard is intended for use by dry dock owners, Dockmasters, dry dock maintenance engineers, engineers engaged in dry dock inspection and certification, ship owners, and port engineers.

To purchase online visit the ASCE Bookstore

Western’s experts recommend that a building’s maintenance staff go up on the roof and check for debris at least once a month, or after a trade has been working on the roof. Debris on a roof can clog drains, scuppers and downspouts and lead to ponding water that can quickly seep into an open seam or split wall flashing.

There are several types of damage-causing debris that can be found on rooftops. Poor clean-up by workers who have performed work on a roof and left behind trash and debris such as caulk tubes or rags can cause major problems if not cleaned up. High winds can blow debris around causing damage to the roof and to people and property below if it blows off.

Other types of debris found on roofs that should be removed include leaves, tree limbs and twigs, goose droppings, fireworks and even bullet shells.

Western’s experts also recommend checking HVAC access panels on a roof to make sure they are securely in place during routine housekeeping. Access panels removed by a contractor and tossed on a rooftop can puncture roofing materials. Unsecured access panels blown around by high winds can cause further damage.

Most roof manufacturer warranties will take into consideration whether housekeeping was performed on a roof, so it is important to make sure that any potentially damaging debris or trash is regularly removed.  

About Western Specialty Contractors

Family-owned and operated for over 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective solutions. Corrective measures can add years of useful life to various structures, including industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational and government buildings, parking structures and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO, with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology. For more information about Western Specialty Contractors, visit www.westernspecialtycontractors.com.   

This report explains how firestop failures in the event of a fire can trigger fiascos that put people at risk, while raising serious questions and liability for architects, engineers, and construction professionals. The industry must ensure these critical components meet the highest standards for safety.

Safe Piping Matters reviews issues related to firestopping assemblies for various plastic piping materials including polyvinyl chloride (PVC), chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC), polyethylene (PE), and crosslinked polyethylene (PEX) plastic, as well as non-combustible piping materials such as copper, iron, and steel. Key concepts include:

• How pipe combustibility impacts firestopping requirements
• Why complexity is the main challenge of firestopping
• Comparisons of typical firestop assemblies
• Common problems to avoid
• Recommendations to improve safety and reduce liability

“Designing and installing firestop assemblies for piping penetrations requires a demanding process. Teams must understand which code requirements apply to their situation, select appropriate components, and install them correctly,” said Paul Hagar, Executive Director of Safe Piping Matters. “This valuable report features experts who address critical firestopping issues that occur throughout the construction process and gives recommendations to make buildings safer.”

The Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) TallWood project aims to investigate the resilience of tall timber buildings by simulating a series of large earthquakes on a full-scale, 10-story mass timber building – the world’s tallest full-scale building ever tested on an earthquake simulator or shake table at the NHERI@UCSD facility. The research project is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation.

The key feature of the building is a post-tensioned rocking wall system built from mass timber panels. Under lateral forces, the wood panels rock up off the base, and the post-tensioning rods re-center the system after the earthquake passes. This new system is aimed at resilient performance, which means the building will have minimal damage from design-level shaking and be quickly repairable after rare earthquakes. 

The seismic test project, led by Colorado School of Mines, is a collaboration of many researchers from academia and industry. Project co-investigator and engineering professor at the University of Nevada, Reno, Keri Ryan, Ph.D., will be leading her team of researchers focused on testing non-structural systems including interior partition walls, exterior facades and stairs.

“Resilient design must also account for the building’s nonstructural systems, which are not part of the structural load-resisting system but play an important role in the building’s function and its ability to recover after the earthquake,” Ryan said.

For more information, please see the story on Nevada Today.

The RoSPA Health and Safety Awards, now in its 67th year, is the largest occupational health and safety awards program in the UK, with nearly 2,000 entries from around the world every year. The program recognises organisations that demonstrate continuous improvement in the prevention of accidents and ill health at work, and assesses their health and safety management systems, including leadership and workforce involvement.

Land & Water is dedicated to nurturing the growth of its workforce through focusing on health and wellbeing. The firm has appointed a Health and Wellbeing Director, has 18 Mental Health First Aiders and has facilitated the creation of a central wellbeing intranet which provides access to a variety of wellbeing resources. On top of this, the company continues to follow the highest standards of health and safety at all of its sites.

James Maclean, CEO of Land & Water, said, “We’re delighted to receive the RoSPA Gold Award for the 4th consecutive year, as it endorses our commitment to the Health, Safety and Wellbeing of our staff and our supply chain. Every Land & Water employee is to thank for this achievement and we would like to commend our workforce for always acting with care”.

Julia Small, RoSPA’s Achievements Director, commented on the significance of good safety performance and the importance of recognising and rewarding it. She said, “We are thrilled that Land & Water has won a RoSPA Award and would like to congratulate them on showing an unwavering commitment to keeping their employees, clients and customers safe from accidental harm and injury.” The RoSPA Awards scheme is the longest-running of its kind in the UK and is sponsored by Croner-i. It receives entries from organisations across the globe, making it one of the most sought-after achievement awards for the health and safety industry. Land & Water’s continued dedication toward health, safety and wellbeing attests to the company’s excellence in every aspect of business especially within the civil engineering industry.

The campaign unites young people, with a focus on those who are marginalized across the United States, to join a global movement as key stakeholders in reducing road traffic deaths and injuries by 50% by 2030. As part of the campaign, they will be called upon to engage with their local decision makers to advocate for a more safe and sustainable transportation system for all road users (pedestrians, transit users, cyclists, and drivers).

Jacob Smith, Executive Director of NOYS, said, “Vehicle-dominated environments and lack of people-centered infrastructure have resulted in our youth suffering from multiple health crises. Global Youth Traffic Safety Month harnesses the power of young people to transform our transportation system. I know that young people are incredible living experts of our evolving transportation system.”

NOYS has partnered with the campaign sponsor Bentley Systems to develop a national advocacy action guide for young people across the United States to be equipped to address mobility safety in their communities. In recognition of GYTSM Month, 10 youth leaders will be named National Mobility Safety Champions by NOYS for their outstanding contributions to advocating for safe and sustainable mobility systems.

Zeljko Djuretic, head of Education with Bentley Systems, said, “We are so honored to be partnering with NOYS and supporting this campaign to raise awareness about road safety. Through our work, we know that one way to do this is through solutions that support predictive transportation technology, helping engineers design safe and sustainable mobility systems. Our young people’s voices are powerful, and it’s incredible that NOYS is empowering our youth to raise their voices and involve them in the decision-making process to address mobility safety in their communities.”

To learn more about National Organizations for Youth Safety Global Youth Traffic Safety activities, please visit noys.org or their social media channels for the latest news.

“Part of our mission as a college is to ensure there is a well-trained, career ready workforce and the construction industry continues to be strong in Texas and around the country. Via our first of its kind construction safety program and safety lab, we are well positioned to provide the right education that will benefit students and employers,” said Dr. Neil Matkin, president of Collin College.

In support of Collin College’s efforts to educate next generation workers, McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. announced today the company’s five-year, $75,000 sponsorship of the construction safety lab. As part of its sponsorship, McCarthy receives naming rights of the lab. The McCarthy Safety Lab will offer hands-on educational opportunities to students in the construction management program. The lab will serve to build a pipeline of talent for the construction industry and offer construction safety students real-world learning opportunities. McCarthy, who has been integral in the program’s development, will provide guest lectures and demonstrations at the lab. Further, McCarthy’s gift will support the recruiting of students nationwide and yearly scholarships via the Construction Management Excellence Fund.

“Jobsite safety is the highest priority for McCarthy and we are thrilled to partner with Collin College on this endeavor,” said Nate Kowallis, Senior Vice President of Operations for McCarthy’s Dallas office. “As the region grows, we must be prepared to educate the next generation and combat the construction industry’s ongoing labor shortage. This safety lab will play a critical part in training and supporting our industry’s future workforce.”

Recognized by the Association of General Contractors as the safest large contractor in the country, McCarthy emphasizes the importance of safety for its employees and trade partners. The company leads the industry in safety by implementing new measures and technologies including digitizing equipment checks, heat sensing technology, the use of drones in potentially dangerous situations and mental health initiatives.

McCarthy constructed the Collin College Technical campus, which opened in Fall 2020 and specializes in high-demand technical workforce education. Courses are available in automotive, construction, health care, information technology and manufacturing.

“Collin College is proud to feature McCarthy as a prominent partner at our Technical Campus and construction program,” said Matkin. “McCarthy was an excellent partner in building this beautiful, state-of-the-art and functional workforce campus, and we are thrilled to continue this collaboration as we expand our program that readies the next generations of workforce on all aspects of the construction industry.”

For May 2023, Building Safety Month raises awareness of the need to ensure safety in the buildings in which we live, work, and learn. The campaign makes the connection between building codes and personal safety and highlights the important work of building safety professionals in communities worldwide.  From SFPE’s fire protection engineering standards, to the annual SFPE P.E. exam review course, to countless technical articles, handbooks, education programs, and more, SFPE ensures that fire protection engineers have the knowledge to advance building safety and engineer a fire-safe world.

“SFPE’s global community of members, chapters, and fire protection engineers works to continuously advance the scientific understanding and engineering principles of fire,” stated Kevin Mlutkowski, CAE, Director of Community Engagement, Marketing, and Communications, Society of Fire Protection Engineers. “This month during Building Safety Month, SFPE is proud to partner with the International Code Council in showcasing the roles, competencies, and life-saving work of fire protection engineers.”

To learn more about Building Safety Month, search #BuildingSafetyMonth2023 #BuildingSafety365 or visit www.iccsafe.org. To learn more about SFPE and the Society’s programs to engineer a fire-safe world, visit www.sfpe.org. 

Tended’s solution has been developed and tested alongside Network Rail’s Safety Task Force to help create safer trackside environments by enabling organisations to map out safe working zones and site access points using incredibly precise geofencing technology. If workers leave the safe zone, they are alerted via a small wearable device, helping them regain situational awareness and move back to a position of safety. Backed by behavioural science, the solution is designed to prevent near misses and accidents by helping track workers stay within safe working limits and away from open lines.

The technology extends to the positioning of critical protection equipment. Users can accurately plot the location of assets, preventing equipment from being placed on the wrong line and verifying that no assets are left onsite.

Geofencing will be implemented by Siemens Mobility across locations around Northumberland in the Eastern region and around Welwyn on the East Coast Mainline. Devices will be used when working within possessions and separated sites of works to help Siemens comply with safety standards. Alerts will be triggered to prevent people from accessing the worksite before it is safe to do so or working in the wrong location, helping to protect teams and ensure that they are working in a position of safety.

The technology will also be used for geotagging to help ensure the safe and correct placement of marker boards and other assets to monitor the movement of on-track plant and machines in real-time.

Mike Sharp, Head of Infrastructure Access at Siemens, said: 

“The safety of our trackside teams is absolutely paramount and with the introduction of new innovative technologies to the industry, we can continue to make sites even safer for our workforce.

The implementation of geofencing marks a significant shift for track worker safety and we are looking forward to embracing this technology and seeing first-hand how it improves our site safety and operations.

Our trackside teams are working in complex possessions and it gives us great peace of mind knowing that we’re taking every possible precaution to ensure the well-being of our workforce.”

Tended’s CEO and founder, Leo Scott Smith, commented:

“We are thrilled that Siemens has chosen to add Tended’s geofencing technology to their safety strategy and we look forward to working with them! Not only are we improving the safety of track workers, but it’s fantastic to also demonstrate the powerful application of geotagging to track critical assets to reduce the risk of error and improve the safety of plant movements.”

Based on the SFPE Code of Ethics, this on-demand course titled “SFPE Introduction to Ethics for Fire Protection Engineers” provides an overview of ethics, the importance of ethics to engineers, and the ethical obligations of a fire protection engineer. The course includes actual ethical challenges faced in the field, guidance on identifying conflicts of interest, plus several case studies. This course is intended for all career and knowledge levels of engineering professionals, with a specific focus on fire safety professionals. The “SFPE Introduction to Ethics for Fire Protection Engineers” course has been developed to comply with many states’ requirements for continuing education credits and engineering ethics training; the course is eligible for 1.0 Professional Development Hour (PDH).

The SFPE Code of Ethics ensures member compliance to 17 canons on knowledge, skill, honesty, impartiality, competence, and prestige in fire protection engineering. The SFPE Code of Ethics was first published in 1984 and most recently updated in 2018.

“Fire protection engineers must maintain and constantly improve their competence, while adhering to the highest principles of ethical conduct,” stated Chris Jelenewicz, PE, FSFPE, Interim Chief Executive Officer, Society of Fire Protection Engineers.  “This on-demand course provides engineers with a convenient overview of the SFPE Code of Ethics along with real-world applications.”

To learn more or to sign up for the “SFPE Introduction for Fire Protection Engineers” on-demand course, visit www.sfpe.org/ethics-course today. 

 According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 4,764 workers died on the job in 2020. Employees in construction and extraction occupations accounted for 20% of those deaths. Many were struck by a vehicle or mobile machinery on construction sites. Although the construction industry has enlisted the help of safety experts, a great number of fatalities and injuries still occur.

“The point of our research project was to enhance safety of workers and equipment on a construction site by tracking their location,” said Alireza Ansaripour, a computer science doctoral student at UH and first author of the study. “By tracking their location, we can monitor location-based policies related to the safety of workers and equipment in construction sites.”

These location-based safety policies are created during the planning stage of the construction site such as when Internal Traffic Control Plans are made. These policies define safe areas for workers and equipment or define a safe distance between them when equipment is operating in the construction site. ViPER+ automates the monitoring of these policies and detects any violations of the policies while workers and equipment are working.

ViPER+ utilizes ultra-wideband technology for location tracking. “These radios use large bandwidths to communicate, which enables them to perform location tracking more accurately compared to other wireless radios,” Ansaripour said. “This was the technology we used to track the locations of workers and equipment.”

The team’s ViPER+ system surmounts challenges of other ultra-wideband based real-time safety monitoring systems primarily because it overcomes non-line of sight situations. These are instances in which trucks, construction loaders and other equipment block the signal between the transmitter and receiver in ultra-wideband radio transmissions.

Ansaripour and his colleagues implemented a correction method in their localization, or location tracking algorithm to reduce the error caused by non-line of sight.

Testing ViPER+ in Construction Zones

ViPER+ is an updated and improved version of the group’s initial system ViPER. The greatest difference between the two is the enhanced location tracking on ViPER+, which is more accurate in non-line of sight situations.

The team tracked locations through tags and anchors. Tags are small ultra-wideband radio transmitters, mounted to workers and vehicles to monitor their locations. Anchors are ultra-wideband receivers that receive signals from tags. The researchers then collected data from anchors to their computer server and estimated the location of vehicles and people in a construction site.

They tested their system twice in actual construction zones in Houston that was cordoned off for their experiment. But instead of real construction workers, students had to play that part.

“In our evaluation, all four construction workers had tags mounted. We also had one vehicle, either a truck or bulldozer with multiple tags on it, and another static vehicle was used to create a non-line of sight situation.”

The first evaluation was in 2019 when researchers set up tags in an area about 8,600 square feet called the tracking zone. Four students operated as workers in the tracking zone while Ansaripour was managing the data flow of the system and made sure the experiment ran smoothly. In 2022, a similar scenario was set up but at a different construction site.

“Alireza is one of those students with brilliant ideas and the work ethic to see these ideas to fruition,” said Omprakash Gnawali, associate professor of computer science at the UH College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and co-author of the study. “Having that combination is important to get these technical projects to be successful.”

Future Improvements

Future changes to the system include ironing out user design issues such as alerting construction workers when they are too close to moving machinery.

“We also have an issue creating a tracking zone that covers all of a construction site, not just a portion of it,” said Ansaripour. “There are still some improvements that need to be made for this to become a commercial product, but our work provides insight on how a real-time safety monitoring system can be used for safety tracking in construction sites.”

Other authors of the study include UH’s Milad Heydariaan, and from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, corresponding author Kyungki Kim and Hafiz Oyediran.

This research project was funded through the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Idea of the National Academy of Sciences under the award NCHRP-206.

ASSP members will be able to create and use up to four fully customizable digital forms, including two pre-built ASSP safety standard templates ready for use out of the box. In addition, the package will provide 45 days of premium support.

The Fulcrum field inspection management platform allows users to digitize safety inspections, audit processes, and perform data collection in minutes, including the ability to use digital versions of several of ASSP’s recognized best practices to prevent worker injuries, illnesses, and fatalities.

The ASSP Starter Package is a risk-free introduction to the benefits of digitizing ASSP standards and other safety inspections, allowing ASSP members to:

• Increase inspection team efficiencies and ensure accurate data collection
• Capture and easily access complete audit trails for OSHA and other reporting
• Create an evidence-based environment by capturing, digitizing, and archiving pictures & video
• Document hazards as they’re discovered and track remediation
• Identify, codify, and share lessons learned related to incident management, near-misses, and more
• Easily accommodate different regulatory requirements in different jurisdictions

“We’re always exploring new ways to better support the occupational safety and health profession, and our alliance with Fulcrum helps us do that,” said ASSP President Christine Sullivan, CSP, ARM. “When our core values align, we can help safety professionals stay current on best practices and connect them to the latest industry developments. The end result is safer and healthier workplaces.”

Jim Grady, CEO of Fulcrum, agrees. “We’re delighted to be a partner ASSP is counting on to help its members engage in the digital transformation of their safety inspection programs. Fulcrum shares ASSP’s commitment to worker safety, and we’re proud to be able to make workplaces safer with the combination of ASSP’s best practices and Fulcrum’s industry-leading field safety inspection management software.”

For more information about the partnership between Fulcrum and ASSP, please visit our blog. If you’re an ASSP member, create your free Fulcrum account at assp.org/resources/fulcrum.

When selecting a passive safety solution, many contractors default to a simple guardrail system. In doing so, they often overlook the need for a self-closing gate that meets load requirements. Additionally, fixed ladder standards require a 42-inch extension to aid worker access and egress. The SafePro Roof Hatch Safety Rail was designed to address all these concerns with a one product solution.

“The SafePro Roof Hatch Safety Rail ends up being far more cost effective for building owners, providing simplified compliance and peace of mind,” said Kevin Kelpe, a safety educator from Diversified Fall Protection.

When it comes to statistical hazard, the roof hatch presents one of the greatest dangers in a rooftop environment. “When building owners ask me what investment creates the greatest return to hazard reduction on the roof, I always start with the hatch,” said Kelpe.

In recent years, SafePro has enlisted roofing contractors in the fight for worker safety. In partnership with its corporate parent, the company has trained many roofing teams on hazard assessment and equipment installation that can be completed while on-site for other work. Roofing contractors have benefitted greatly from offering this value-add service. And, the team behind the new Hatch Rail had this in mind, too.

“The new design has reduced packaging dimensions by 40% for common sizes, saving space and shipping costs for contractors that wish to keep a few in stock,” said Colt Sargent, a Fall Protection Specialist and Engineer who worked on the project. “Our goal is to provide fall protection partnership for life—for contractors, employers, and end users alike.”  

For more information about the Roof Hatch Safety Rail, visit here, or call (844) 958-1131. More information about Diversified Fall Protection and their full range of services, visit here.

“We invest so much time and energy in organizing what is a very rigorous awards program because this is a vehicle for elevating the safety and health of the industry,” said Dan Fordice, the association’s president and vice-president of Fordice Construction Co. in Vicksburg, Mississippi.  “By finding and highlighting some of the very best industry safety and health programs, we’re seeking to elevate safety and health within the entire industry.”

ICM was selected as a winner for its commitment to safety and occupational health management and risk control. Fordice noted that there are multiple winners because the awards are distributed for several divisions and categories, based on the amount and type of work performed. He added that the AGC-WTW Construction Safety Excellence Awards winners are selected by a panel of five independent safety and health professionals within the construction industry. “These firms developed and implemented exceptional safety and risk control programs through continuous improvement and maintenance of their safety and health management systems,” said Fordice.

“Safety is the most important aspect of our work because while we value getting the job done, we value making sure our employees make it home to their families each night even more,” said Ed Myers, president of ICM. “That means making safety a part of everybody’s job and instilling it into all aspects of our work – from daily safety meetings and site inspections, to speaking up during our quarterly executive safety meetings to voice any concerns and suggest improvements. We are honored to be awarded with this recognition, which is a testament to the strength of our safety team and the protocols they’ve put into place day after day, job after job.”

Final judging for the awards program took place during the contractors’ association’s annual convention in Las Vegas, Nevada. View the entire list of winners. View ceremony photos.

As the largest occupational awards programme of its kind in the UK, the RoSPA Health and Safety Awards recognise organisations’ dedication to continuous improvement in the prevention of accidents and ill health at work.

Now entering their 67^th year, the awards welcome entries from over 2,000 businesses each year, spanning multiple sectors, covering nearly 50 countries, and with an overall reach of over seven million employees.

The judging criteria includes assessing entrants’ overarching health and safety management systems, including best practice in terms of leadership and workforce involvement.

Rhino was awarded ISO 45001 certification in 2021, demonstrating the quality and efficiency of its health and safety management systems, and went on to scoop its first Gold Award at last year’s RoSPA ceremony.

“Accidents at work and work-related ill health don’t just have huge financial implications or cause major disruption – they significantly impact on an individual’s quality of life.

“That’s why good safety performance deserves to be recognised and rewarded,” said Julia Small, RoSPA’s Achievements Director.

“We are thrilled that Rhino Doors has won a RoSPA Award and would like to congratulate them on showing an unwavering commitment to keeping their employees, clients and customers safe from accidental harm and injury.”

Stuart Lawrence, Group Managing Director of Rhino Engineering Group, added: “When we won our first RoSPA Gold Award in 2022, I was immensely proud of the hard work of our team and their demonstrated commitment to maintaining health and safety standards on our sites.

“Now, with a second award under our belts, we’re truly cementing our reputation as a leading UK manufacturer, safeguarding the health of our teams, despite the complex and challenging work we undertake.”

For more information on Rhino Doors and to read more about its credentials in the management of health and safety, please visit www.rhinodoors.com

According to CGA’s annual Damage Information Reporting Tool (DIRT) Report, more than half of annual reported damages (55.3%) were caused by professional contractors. The most common root cause of these damages was “no notification made to the 811 center,” meaning the damages could have been avoided if excavators contacted 811 to have utility lines marked prior to breaking ground. 

This trend has been consistent year-over-year and reflects deeper challenges in the efficiency of the 811 system. CGA’s Next Practices Initiative has highlighted the need for the 811 system to be more reliable for all stakeholders, as well as the importance of excavators continuing to use 811 consistently and effectively. To help drive this change, CGA recently announced a new tagline for 811: “SAFETY IS IN YOUR HANDS. EVERY DIG. EVERY TIME,” which serves to emphasize the importance of consistent use of 811 before every digging project.

“CGA’s contractor member representation has grown significantly, and we’re thankful for the contributions of these key stakeholders who provide invaluable input into the realities of excavation and their challenges within the 811 system,” said Sarah K. Magruder Lyle, President and CEO of CGA. “Our research consistently shows that we should take advantage of opportunities to provide more excavator training – both within excavation companies and from other damage prevention stakeholders – to drive home the severe consequences of not contacting 811 and demonstrate practices that help make the system more efficient for all involved.” 

Contacting 811 and following safe digging practices holds value for excavators beyond avoiding serious injury and fines—it can be a way for excavators to stand out among their competitors. A recent national survey of homeowners conducted by CGA revealed that, among respondents planning to hire a contractor for a digging project in the next year, 82% said a contractors’ usage of the 811 system is important. By contacting 811 before every dig and prioritizing damage prevention, contractors can demonstrate to potential customers that safety is their priority. 

Professional excavators and others who break ground—including work like resurfacing, installing, staking, ripping, grinding and tiling—are obligated to contact 811 to have utility lines marked before excavating. After 811 is contacted, professionals must follow all necessary safe digging procedures to ensure that a line is not struck during excavation. This includes waiting the appropriate time for lines to be marked, potholing to confirm the location of buried utilities and hand digging within the tolerance zone. If a jobsite is not located in the required time, excavators should contact their local 811 center or the utility company to confirm that the jobsite is clear to dig. 

Excavators should also review and implement CGA Best Practices to ensure that excavation is done both safely and in the most efficient way possible for the damage prevention system to work properly. Some Best Practices for excavators while on the jobsite include white-lining the planned excavation area, requesting pre-excavation meetings with facility owner/operators for large projects and documentation of locate marks. 

“We know from CGA research that awareness of 811 is very high among professionals, but year after year we continue to see damages caused by contractors who did not contact 811 before digging,” said John Fluharty, Project Executive at Quanta and Secretary of the CGA board of directors. “It’s critical that as professionals we understand the importance of contacting 811 before digging to protect ourselves, our crews and our livelihoods, and that other stakeholder groups work to make the 811 process more efficient to restore excavators’ confidence in the system.”

Earlier this year, CGA issued its “50 in 5” challenge, calling for the damage prevention industry to reduce damages by 50% by the year 2028. In honor of National Safe Digging Month this April, CGA urges excavators to do their part in this challenge by contacting 811 before every dig. 

“Recent fatal fires in multifamily buildings started by lithium/ion batteries on electric bicycles are a lethal threat that can be greatly reduced through effective design and engineering solutions,” said Ariel Aufgang, AIA, principal of Aufgang, an architecture and engineering design and consulting group.

Aufgang’s engineering team has designed a bicycle storage room with a fire protection system that reduces the threat posed to building residents from such fires. 

“Lithium Ion batteries burn very hot without the presence of oxygen due to a chemical reaction within the battery cell,” said Sam LaMontanaro, PE CEM, Director of Engineering and head of the Building Systems Advisory Unit at Aufgang.

“We designed a bike storage room for apartment buildings that is fully encapsulated within cinderblock—Concrete Masonry Units (CMU)—to contain and limit the potential for fire and heat spread,” said LaMontanaro.

“As the first line of defense, sprinklers will slow the spread of fire allowing time for fire fighters to get to the site.  To maximize sprinkler speed and effectiveness our design increases their density within bike the room to provide 0.3 gallons of water per minute (gpm) per square foot using standard k=5.6 sprinkler heads, with their spacing decreased to a 10ft x 10ft grid, coordinated with the racks and structure. That’s well beyond most building code requirement,” said LaMontanaro. 

Two floor drains are installed in the bike storage room to prevent flooding in the event of sprinkler discharge, and the room is designed to provide clear access to allow responding fire fighters safe entrance into the space to fully extinguish the fire with heavy hose streams.

Technology also plays a role, said LaMontanaro.

“Our design specifies smoke and heat detectors, including infrared sensors, that trigger fire alarms and alert building staff in the event of a fire in the bike room,” he said.

“Building residents must be required to keep electric bicycles in the building’s designated bike storage room and never in their apartments, hallways or lobbies,” said Ariel Aufgang.

“We recommend that municipal and county building departments and fire departments update and revise their codes to contend with the increased risk of fires in multifamily buildings from lithium/ion batteries on electric bicycles. Our safer dedicated bike room design is an excellent model for new construction requirements as well as retrofits,” said Aufgang.

An update of the 2011 version, this revision substantially updates requirements for materials detailing. Requirements related to lightweight concrete have been relaxed, but new requirements for welding structural steel are added. Sections are added for composite construction, both for concrete-and-steel composite and for fiber-reinforced polymer composite members. Methods to analyze glazing performance are updated, and a simplified approach to assess fragmentation is added to the provisions, with the more elaborate approach retained in the commentary.

Building owners and developers in the private and public sectors, and their design consultants including structural engineers, architects, and security experts will benefit from this standard.

To purchase online visit the ASCE Bookstore

The U.S. averages 1,333 tornadoes per year with more than half of those occurring between April and June when most universities are still in session. The top five states with the highest number of tornadoes annually include Texas, Kansas, Florida, Oklahoma and Nebraska.

Javier Esteban, Principal at St. Louis-based KWK Architects, suggests that universities work with their architectural firms to determine a reinforced room design that best accommodates their budgets, structures and student population.

Ideally, reinforced rooms should be designed and constructed based on the standards and codes for tornado and hurricane storm shelters developed by the International Code Council (ICC) 500, in partnership with the National Storm Shelter Association (NSSA), said Esteban, but that is not always feasible for a variety of reasons.  

“Many times the restrictions in terms of ventilation, structure, and exit requirements make designing to these codes cost-prohibitive for universities. In those instances, it is still possible to design for student safety via a compromise where some public areas of the residence hall have strengthened or reinforced structures, doors, and windows,” he said.

KWK Architects has designed reinforced rooms for several universities within the country’s Tornado Alley where twisters are more common:

• Headington and Dunham Residential Colleges at the University of Oklahoma (Oklahoma averages 68 tornadoes per year).
• University Commons residential complex at Missouri S&T (Missouri experiences an estimated 45 twisters annually).
• Victor E. Village at Fort Hays State University in Kansas (Kansas reports an average of 96 tornadoes per year).

A reinforced room should be designed to stand up to high winds on its own, independent of the building structure surrounding it, said Esteban.

“It is critically important to maintain the structure of the reinforced area so that should a building collapse occur, it does not affect the integrity of the reinforced space, and its occupants remain safe,” said Esteban.

The Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) has outlined the different types of tornado-safe room options available and the materials used to build them:

1. Cast-in-Place Concrete – these rooms are assembled on-site using removable forms, rebar and concrete to create the walls and ceilings. The forms can be fitted with liners to create concrete exterior surfaces that look like siding, brick or stone.

2. Insulating Concrete Forms (ICFs) – These rooms are created using foam blocks that contain steel reinforcement, fitted together and filled with concrete. The foam is a permanent part of the room and provides insulation to the building. Interior and exterior finish options include drywall, sheetrock or siding.

3. Concrete Masonry – These safe rooms are constructed of individual blocks, set in place with rebar and fully grouted. Two rows of steel at the top of the wall hold the assembly together. There are a variety of texture and finish options available.

4. Precast Concrete – This room is formed off-site and delivered to a building for installation. It can be located virtually anywhere in a new building and is anchored using steel angles and bolts. Precast concrete can be finished in a variety of colors and textures using form liners.

5. Prefabricated Above-Ground Steel – These prefabricated safe rooms typically cost less than site-built safe rooms. Considerations must be made to ensure that this room is placed on a safe and sturdy foundation.

Esteban also suggests that reinforced room designs incorporate emergency lighting, electrical outlets, fire extinguishers, first aid kits, heating and air conditioning, and an AED defibrillator. When not in use, residence hall storm shelters can serve as lounge and study areas for students.

The primary objective of this research project was to characterize the environmental and health impacts of wildland and structural, large-scale fire events. Led by Jamie L. McAllister, P.E., Ph.D., Brendan McCarrick, P.E., Zelda Q. Zhao, and Curtis Fagan, the work included a literature review of large-scale fire incidents, identification of current large-scale incident impact monitoring capabilities, identification of standards and industry best practices for quantification of large-scale incident impacts, and a gap analysis. The findings have been published in the free report titled “Environmental and Health Impacts of Fire and Fire-Suppression Activities During Large-Scale Fire Events” available on sfpe.org/foundation. 

On March 16, 2023, the SFPE Foundation is hosting a free webinar to review findings of the research, the gap analysis, and future work recommendations. Learn more and sign up at sfpe.org.

“This research provides foundational insight while highlighting the need for the fire engineering community to align research efforts and collaborate with a diverse array of stakeholders to advance our understanding of the impacts of fire and fire suppression activities during large-scale events,” stated Leslie Marshall, Ph.D., Director, SFPE Foundation. “The SFPE Foundation remains committed to advancing the science of resilience, sustainability, and fires in the wildland-urban interface, as prioritized in the SFPE Research Roadmap.”

Financing for SFPE Foundation-funded research is provided through the generous support of donors, including SFPE, SFPE chapters, SFPE members, governmental agencies, leading companies and organizations, and others.  Demand for SFPE Foundation research funding support far exceeds available funds.  The SFPE Foundation periodically invites research proposals through both open calls and specific requests for proposals.  

Additional information about the SFPE Foundation, its programs, and this research project is available at sfpe.org/foundation.

Tended’s award-winning safety solution is being piloted to support safe standards of work across Cardiff West, one of the Route’s more complicated junction layouts. The technology is being used to enhance safety for track workers within complex possessions, helping them stay within safe working limits and augmenting situational awareness.

This announcement comes just several months after Network Rail issued their latest safety standard (NR/ L2/OHS/501 Module W4), a module that, for the first time, specifies the requirements for the use of geofencing on the railway. Having developed the solution alongside Network Rail’s Safety Task Force, Tended has been instrumental in bringing geofencing to the forefront of the railway industry, helping to revolutionise track worker safety and onsite operations.

Following a successful pilot, the intention is for Network Rail Wales and Borders to consider rolling out geofencing technology across the route. A wider deployment would encompass all teams needing the solution to improve safety trackside and further reduce the risk of incidents or accidents.

After two years of successful trials with Network Rail’s trackside teams, Tended’s technology received official product acceptance earlier this year and can now be deployed across the UK’s rail network, with principal contractor AmcoGiffen using the devices with their trackside teams since October.

Over the past three years, Tended has worked closely with Network Rail to improve worker safety, and this new partnership with Network Rail Wales and Borders demonstrates a shared ambition to use innovation to help prevent track workers from being injured or struck by trains.

The solution uses high-precision geofencing technology to define critical details onsite before work starts. Using an online Planning Dashboard, safe working zones can be overlaid with authorised safe access points.

The Planning Dashboard is accompanied by a small wearable device assigned to the project, alerting workers in real-time if they cross a geofence boundary and leave safe working limits. This alert notifies them of their potentially unsafe position, helping them regain situational awareness.

With no prior setup or onsite infrastructure requirements, Network Rail Wales and Borders are able to move quickly to commence their pilot and to start creating safer work environments for their trackside teams. Centimetre-accurate technology acts as an aid to workers, providing a ‘tap on the shoulder’ to support when distractions and poor visibility can lead to a loss of situational awareness. By helping workers stay within safe working limits, Tended’s technology is helping keep workers away from hazards and open lines.

With a strong focus on user adoption and engagement, Tended is offering a full service to support Network Rail Wales and Borders in piloting the technology, led by their in-house behavioural science team.

This implementation represents a further step in Network Rail Wales and Borders’ commitment to keeping its track workers safe.

Tended’s CEO and founder, Leo Scott Smith, commented:

“The team at Tended is very excited to start this pilot with Network Rail’s Wales and Borders route. I’m thrilled that they have chosen Tended as part of their safety strategy. It’s a great opportunity to demonstrate our award-winning technology and show how powerful geofencing can be to improve site safety and efficiency in safety-critical rail environments.

“By working in collaboration with the Wales and Borders route, we’re bringing together a wealth of knowledge and expertise. I’m very much looking forward to the outcome of the pilot and the next steps.”

Nick Millington, route director at Network Rail Wales and Borders said:

“Trackworker safety is of primary importance to us, in particular keeping our colleagues permanently separated from moving trains whilst working on or near the line.

“We’ve done an immense amount of work over the last three years in this area, including reducing near misses between track workers and trains by 70%, but we continue to research ways to improve safety, even further.

“Modern technology has a massive part to play in ensuring our colleagues are safe at all times on the railway, which is why we’re really pleased to be working with Tended to pilot the innovative ‘geofencing’ technology on our route.”

Within 11 minutes, a magnitude 6.7 aftershock convulsed a region 60 miles north. Scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said an earthquake of this magnitude is unusual anywhere in the world. 

Husam Najm, a professor of civil and environmental engineering in the Rutgers School of Engineering who specializes in the study of various advanced concrete materials and the design of novel forms of concrete bridges, discusses the unfolding tragedy, its causes and efforts to design earthquake-resistant structures to stave off such catastrophic losses in the future.

USGS scientist David Wald said, “an earthquake this size has the potential to be damaging anywhere in the world, but many structures in this region are particularly vulnerable.” What is it about buildings with older types of concrete frames that makes them prone to collapse in a strong earthquake?

Although the Turkish Building Code includes seismic design and retrofit requirements to make structures like buildings and bridges resistant to earthquake damage, many of the buildings in Southeast Turkey were older buildings and were designed and built prior to the implementation of the seismic code requirements. Most likely many of these buildings are built from reinforced concrete frames or unreinforced masonry that do not have sufficient ductility capacity and energy dissipation ability – especially at joint locations – that they can’t sustain the ductility demand imposed on them from a large magnitude earthquake.

Reports indicate the two largest earthquakes in the recent series were relatively shallow, with the main earthquake 11 miles deep, and the aftershock about 6 miles deep, leading to intense shaking on the surface. Can you describe what excessive ground motion does to a building? Why can’t buildings simply absorb the motion?

Excessive ground motion can cause large forces on buildings because of the acceleration of the ground motion. These forces will be amplified if the building weight is large and the soil on which the foundations are built is soft. These forces will produce large horizontal movements, shaking, of the building. If the building is not designed to accommodate these movements or absorb the energy generated by the ground motion, collapse can happen.

Current seismic codes in countries with high seismic activities like the U.S, New Zealand, Japan, Turkey, Iran, Greece, South America and China have seismic design and retrofit requirements that allow buildings to absorb the energy generated by the ground motion and accommodate the movements.

What is it about the design of some buildings that makes them resistant to earthquakes? Are more such buildings being constructed? Are most people now living in buildings designed to withstand earthquakes?

A building designed with enough ductility capacity to accommodate the demand put on it from an earthquake should be able to resist earthquake ground motion and only suffer minor damage – mostly nonstructural damage. This is achieved by designing building columns, walls, braces, and joints to resist the ground motion forces. Proper detailing is also essential to provide the needed ductility. Detailing in concrete building means how the steel and the concrete are connected and the type of concrete used, such that the concrete is always confined so that it can provide the needed ductility. For steel buildings, detailing means how the bolts and welds are made and what type of steel material is used to ensure the needed ductility of steel.

More buildings in high seismic zones are designed and constructed to withstand large ground motions. There are many people living in buildings designed to meet seismic code requirements. But unfortunately, older buildings – if not retrofitted to meet current seismic code requirements – may not stand large earthquakes and there are many people around the world still living in those buildings.

What is the potential for new science and engineering approaches to protect people during earthquakes in the future?

It is still difficult to predict when an earthquake will happen and how big it will be. There is a lot of current research on this topic. Hopefully, we can get there soon – even if we can get an early warning of a few minutes, it will make a big difference. We learn a lot from every earthquake that happens, and we update our seismic design requirements. There have been a lot of advances in seismic design and ductile materials. The other thing that needs to be done is to retrofit older buildings and historic buildings. That is not an easy thing because it is very expensive and disruptive to people and businesses.

According to the CDC, between 2011 and 2020, transportation events accounted for 73% of fatal injuries to workers at road construction sites, with the majority (63%) caused by the worker being struck by a vehicle¹.

Technology is vital for reducing road worker injuries by eliminating blind spots on commercial vehicles and providing real-time, and reliable, alerts to drivers when there is potential for a collision.

However, site managers need to be confident that the technology is right for the environment, as Corey Heniser, CEO of Brigade Electronics INC, explains:

“Road construction workers often complete their jobs in demanding environments. Alongside the potential for extreme weather conditions and the debris that comes with the job, more road construction is taking place at night. While this minimizes the disruption to road users, it does increase the safety risks for workers. Preventing collisions and injuries can therefore be a challenging task.

“But there are safety device options that are resilient to demanding conditions. These can be relied upon to continue to protect workers during low light, loud noise, high and low temperatures, and when visibility is compromised. It is these types of tough products that should be used to protect the lives of road construction workers.”

With a Backsense® radar obstacle detection system and heavy-duty camera system, such as the Backeye®360, blind spots are eliminated. The system will identify people and objects, whether stationary or moving, and provide the vehicle operator with in-cab visual and audible alerts, even in difficult environments.

Simple reversing alarms have long been a solution to alerting those on the ground. However, research has shown that old-fashioned tonal alarms may be adding to the problem. In tough and noisy environments, it is not always easy to locate the direction from which the alarm originates. Multi-frequency alarms, such as Brigade Electronics’ bbs-tek® White Sound® reversing and warning alarms, are solving this problem. Rather than the traditional ‘beep’ of tonal alarms, they create a ‘ssh-ssh’ sound which dissipates quickly, meaning the alarm can be instantly located and heard in the danger zone.

Corey Heniser added:

“While passive systems, such as mirrors and cameras, do help the driver to spot people and objects in blind spots, utilizing proactive technology that site managers can rely on to provide reliable alerts, no matter the conditions, are key to protecting the lives of road construction workers.”

1 https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/highwayworkzones/default.html

“These are enduring assets that will help us understand the durability of new coatings and surface treatments to transition these technologies to protect real assets in the field,” said Dr. Emily Asenath-Smith, research materials engineer and lead of the Ice Adhesion Facility at ERDC’s CRREL.

“We’ll be tracking the weather, and we’ll have camera monitoring at each site, so researchers will have visual and meterological data to pair with data on coating performance at each location,” she said.

Asenath-Smith collaborated over several years with ERDC’s Paint Technology Center of Expertise, led by Dr. Rebekah Wilson, at the Construction and Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) in Champaign, Illinois, to establish the new facilities.

“CERL has had the capability to expose coatings to outdoor conditions in their environment for a long time,” Asenath-Smith said. “Across the Army and the federal government, the coldest place they’ve tested coating technologies is in Champaign, so our new facilities are a big expansion of capabilities.”

“This capability, to test coatings in these cold, tremendously inhospitable climates, is completely new for a federal laboratory,” Wilson said. “This seems like it’s going to open up a lot of possibilities to develop new cold weather coating technologies.”

The planning for the new facilities at the three locations started in 2019, and Asenath-Smith and her team deployed the first prototype rack on Treat Island, located in the Bay of Fundy off the coast of Eastport, Maine, in 2021.

“The Bay of Fundy is unique; it is the U.S.’s northern-most point off the Atlantic coast,” Asenath-Smith said.

“It’s really rough out there, there is wave action and wind, and it’s completely exposed. The tide changes by 22 feet at each cycle and there are two cycles per day. The cold water gets icy in the winter, and in this environment, the coated test panels are exposed to cyclic immersion in salt water, freezing and thawing conditions, and solar irradiance — some common estimates are that one year on Treat Island is equivalent to six years inland.”

“The first rack was deployed on Treat Island to see if it would still be standing and still have samples in it,” she said. “After that first winter, not only was the rack still here, it had all the coated panels in it — they were just a little bent.”

The second improved version, along with the weather and visual monitoring system, was just installed this past
November.

“We had to build a monitoring system that will stand by itself with no human interaction for up to eight months,” said Olivier Montmayeur, a CRREL research mechanical engineer who retrofitted part of the facilities on Treat Island in November. “It’s always different between engineering from photos and actually getting your hands dirty and seeing what’s going on in person. We got there and had less than 30 minutes from the time we could get onto the lower dock to install the new rack, before it was completely submerged again.”

The facilities at Hanover were deployed in October 2022; a system was erected in Fairbanks in August 2022. Asenath-Smith and her team already have projects slated for the next few years to take advantage of the new capabilities. Some of the testing they do before deploying the panels and after are related to how well the coating adheres to the metal of the panels, or how well the ice adheres to a surface after exposure.

“Our main customer right now for Treat Island is the Office of Naval Research; we are assisting them with the assessment of coatings to control topside ship icing and icing on ship superstructures,” Asenath-Smith said. The ship superstructures she refers to are any parts of the ship above the deck.

The team has specimens from the National Institute of Standards and Technology at their Hanover site.

“And in Alaska, we have samples supporting a study for the Army,” she said. “That study is related to the surfaces of modular, temporary bridging systems that the Army uses. The improved ribbon bridge in particular is one they’re interested in.”

The new capabilities could have civilian application as well.

“Once the military validates technology like this, it usually translates to civilian infrastructure,” said CRREL Director Dr. Joseph Corriveau. “Imagine, if we can actually mitigate icing and corrosion on structures that are going to be exposed to cold climates, we can use that technology on municipal infrastructure, vessels like crabbing ships, and so on.”

The Feature Series clothing is made with Indura® Ultra Soft® FR treated cotton and meets current ASTM F1506 and F1959/1959M-99 standards. FR Velcro® front closures provide a secure closure, easy access, and rapid removal in the event of arc flash exposure. FR Velcro® calf/ankle closures allow for easy access and fit adjustment during donning and removal, and adjustment while wearing boots.

Clothing options include coats, parkas, bib/pants, coveralls, and leggings, available in sizes S-5X with a standard inseam of 32″. Coveralls include elastic backs for ease of movement, and all coats and coveralls have Nomex® knit wrist cuffs. Bib/pants have easily adjustable “quick disconnect” shoulder straps to ensure user safety. Kits are available in a duffle bag, backpack or hard-sided storage canister, and include hard-hats, safety glasses, and ear canal inserts.

In addition to the Feature Series of Arc Flash Protective Clothing PPE, Cementex also offers the Contractor Series for high quality, classic protection of personnel around energized equipment and the UltraLite Series, with innovative design and materials for the lightest, most comfortable Arc Flash PPE Task Wear available. 

For more information about Cementex’s industry-leading Arc Flash PPE Task Wear, visit www.cementexusa.com or call 1-800-654-1292.

University of Adelaide researcher Dr Noune Melkoumian has invented an innovative structural health monitoring (SHM) system for this exact purpose – and she’s about to take her sensor technology global.

In 1988, Armenia witnessed one of the most destructive earthquakes in human history. The shock tore through cities, distorting structures and reducing others to rubble.

“After the earthquake, we didn’t know if the remaining buildings were safe or not,” Noune recounts.

“With this early-warning technology, we could have known where to shelter survivors.”

As an engineering academic in Adelaide, Noune teamed up with an earthquake expert to test her unique prototype. The sensor system identified damage to large-scale structures eight minutes before even a hairline fracture appeared, a life-saving length of time that grew with each new model.

Noune’s SHM system has attracted two companies keen to take her invention to market as soon as possible.

NVMS Solutions, the company responsible for the structural monitoring of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, will distribute the sensor technology in Australia and New Zealand.

Hegel Industrial Solutions, meanwhile, will lead the manufacture of the system and its launch in Australia and offshore – with an initial focus in the United States where over 47,000 structurally deficient bridges were reported in 2019 and more recently, last January, a Pittsburgh bridge collapsed, plunging a passenger bus into a park ravine.

“We’ve made an extremely versatile platform product,” Noune says.

“It monitors the whole structure in one go. It’s extremely cost-effective compared to current monitoring tactics. The sensors are flexible in shape and size. They can be retrofitted or built into a design, and they can be used in submarines, tankers, aircraft – even for soil monitoring.”

Noune attributes much of her market success to the University of Adelaide’s Innovation and Commercialisation Services.

With their support, her ideas left the lab and entered the hands of industry leaders.

“The team’s enthusiasm and professional insights were invaluable,” she says.

“I can’t wait for the next stage. We’ve got building blueprints ready to go and are investigating new applications all the time.

“It won’t be long before we’re monitoring structures off-world on the Moon and Mars. I’m excited to explore low-gravity environments and test our technology at extreme temperatures.”

The future of infrastructure is looking bright – and significantly safer.

Tune into the University of Adelaide’s podcast series – The Discovery Pod – to hear more from Noune and other researchers at the forefront of innovation.

“Hearing damage is particularly insidious,” said Tim Gallant, the product director charged with leading the St. Paul, MN-based work gear manufacturer’s latest offering of personal protective equipment (PPE).

“Workers get acclimated to it (noise), and it does its damage over time,” said Gallant.

Ergodyne’s Hard Hat Mounted Earmuffs are the work safety leader’s first foray into hearing protection and are part of a suite of new solutions aimed at protecting the eyes, ears and brains of a worksite:

Eye and Face Protection

• Skullerz^® DELLENGER Safety Glasses
  Feature adjustable temples that shift up or down and lock into place for a custom fit on a variety of face sizes.
• Skullerz^® MODI OTG Anti-Scratch & Anti-Fog Safety Goggles
  Feature a comfortable soft molded gasket and oversized, wrap-around lens that can be worn over prescription glasses.
• Skullerz^® ARKYN Anti-Scratch & Anti-Fog Safety Goggles
  Feature a comfortable soft molded gasket that creates a customized fit to seal out dust, debris and liquid splashes.
• Skullerz^® Face Shields
  Available in mesh or anti-scratch/anti-fog clear and smoke shields to protect against flying debris, splashes and particles.

All the above solutions (except for the mesh face shield) are available with Ergodyne’s new Fog-Off+ Enhanced Anti-Fog and Anti-Scratch Technology, promising improved scratch resistance and anti-fog performance vs. the work safety brand’s original Fog-Off technology.

The BLS reported 15,730 eye injuries involving days away from work in 2020—this despite the fact that eye protection is required on may worksites.

“If you’re not accounting for those real-world situations resulting in non-compliance—things like fogging, fit, durability or compatibility with prescription lenses—you’re going to see a lot of eye protection resting on foreheads,” said Gallant. “Our new eye and face protection is keenly attuned to pain points communicated directly to us by the workforce. Workers helped us build this gear so we’re confident it’ll get used.”

Hearing Protection

• Skullerz^® 8880 Hard Hat Mounted Earmuffs
  Comfortable padded and foam-filled design, tested to a Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) of 26dB to reduce noise levels.

OSHA mandates that any workplace averaging 85dB for an eight-hour average exposure, must put in place an effective hearing conservation program. (On construction sites it’s a 90dB threshold.)

Head Protection

• Skullerz^® Face Shields and Hearing Protection are designed to integrate with Ergodyne’s expanding line of safety helmets and hard hats.

From 2003 to 2010, 2,210 construction workers died because of a traumatic brain injury (TBI), representing 25% of all construction fatalities and 24% of all occupational TBI fatalities during the same period according to the CDC. Ergodyne is one of the few North American head protection manufacturers currently offering a safety helmet to protect against non-linear impacts. Despite being known to result in TBIs, non-linear impacts are not accounted for in safety standards testing for hard hats and safety helmets.

“As it happens, the most valuable assets of the workforce—eyes, ears and brain—are also some of the most vulnerable,” said Tom Votel, President & CEO, Ergodyne. “This launch expands our capabilities for protecting the all-important command center of the worker.”

ABOUT ERGODYNE

Since 1983, Tenacious Holdings, Inc. (dba Ergodyne, a Klein Tools Company) has pioneered the development of products that Make The Workplace A Betterplace. What started with just one product has grown into a line of top flight, battle-tested, Tenacious Work Gear^®; all precision crafted to provide protection, promote prevention and manage the elements for workers on job sites the world over. The current lineup is extensive and constantly growing: ProFlex^® Hand Protection, ProFlex^® Knee Pads, ProFlex^® Supports, Skullerz^® Head & Face Protection, Skullerz^® Eye Protection, Trex^® Footwear Accessories, KREW’D^® Skin Protection, Chill-Its^® Cooling Products, N-Ferno^® Warming Products, GloWear^® Hi-Vis Apparel, Squids^® Lanyards, Arsenal^® Equipment Storage Systems, SHAX^® Portable Work Shelters.

What Causes Corrosion Under Insulation?

CUI happens when moisture and other corrosive media enter insulation after water barrier wraps or jackets are compromised or when condensation builds up, often unnoticed, beneath the insulation. This is especially a problem with piping that undergoes wet-dry or high-low temperature cycling. The threat of CUI is potentially even greater on offshore platforms or in other marine environments where chloride-rich sea spray can infiltrate the insulation. The longer CUI goes unnoticed, the more serious it becomes. Preventing or even arresting corrosion without disturbing insulation or equipment operation is ideal.

How to Prevent Corrosion Under Insulation

CorroLogic^® CUI Inhibitor Injection is a new high-temperature 100% Vapor phase Corrosion Inhibitor (VCI/VpCI^®) for protection against corrosion under insulation (CUI). As its name implies, CorroLogic^® CUI Inhibitor Injection can be injected directly into insulating material. The corrosion inhibiting vapor migrates from the injection point along the pipe to form a hydrophobic protective layer on metal surfaces beneath the insulation. This passive layer is long-lasting, protects in the presence of chloride-containing moisture, and can withstand high temperatures up to 662 °F (350 °C).

Advantages of CorroLogic^® CUI Inhibitor Injection

CorroLogic^® CUI Inhibitor Injection offers an incredible advantage over other methods of CUI protection that can only be applied after removing insulation or before insulating new pipes. Maintenance personnel now have the convenience of applying protection under existing insulation, even on surfaces that reach high temperatures. This results in a wider timeframe in which to apply preventative measures, increasing the chances of inhibiting and arresting corrosion before it gets too serious.

Why Use Cortec’s New CUI Inhibitor?

CUI has been an elusive enemy for years. Once piping is installed and insulation is in place, it is difficult to see and correct the problems that may be going on beneath the surface. Now, thanks to Cortec^® Corporation, a more viable option exists to mitigate corrosion without removing insulation or seriously disturbing operations. CorroLogic^® CUI Inhibitor Injection has the potential to help pipes last longer and minimize cumbersome repairs on insulated surfaces. Best of all, it reduces the risk for corrosion-related failures, thus increasing overall plant safely while reducing maintenance costs. Contact Cortec^® to learn more: https://corrologic.com/contact-us/

Click here to see a demo video showing the hydrophobicity of CorroLogic^® CUI Inhibitor Injection: https://youtu.be/ciyasehf6xk

“Safety mitigation standards are becoming an increasingly important part of operations plans, with sports leagues and site owners looking to the SAFETY Act for guidance on where to find the right solutions,” said Graeme Masterton, transit planning leader and co-lead of venue and event mobility planning at Stantec. “We create mobility plans for smooth operations on a typical day, the busiest day of the year, and worst-case scenarios. Making the right plan and following all the right steps enables large numbers of people to move freely and comfortably and, when necessary, to disperse safely and quickly. “  

Stantec’s mobility planning approach uses data analytics, modeling, and industry best-practice guides to reduce vulnerabilities of pedestrian and vehicle traffic to manage movement for large-scale events. That base model can be transformed for emergency scenarios, including evacuations and shelter-in-place requirements.

In addition to being the first firm to be awarded this designation, Stantec proactively proposed Mobility Plan Consulting Services to be included under the SAFETY Act. The firm’s transportation planning experts in North America, Australia, and New Zealand contributed to the detailed methodology that was developed, submitted, and accepted by DHS. The methodology draws from decades of experience on the most challenging transportation planning programs, such as the Olympics, the Super Bowl, and National Football League games. Key learnings were also included from the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security best practices guides, which Stantec helped inform.

“This is a significant milestone in our industry as it marks the first SAFETY Act award for Mobility Plan Consulting Services,” says Akmal Ali, former deputy director of the SAFETY Act Office within DHS and now CEO of Aluma. “By showcasing the effective components of an emergency response program that meets DHS rigor, Stantec will help venue operators direct their own pursuits of other SAFETY Act protections.”

“SAFETY Act designation is validation that Stantec has created an industry standard for what a mobility plan should include, whether the venue is for 10,000 fans or 100,000,” said Alan Kerr, urban mobility market leader for New Zealand and co-lead of venue and event mobility planning at Stantec. “We are excited to put this program into action for venues, professional and collegiate sports, or multi-use sites.”

Learn more about Major Events and Venues at Stantec.

Up and Under, an RSK Group company, carried out the close visual inspection work on the bridge in 1991, returning this year to undertake the project for Ringway, scheduling some of the work at night to limit disruption to river traffic. The brief (a DMRB CS 450 Inspection of Highway Structures) required the team to be in touching distance of all elements to ensure a thorough evaluation, recording defects and supplementing this with photographic evidence and detailed defect drawings.

The company also undertook work in 2005 and 2011 for focused works on areas of damage but two images taken by colleagues in 1991 and this year formed part of the record of its principal bridge inspections.

MD Simon Enderby said: “It was incredible for another Up and Under team to return to Battersea Bridge for another inspection 31 years after our last professional visit and reflect on two photographs taken of colleagues at the exact spot.

“It’s not the first time we’ve returned to a project decades after an inspection – it’s testament to the nature of the complex, specialist and essential infrastructure we are called on to evaluate as part of our work with its emphasis on rope access and confined-space working.”

Ringway Regional Director Clive Rillstone said: “Ringway is pleased to continue to work with Up and Under, delivering specialist engineering projects for London. Their support managing inspections on Battersea Bridge, draws on their specialist skills and expertise in delivering this type of project which is keeping people safe and moving over this, and other vital crossing points on the Thames.”

Simon said: “The Battersea Bridge project also saw Up and Under draw on the expertise of another RSK Group company, with CAN assisting with rigging tensions lines to allow horizontal movement for Up and Under inspectors during the works and arranging the safely boat that was required throughout the project.

“The nature of the work required individual river spans to be closed, diverting traffic through open spans as the inspection work progressed. A five-span arch bridge, Battersea features cast-iron girders and granite piers. One of the benefits of the company’s strategy for such projects is that only a narrow section of each footway was barriered off to the public to allow the team to rig the ropes without pedestrians being inconvenienced.”

He said the project drew on the skills of a team of four inspectors and four access specialists. The bridge has five spans each with seven cast iron arch ribs with wrought iron columns – 35 ribs in total. The span lengths vary with shore spans being 36.7m, intermediate being 47m and central being 54.1m. The overall length of the bridge is 236.3m.

The team of seven spent the equivalent of 70 days working on site on the project, using abseiling and aid climbing techniques to safely move around the structure. Bridge spans were closed to river traffic to facilitate safe access below deck, in accordance with Port of London Authority (PLA) procedures. Arches closed to navigation were marked in accordance with the PLA Thames Byelaws 2012, as depicted and by night lit signage with three red lights in a downward triangle. The main navigation span (central span) was also inspected during night shifts to minimise disruption to river traffic.

The conference will feature over 40 presentations structured around the topics of fire protection, structural fire engineering, building envelopes, resilience, sustainability, digitization, human behavior, wildland fires, mass timber, fire testing, fire dynamics, and smoke control, plus additional poster presentations. The opening keynote will feature Jose L. Torero, PhD, CEng, FSFPE, on the topic of competence and responsibility. Speakers will present live from the conference and attendees have the option to register for in-person attendance or virtual viewing. 

Additional keynotes and general session presentations include: 

• Peter Holland, CBE QFSM FIFireE (Life), on regulating fire safety in England  
• Irene de Lezcano-Mujica Gonzalez, MEng (Hons), AIFireE, on the changing role of a fire engineer, UK perspective  
• Prof. Bart Merci, on the importance of competency in fire safety engineering  
• Peter Senez, PEng, FSFPE, on the SFPE Foundation’s research, tools and education to address fires in the wildland-urban interface 
• Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jochen Zehfuss, on performance-based design applications in Germany 

The conference will provide additional value to attendees with leading companies proudly showcasing their products and offerings in the expo.  

The conference is being co-chaired by Udo Kirchner, president of the SFPE Germany Chapter, and Karl Wallasch, president of the SFPE UK Chapter. Wallasch noted: “We are extremely proud to have secured excellent global industry leaders as keynote speakers and expert presentations, as well as leading companies supporting the event’s expo. The overall technical content of the conference will be of exceptional quality, depth, and breadth!”  

The SFPE European Conference & Expo on Fire Safety Engineering is generously sponsored by Protectowire Fire Systems, Siemens, and the SFPE Germany Chapter. A limited number of sponsorships and exposition spaces remain available. 

“This conference will take place in Germany but will be highly relevant for a European and international audience,” continued Kirchner. “The social program will allow our guests to explore Berlin and learn about its unique history, and the new virtual option this year will allow even greater participation – specifically from those not able to travel to beautiful Berlin.”  

SFPE will also host three pre-conference seminars. These seminars require an additional registration fee and are open to both conference attendees and those not attending. Topics include: 

• Introduction to Fire Risk Assessment; includes a hardcover copy of new SFPE Guide to Fire Risk Assessment 
• Introduction to Performance-Based Design (Engineering Solutions) and Regulation in Europe 
• Understanding Human Behavior in Fires 

Make plans to join your peers from Europe and beyond as the global fire protection and fire safety engineering community convenes at the SFPE European Conference & Expo on Fire Safety Engineering. To learn more and to register, call +1-301-718-2910 or visit sfpe.org/europe23. 

The SFPE Guide to Fire Risk Assessment provides guidance to qualified practitioners in developing, selecting, and using fire risk assessment methodologies for the design, construction, and operation of buildings, facilities, or processes. It also addresses fire risk acceptability, the role of fire risk assessment and fire risk management in the fire safety design process, and associated communication/monitoring of fire risk. The guide includes a new flow chart that outlines the risk-assessment process, along with new information related to:

• Risk perception
• F-N curves
• Risk communication
• Residual risk management
• Risk monitoring
• Sensitivity analysis

“Understanding the topic of fire risk assessment is essential to gaining insight into and characterizing fire-related risks to better inform the wide range of decisions that should be made concerning a building, facility, or process as part of the design, construction, or operation,” stated Chris Jelenewicz, PE, FSFPE, Chief Engineer, Society of Fire Protection Engineers. “As a result, implementing a fire risk assessment can lead to a safer, more efficient, and more cost-effective design — especially for fire engineers implementing a performance-based strategy, as it explicitly ad­dresses unique aspects or uses.”

The new SFPE Guide to Fire Risk Assessment, 2^nd edition is available for prices beginning at $139.00, with an additional 40% discount to SFPE members. The 160-page guide is available in various formats from SFPE. Institutional licensing options are available to academic, government, and corporate entities from SFPE.

A complete table of contents, purchase options, and additional information is available from SFPE at sfpe.org or from Springer at link.springer.com.

Earlier this year, the UK’s Building Safety Act passed into law to reset safety standards in the country following 2017’s Grenfell Tower fire disaster. The legislation, which should take another year for most of its provisions to come into effect, creates a new safety regime for the construction and operations of high-rise residential buildings and holds the promise of significant change for the entire construction and facilities management industry. Every business involved in the construction process will now need to reconsider how they collect, track and manage critical building information throughout the entire lifecycle to meet the new bill’s requirements – and the use of connected construction technology will be paramount. 

As the UK moves in the right direction to innovate building safety standards, US infrastructure ranks 13th in the world and has consistently scored D ratings. Sadly, the US recently saw its highest score in 20 years with a C- infrastructure report card from the American Society of Civil Engineers. The reason this is especially disappointing is that America ranks second in road infrastructure spending, but still ranks in 60th place for road safety, clearly demonstrating that money alone will not solve these problems. More robust solutions are absolutely necessary.  

Major improvements are set to come with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which targets US infrastructure that desperately needs to be updated. Just as importantly, it will also examine how various construction processes can be more sustainable for the environment, how to provide more secure conditions for workers, and ways to make industry practices more efficient without sacrificing safety.  

These lofty goals may sound daunting, but the UK bill has set the precedent for an infrastructure overhaul of this scale that the US can emulate to ensure these objectives are successful. 

In the UK, failing to meet these building safety obligations will result in fines and criminal charges, which are likely to be factors in regulating the IIJA in the US as well. Logically, it is likely to follow that owners and insurers will refuse the risk of working with non-compliant organizations. To avoid these added costs and the risk of becoming uninsured, it will be most prudent to take a proactive approach to prepare for impending building regulations. With more transparency between contractors and building owners, there will be better congruency between project vision and project reality, giving contractors the chance to build right the first time with added accountability throughout the project lifecycle. Reducing rework is a growing area of concern, especially as the cost of building materials and equipment has skyrocketed, and uncertainty in market pricing continues to loom.

While the market prepares for the next round of IIJA grants to be released, Infrastructure is poised to use advanced digital construction management technologies at all points of the project lifecycle, throughout design, preconstruction, construction and operations. The IIJA dictates that these technologies and digital workflows should improve multiple outcomes for the project and for the teams; including boosting productivity, managing complexity, reducing project delays and cost overruns, and enhancing safety and quality. Digital construction technologies used on IIJA projects are also required to maximize interoperability with other systems, meaning that open AP Is between applications, and strong connected workflows between systems will be paramount to ensure efficiency and effectiveness. Another major requirement in the IIJA focuses on reporting, calling for state governments that use the funding to share progress reports detailing the technology’s implementation on its projects annually.

Establishing accurate recordkeeping of how construction projects are completed among building owners may not sound exciting, but it is still vitally important for building trust, accountability and improving quality of future work over time. All organizations will need to revisit how as built information is collected and stored which—given that records will need to be kept for the life of an asset—will more than likely necessitate digitizing records if they have not already been digitized during the pandemic. Data management and security will be even more important to monitor closely as more records are expected to migrate online amid a growing cybersecurity threat. Moving processes like documentation and recordkeeping from analog to digital also represents opportunities to not only improve asset management through digital twins, but also improve the way in which future infrastructure is designed and built as they become reference points for performance benchmarks, especially as computational analysis and generative design capabilities continue to mature. 

In the UK’s Building Safety Act, building owners are required to establish clear lines of responsibility with a designated “Accountable Person” for each stage of decision-making, from planning and construction to turnover and occupation. Developers in the UK are waiting for the impending establishment of a national regulatory agency for construction products and there will likely be a similar regulatory organization set up in the US as the IIJA grants further roll out. As a result, UK developers and contractors are retaining samples of all building materials in an accessible location in the event of an inspection from one of these regulatory agencies. Regulations are set to affect everyone from authorities to individual subcontractors – and every collaborator along the supply chain.  

While regulations will impact new projects, the biggest impact will be felt by existing building owners who will need to work backward to trace their compliance, audit their existing records, and replace outdated safety plans. Building owners will need to produce documents for the building’s registration, certification, mandatory occurrence reporting, and resident engagement. Building owners must establish the current state of the building in their records and not just the specs of the original design.  

These records should also include a guide that informs how to maintain a building to keep it in a safe condition throughout the life of the structure, and the UK legislation appoints a position to be responsible for these safety protocols. In the event of an emergency, building owners should plan for this information to be easily accessible, understandable, and up to date. However, safety protocols should not just be reactionary; there should be an emphasis on maintenance with the goal of prevention as well. 

Ultimately, the passage of building safety laws should be looked at as an opportunity to digitally upskill the construction industry while boosting efficiency, sustainability, and productivity. It may be challenging at first, but the pandemic has already jump started the digital transformation of construction and our industry has shown we are more than capable of adapting given the right support, investment and innovation. The US will have the added benefit of learning from the UK’s approach to introducing new regulations for building safety and data management to better prepare for the expected changes in the industry and unlock unseen potential in the built environment.

Allison “Alli” Scott is Director, Customer Experience & Industry Advocacy at Autodesk. Leveraging over a decade in the architecture and construction industries, Alli is a “technology translator” who supports customer experience and industry advocacy within the Customer Success team at Autodesk. She oversees the strategy and execution of customer-centric programs that complement the customer journey to help construction teams gain the most value out of their technology investments, and foster loyalty and trust. Alli has been a key contributor for Autodesk’s leading-edge approach to customer engagement, including a highly rated global executive council program, a growing online community, and industry impact programs that help bring awareness to industry issues. Prior to Autodesk, she supported the national Innovation group of Skanska USA’s construction division helping to investigate and integrate game-changing tech like BIM/VDC, wearables, IoT/sensors, and drones onto the jobsite, and built business strategy for new products and services inspired by innovation endeavors. Alli holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Arts Management from Emerson College and an MBA in Innovation and Design Management from Suffolk University’s Sawyer Business School. When not exploring the next great emerging tech, Alli can be found tending to her herb garden or spending time along the rocky shores of Massachusetts or lakeside in Maine with her architect-husband and young son

ZoneSafe® works by using RFID technology to create detection zones around vehicles, reducing the risk of injury or damage from collisions and near miss occurrences to people and property.

Designed for use in challenging environments, such as warehouses, construction sites, manufacturing sites, trash sites, airports, and distribution centers, ZoneSafe® uses vehicle-mounted antennas that communicate with detection tags, which can be worn by workers, set up in restricted areas or placed on objects or property. When a tag enters a detection zone, the vehicle operator will automatically receive a visual and audible alert via the in-cab control unit, which will enable them to take the necessary action. Tags worn by workers on foot will also vibrate to warn of an approaching vehicle.

Due to the RFID technology, which does not require line-of-sight, tags will be detected regardless of obstructions, blind spots, adverse weather conditions or poor visibility. Each tag can be uniquely identified and linked to individual people.

Corey Heniser, CEO of Brigade Electronics INC, said:

“Approximately 70% of incidents on sites happen during initial machine start-up and low speed movement because of poor visibility. This makes ZoneSafe® ideal for vehicles and mobile machinery that frequently operate within close proximity to workers and other machines, particularly in difficult conditions. It provides fast, reliable and accurate data exchange without any limitation on the number of tags or antennas in operation.”

More information can be found at ZoneSafe® RFID Detection System.

A video about ZoneSafe® can be viewed here https://vimeo.com/663369240.

Deemed “forever chemicals,” PFAS is a group of human-made chemicals used in many applications, including stain- and water-resistant fabrics and carpeting, cleaning products, paints, and firefighting foams. PFAS are resistant to grease, oil, water, and heat and may enter water supplies from landfills, the use of firefighting foam (e.g., at airports, fire training facilities, petroleum fires, etc.), industrial sites, and wastewater treatment plant discharge.

The District’s water supply, serving over 67,000 residents in Commerce City and parts of unincorporated Adams County, comes primarily from 13 groundwater supply wells. As it continues to meet all federal and state drinking water requirements, the District has been proactively pursuing PFAS reduction strategies since it first discovered a low-level presence in its water supply through voluntary testing in 2018. Upon discovery, the District stopped drawing from its most impacted wells and has been purchasing additional treated water to blend into its supply to reduce PFAS levels along with optimizing use of their existing granular activated carbon treatment system.

Recently, the EPA lowered its interim lifetime HAL for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) from 70 parts per trillion (ppt) combined to 0.004 ppt for PFOA and 0.02 ppt for PFOS.

While the District maintains test levels below 70 ppt for PFOA and PFOS, the new HALs are set so low that it is not yet possible to detect the presence of the compounds at these levels scientifically.

“Ever since the District first began voluntarily testing for PFAS, we have been monitoring for these compounds and working to reduce their impact on our customers,” said District Manager Abel Moreno. “The EPA has moved the goalposts, and we are taking steps to reduce the presence of PFAS even further. We are committed to finding long-term, sustainable solutions to offer our community high-quality drinking water.”

To tackle the challenge, the District has hired leading environmental and construction services firm Brown and Caldwell to design a new 18 million gallons per day (MGD) ion exchange (IX) process at its Klein Water Treatment Facility. IX treatment is currently the most effective technology in removing PFAS/PFOA, consisting of a highly porous resin that acts as a powerful magnet to adsorb and hold onto the substances. The new system at the Klein facility will consist of seven IX treatment trains, a 375,000-gallon equalization tank, and six vertical turbine pumps to feed the IX trains from the District’s 13 groundwater supply wells.

Furthermore, nine 5-micron cartridge filters will be installed to remove particulate matter in the water before reaching the IX trains, thus increasing the efficacy of the treatment process.

“We commend the District for taking this important step to achieve a cost-effective, reliable, and safe water future,” said Brown and Caldwell Client Manager and Process Lead Laurie Sullivan. “PFAS is a nationwide challenge and the District is working diligently to put numerous measures in place to monitor and treat contaminants to maintain regulatory compliance.”

Scheduled for completion by the end of 2026, the new IX treatment facility will provide a peak combined capacity of 26 MGD.

Cat^® 349, 352, 374 and 395 large hydraulic excavators can now be equipped with Cat Command for Excavating. The remote-control system removes operators from potentially hazardous jobsite conditions by keeping them at a safe distance, and it reduces potential safety risks from climbing on and off machines.

The Cat Command station allows for non-line-of-sight remote control, where users can comfortably control all basic machine functions like digging, lifting and tracking. Additionally, Caterpillar exclusive machine technologies like Cat Grade with 3D for Excavators, Grade with Assist for boom and bucket, Swing Assist, E-Fence, and others can be set, activated, and used remotely.

The technology helps improve machine productivity on various projects like operating in unstable underfoot conditions, brownfields, shore work, and demolition. It also allows production to restart immediately following disruptive processes such as blasting in quarry applications.

Flexible, precise control

The Cat Command station provides non-line-of-site operation from the comfort of an air-conditioned office on site or many miles away. Distance is limited only by the capabilities of the network. The Cat Command station comfortably seats the operator in a customized “virtual cab” with familiar controls and machine displays. Users can control up to five different machines, one at a time, at the same or other locations, reducing downtime for shift changes or the need to travel to the jobsite. Touchscreen monitors similar to the in-cab displays offer the same machine information and access to machine setting just like in the machine. Screens mounted in front of the user provides an easy view of the excavator’s camera feeds.  

By removing the operator from the cab, Cat Command for Excavating offers a solution to workforce shortages and training advantages for newer operators. It opens opportunities to those with physical limitations that prevent them from climbing into the equipment, attracting a new generation of workers, and increasing the longevity of experienced operators.

The new large hydraulic excavator models join the existing Cat Command-ready excavators (320-340) and medium dozers (D5- D7) which can be operated from the same Command station.

More information about Cat Command for Excavating can be found by contacting a Cat dealer.

Western Specialty Contractors, experts in parking garage restoration and maintenance, offers several tips to minimize unnecessary damage to parking structures during the winter months, and keep drivers safe.

Snow Removal Tips

• Clearly mark expansion joints in a way that will be visible to the equipment operator when the deck is covered with snow.
• Establish a snow removal pattern so that the plow blade approaches expansion joints, control joints and tee to tee joints at an angle no greater than 75 degrees.
• Equip snowplow blades and bucket loaders with shoes or rubber guards that prevent direct contact with the deck surface.
• Do not pile snow on the deck surface. Piles of snow can exceed the rated load capacity and cause cracking in the concrete deck surface.

Deicing/Salting Tips

Using chemical deicers to control ice and snow buildup is common. However, these chemicals can have a negative effect on concrete and reinforcing steel and should be used sparingly. There are several different types of deicers on the market that can be used, however, only those approved by the American Concrete Institute are recommended.

• SodiumChloride – (road salt, table salt) This is the most common used salt deicer. It has little effect on concrete, but promotes corrosion in reinforcing steel and other metals. Use of this type of deicer is NOT recommended.
• CalciumChloride – This is a major ingredient in most commercial deicers. It has little effect on concrete, but promotes corrosion in reinforcing steel and other metals. Use of this type of deicer is NOT recommended.
• Ammonium Nitrate or Ammonium Sulfate – Use of this deicer will lead to serious concrete deterioration due to its direct chemical attack on reinforcing steel. Use of this type of deicer is NOT recommended.
• Calcium Magnesium Acetate (CMA) – The effects of this deicer are similar to salt, but it requires more time to melt ice. It has no adverse effects on concrete or steel reinforcement. If a deicer is required, a CMA is recommended.

It is important to minimize the amount of deicing chemical applied during the first two years of the concrete being installed. During this time, the concrete has an increased permeability which can allow the deicing chemicals to migrate into the concrete more rapidly. As concrete ages and cures, it will become less permeable and chemicals will not penetrate as easily.

It is important to remember that the use of deicing chemicals in general are not recommended. The safest way to remove ice and snow is to use a plow. Sand can also be used to increase tire traction on the deck, but be sure to protect the drainage system when washing down the deck after its use.

For more information about parking garage restoration and maintenance, contact the Western Specialty Contractors branch nearest you – www.westernspecialtycontractors.com/western-locations/.

About Western Specialty Contractors

Family-owned and operated for over 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective, corrective measures that can add years of useful life to a variety of structures including: industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational and government buildings, parking structures and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology. For more information about Western Specialty Contractors, visit www.westernspecialtycontractors.com.

CCMC is responsible for evaluating new and existing products to ensure their compliance with Canadian building, energy, and safety codes, which ultimately helps manufacturers get market approval in the Canadian construction industry. For construction tapes in particular, the organization tests the product’s pliability, ability to withstand cracking, and temperature application—all of which are especially important in Canadian climate zones.

With more than two years in development, TYPAR Construction Tape installs fast, sticks tight, and packs plenty of versatility. The exclusive, easy-tear edge allows for quick application, while the pressure-sensitive adhesive grabs on aggressively. The tape is both UV- and weather-resistant for outdoor applications up to 180 days, is mold and moisture resistant, and can be applied in cold conditions down to -10°C (14°F). Applications include sealing and seaming joints and overlaps in house wrap and interior/exterior vapor barriers, sealing exterior wall sheathing joints and extruded foam products, sealing window and door flanges or frames, or patching jobsite damage caused to wall sheathing and house wraps.

“TYPAR products set standards for their performance, and it is important to us that all of our products and systems are available in all markets,” said Andrew Irvine, product manager for TYPAR. “Having our tape approved by CCMC was the missing piece of the puzzle needed to ensure the Canadian market has access to TYPAR’s high-performance Weather Protection System and the industry’s leading system warranty.”

For more information, on TYPAR products, visit typar.com.

About TYPAR^® Weather Protection System

The TYPAR^® brand of construction products, including the well-known TYPAR Weather Protection System is manufactured by Berry Global, Inc., a leading provider of value-added plastic consumer packaging, nonwoven specialty materials, and engineered materials delivering high-quality customized solutions to our customers, with annual revenues of $12.6 billion in fiscal 2019. The company’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BERY and its world headquarters is located in Evansville, Indiana. For additional information, visit the Company’s website at www.berryglobal.com.

LEEA has pledged its support for Standard Arabia’s initiative to hold an Annual Meeting in Saudi Arabia during January/February 2023 to raise awareness of duty holder responsibilities and promote safer working practices in the region.

Andrew Wright said: “LEEA welcomes any opportunity to promote our vision of lifting and height safety industries that have eliminated accidents, injuries and fatalities. This is also an excellent opportunity for LEEA to present to our regional members’ stakeholders and promote the professional, gold-standard services that our members are able to provide to the sector.”

Aldin and Mohammed were interested to see how the new LEEA Academy 2.0 training suite was progressing while receiving a demonstration of LEEA’s state-of-the-art Zoom training delivery workshops and new TEAM Card technology.

Andrew Wright added: “Our thanks to Aldin and Mohammed for taking their time to visit us. We look forward to supporting your event next year.”

The company, which is a specialist subsidiary of Rhino Engineering Group, conducted the physical testing at RAF Spadeadam in Cumbria, following recent design and simulation tests.

The panels have been created to provide hydrogen refuelling stations, and other sites, with industry-leading technology designed to reduce the risks associated with explosions.

The full-scale tests demonstrated prompt panel opening, well ahead of flame-front arrival, and swift transition to a fully opened configuration, allowing unencumbered outflow of the flame-front and combustion products.

After the tests were conducted, complete retention of the panel elements was demonstrated, substantiating the design of the structural cassette and associated fixings.

As shown in the below graph, the demonstrated performance envelope straddles the static, impulsive and dynamic range, illustrating the value of Pstat at 20 mbarg (0.3 psig), and minimum opening impulse of 325 mbarg·ms (4.7 psi·ms).

These properties, combined with a panel specific mass of < 6 kg/m², ensure a rapid, low-inertia response following panel opening. 

This iso-opening curve provides rapid insight into the UFER panel performance, independent of the explosion loading conditions of concern to the designer.

Following this successful explosion testing, Rhino intends to bring the UFER panels to market by March 2023, providing the global hydrogen market with innovative products for the protection of people and assets.

“After the success of our design and simulation tests, we had a lot resting on the panel’s performance during physical explosion testing,” said Stuart Lawrence, Group Managing Director of Rhino Engineering Group.

“Thanks to the expertise of our design and manufacturing teams, as well as a thorough research and development process made possible by Welsh Government funding, we have a marketable product which has exceeded our performance expectations.

“We’re now looking forward to formally launching the product to market in 2023, supporting global organisations to minimise the damaging effects of hydrogen explosions within a variety of commercial settings.”

To find out more about Rhino HySafe, please visit www.rhino-hysafe.com

To read more about Project UFER, please visit www.rhinodoors.com/rhino-progresses-its-hydrogen-explosion-relief-project 

Engineered Rigging supplied the lift equipment from its rental fleet and installed the various components including the strand jacks, four hydraulic pumps, load anchors, wedges, strand and mounting grillage which would be used for lowering the main boom and trolley beam section. In addition, two certified equipment operators and technicians from Engineered Rigging were integrated into the on-site project team to support efforts throughout the process.  
 
To ensure proper loading and load distribution, the ER crew engaged and checked the system before Crofton initiated the cutting procedures at the reinforced shoulder girders.  Once the upper cross beams were free and clear, our technicians lowered the boom and trolley assembly until it was secure on the bottom landside and seaside cross beams.  The loads for each jack were monitored throughout the lowering process by the SCC computer system to ensure the controlled loading and synchronized lowering.  The Crofton crew then secured the boom segments to the bottom landside and seaside crossbeams so that the dismantling operations could begin.   
 
The original strand jack system was then disassembled and re-assembled for the next portal crane. The cutting and controlled lowering process was repeated until the booms from all three cranes were safely lowered and secured by the Crofton project team. 
 
The collaborative efforts of the three companies along with the specialized equipment technology proved to offer a successful, safe, innovative and cost-effective solution for the VPA project challenges. Engineered Rigging is proud to have contributed our heavy lifting expertise by supplying the right equipment and on-site technical support needed by this project.

“Protecting students from intruders and dangerous individuals is always top of mind, and frequently discussed during the design process for any student housing project that KWK Architects is involved with,” said KWK Principal Javier Esteban, AIA, LEED AP. “There are several common safety strategies that we as architects always strive to implement in any design. Sophisticated new technologies are adding a valued extra layer of safety to traditional designs.”

According to Esteban, the safety and security industry is moving toward more personalized security systems where a user’s data resides directly on access cards to gain entry to student housing facilities and fingerprinting or other biometric processes are being used to access secure areas. The new generation of security cameras also provide higher definition images at lower lighting levels, with the ability to cover much wider angles, creating a very strong, multi-layered security system.

“The prices of these sophisticated devices are coming down and becoming more affordable for many universities,” said Esteban. “The level of sophistication of new access control system technology can provide nearly instantaneous data on what key was used and when the entry was accessed and locked and could also provide control of locking from the outside via a website in cases of wired electronic door hardware. This technology can also provide a vital tool for forensic examination should a security breach occur.”

Additional ways high-tech safety technology is being incorporated into student housing design include:

• Providing access cards on exterior entry points
• Specifying new door hardware technologies that allow for greater control
• Using Power Over Ethernet (POE) access control hardware that allows for centralized building locking controls on doors in case of an intruder or active shooter
• Monitoring entry points at the building with electronic controls and cameras
• Installing local alarms at exit-only stairs and exits to notify security of potential breaches, including timers on doors for alarms to sound in case a door has been propped open
• Including a bedroom, suite or apartment electronic access control point

Esteban says traditional design theories that incorporate basic layers of security and the human element on site, throughout the building, and in individual units should still apply in today’s student housing designs and complement the use of technology. These include:

• Creating a clear separation between public and private areas
• Reducing the number of building entry points to guide students and visitors past a reception desk, while still maintaining an adequate number of exit points
• Providing adequate exterior lighting near the building

• Creating clear paths to public areas and reducing or eliminating hiding places, such as open access enclosures and tall, dense landscaping
• Controlling access points at the main public floors between the public and residential floors
• Incorporating a reception “front desk” area with a set of eyes (this is typical at most if not all residence halls)
• Designing spaces that create a sense of security. For example, instead of having a dark, empty sidewalk, design the sidewalk to pass near a public space that people can observe
• Locating large windows in the first-floor lounges that face building accesses to provide visibility
• Designing laundry rooms with glazing-facing corridors, or even locating washers and dryers in a manner that does not create dead-end situations, so a person would have two accesses out

“In the end, when it comes to designing for security, the good guys must always have it right, but the bad guys only need to breach these systems once. Despite all the new, more advanced technologies available, having the right human behind or in front of this technology makes all the difference,” said Esteban.

About KWK Architects

Founded in 2013 by five architects with a combined 150 years of higher education knowledge and experience, KWK Architects partners with colleges and universities across the United States to create innovative and inspiring places that enhance campus life. Areas of expertise include student housing and dining, and academic and science/technology spaces. KWK Architects has completed more than $1 billion in construction-valued projects since its founding and currently employs a growing staff of 15 at its headquarters in St. Louis, MO. For more information about KWK Architects, visit www.kwkarchitects.com or contact Director of Marketing Cindy Hausler at cindyh@kwkarchitects.com.

The report, “Top Business Issues for Specialty Contractors,” reveals that 99% of these companies experience erosion of their profit margin during construction, one third of which is tied to unplanned rework. In addition, about one third of their revenue is lost to unbillable changes, over 90% report negative impacts due to labor shortages, and 39% are still using spreadsheets, paper forms and other outdated methods to manage key activities, instead of construction-specific software.

This global research focuses on five types of specialty contractors: mechanical, electrical, plumbing, steel, and concrete in the US, UK, Canada and Australia/New Zealand. Key findings include:

Pending Retirements Will Worsen the Labor Shortage

Already struggling with workforce shortages, these companies say an average 33% of their current workforce is likely to retire in the next five years, threatening to dramatically worsen the situation. Stepping up technology adoption, offsite methods and jobsite automation are among the ways they are adapting.

Supply Chain Issues Will Continue to Afflict the Industry

Materials prices are highly volatile, and 31% of specialty contractors say they cannot pass cost increases on to owners on most of their projects. To deal with these challenges, nearly half are raising prices, especially concrete trades (56%).

Sharp Need for Better Financial Control and Payment Process

The report shows that only 27% of specialty contractors are paid within 30 days of invoicing for completed work and 29% report their typical period exceeds 60 days. They cite technology to automate the process as the most likely way to help their company get paid faster with less conflict.

Many Companies are Implementing Safety Technologies

Most companies are either actively considering, planning the adoption or already using technologies for improved safety, including site cameras and drones, sensors, wearables and artificial intelligence/machine learning for image analysis.

Construction Technology Can Help Address Many Issues Identified by Specialty Contractors

Despite the wide availability of construction-specific software solutions, many companies still rely on outdated methods to manage critical processes. The labor shortage underlies the top obstacles to adoption, which include resistance from field staff and time required to evaluate, implement and train for new solutions. The report includes best practices for technology implementation programs to help address these challenges.

“Specialty trade contractors are the lifeblood of the project delivery process,” says Steve Jones, senior director of Industry Insights Research, Dodge Construction Network. “Our hope is that this report will not only help them benchmark their own business dynamics among their peers but will also serve as an industry-wide call to action to help them address their challenges so that the global construction industry can advance and thrive as a high-performing collaborative network.”

To learn more, download the report here.

Superior was one of four contractors to receive the award nationwide and won in the mid-size category for companies with one million to three million personnel hours. The award was presented at the ARTBA’s annual convention in Nashville, Tennessee, in late September.

Created in 2007, the Contractor Safety Awards recognize companies that consistently maintain excellent safety records and publicize their best practices to promote worker safety throughout the industry. While most safety award programs are judged solely on the contractor’s accident and injury rates on work sites as reported to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the ARTBA program also considers the applicant’s insurance Experience Modification Rate (EMR). The top two companies in each category with the lowest recordable rate and EMR advance to the final judging stage.

Before a winner is selected, finalists are invited to present before a panel of judges. The winners are determined based on seven key principles demonstrated in their presentations, including management commitment, employee participation, incident investigation, audit procedures, safety planning, management review/implementation, and risk assessment.

To ensure fair and even comparisons in judging, awards are categorized by the number of employee hours worked during the previous year.

General contractors use Safe Site Check In’s private QR-code check in tool, data and analytics to manage workers, subcontractors and projects. Safe Site Check In streamlines the check in process by eliminating time consuming and error-prone paperwork and replacing it with an easy-to-use digital solution.

“The Procore App Marketplace continues to play an increasingly critical role in construction project management and the industry’s digital evolution. We’re proud to have Safe Site Check In in the marketplace to allow mutual customers to maximize their  investments in jobsite productivity,” said Kris Lengienza, vice president of global partnerships and alliances, Procore.

Safe Site Check In also allows contractors to customize the entry questions based on jobsite requirements, such as certifications, skills or local mandates. Teams can upload safety materials and badges while capturing digital signatures confirming the content has been read and understood. Safe Site Check In’s daily log automation is easily integrated into Procore’s advanced analytics so users can view historical activities, analyze project and performance trends, and verify compliance.

“We rely on Safe Site Check In and Procore to manage every aspect of a construction project. The integration was easy, saving us hours of time every day rekeying field data into the project management platform,” said Zach Hoffman, director of field operations, Prevost Construction. “We can improve jobsite productivity without compromising safety or quality.”

More than 95% of Safe Site Check In customers that are also using Procore have integrated their jobsite data into the Procore Construction Platform, completing the task in under 30 minutes. These customers include BBI Construction, D.F. Pray, Greystar, Peacock Construction, and Zovich Construction.

“The construction industry is undergoing significant changes. While digital transformation remains top of mind, general contractors are also challenged by the labor shortage and increasingly thin profitability margins,” said David Ward, CEO, Safe Site Check In. “Using Safe Site Check In, integrated with Procore, enables them to take advantage of the productivity benefits of digital tools while gaining a better understanding of workers to run more effective projects and create safer jobsites.”

Safe Site Check In can be downloaded from the Procore App Marketplace and easily integrated into Procore. This integration creates a faster way to automatically populate Procore Manpower and Visitor Logs, eliminating manual tracking and providing a current and complete view on the status of every project.

About Safe Site Check In

Safe Site Check In provides a customizable and private QR-coded digital check in and screening app, data and analytics. Safe Site Check In is used in construction, manufacturing, commercial real estate, assisted living facilities, and event venues to manage workers, subcontractors and visitors. With setup in under three minutes, project managers always know who is or was onsite and can easily delegate assignments, onboard employees, upload site images, and support compliance with local and state mandates. As a standalone offering or integrated into a project management solution, Safe Site Check In provides insight on project profitability and productivity to positively impact a company’s bottom line.

About Procore

Procore is a leading global provider of construction management software. Over 1 million projects and more than $1 trillion USD in construction volume have run on Procore’s platform. Our platform connects every project stakeholder to solutions we’ve built specifically for the construction industry—for the owner, the general contractor, and the specialty contractor. Procore’s App Marketplace has a multitude of partner solutions that integrate seamlessly with our platform, giving construction professionals the freedom to connect with what works best for them. Headquartered in Carpinteria, California, Procore has offices around the globe. Learn more at Procore.com.

Vita Industrial has announced a Strategic Business Combination with NIT Alaska, furthering its mission of becoming a leading provider of technology, servicing, and training for the lifting industry.

As the state’s leading resource for vocational training, NIT Alaska’s strong focus on the construction industry will aid Vita in promoting the effective use of its lifting system as a key means of preventing injuries and saving lives on jobsites, in addition to providing means to upskill and reskill operators through education and training services.

“We are proud to pair our training services with such a forward-thinking company,” said Joey Crum, CEO, NIT Alaska. “Vita Industrial’s ambition of eliminating taglines to create a safer lifting environment will require an emphasis on training and re-education. We look forward to expanding our training services to meet their mission.”

Vita’s vision with this Strategic Business Combination is focused on three main phases: online training and certification, live training and certification, and the development of new training and additional continuing education courses for the industry. Online courses will cover practical rigging, signaling, data record management, and OSHA certifications. Live and in-person Rigger and Crane certification training will be offered from Alaska and a crane yard close to Vita’s headquarters in Broomfield, Colorado. Future class offerings will focus on emerging technologies, including telematics, IoT, predictive maintenance, and Building Information Modeling (BIM). Recertifications will be Vita-controlled, with current and future customers associating the Vita name with education in addition to innovation.

“Our mission is to be recognized as a comprehensive lifting partner. Providing the finest instruction from one of the most respected training locations in the country is another big step towards that goal,” added Caleb Carr, Chairman and CEO of Vita Inclinata. “This combination will enable Vita to train the future of crane operators and riggers within the United States.”

With this Strategic Business Combination, Vita Industrial is now spearheading the industrial modernization of the lifting industry, providing a complete construction training program to previous, current, and future customers. As the crane industry continues to grow and put new technologies to use, Vita is committed to providing crane operators with the proper training to match new capabilities, retain their workforce, and achieve operational excellence.

Course pre-registration began October 1^st, 2022. Apply here.

Legislation and safety regulations differ depending on the geographical location, but important lessons can be learned and implemented to improve the effectiveness of what can sometimes be deemed box-ticking. 

In the USA and Gulf of Mexico, API RP 2D: Operation and Maintenance of Offshore Cranes 7th Edition could see more stringent regulations come into force where lifting operations are concerned. The edition has yet to be enforced by The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), but the addition of language related to lifting authorities could see the introduction of internal processes and training requirements that have not previously been realised by operators in the region. 

Lifting operations are crucial in large scale industries such as on- and offshore oil and gas and industries. As these industries have grown, and we’ve seen additions such as renewables, there has been an influx of new candidates joining these sectors, bringing fresh ideas but also presenting challenges related to safety and knowledge.

There are several common reasons why lifting incidents occur, including complacency surrounding operations, lack of communication, a shortage of lifting operations knowledge, or a need for awareness of company guidelines and procedures. 

The introduction of lifting authorities and coaches 

The lifting authority is typically responsible for implementing and reviewing lift plans and is the focal point of authority for the operational and technical aspects of a lift. All lifting operations should have a lift plan supported by analysis of potential hazards and risks which describes the steps to move the load from its original position to its final resting place. It is not always the case that the lifting authority will be on site to oversee the lift and that is where an onsite lifting coach can add valuable improvements to operational safety. 

In regions where stringent regulations are not in place, it’s commonplace that personnel may have learned on the job or undertaken unsuitable training. It is thus more likely that incidents will happen, through no real fault of the crew. 

A lifting coach will review lifting plans and can intervene, if necessary, as well as give feedback, talking the crew through the “whys” and ensure that work is conducted safely, reducing the risk of incidents and potential harm to personnel. 

Since it is expected that regulations will likely tighten in the USA and other regions where they’ve commonly been more relaxed, we’re seeing widespread preparation. There has been an increase in companies looking to employ onsite lifting authorities and coaches, and more stringent competency matrices are being put in place to ensure that staff are better trained and lifting operations run without error. 

Whilst there is no legal requirement for a lifting coach, and many businesses will not be introducing third party lifting authorities yet, the role of a lifting coach has the power to act as a preventative step to eliminating potential issues and preparing for future change.

Brandon Verret is Technical Performance Manager.
Wilfred Guidry Jr. is Competence Team Leader at Sparrows Group. 

A critical channel deepening project that will help move cargo more efficiently to and from the U.S. advanced Monday after the Long Beach Harbor Commission concluded an extensive environmental review process and greenlit the endeavor.

The work will also allow the Port to welcome newer, cleaner, and more efficient cargo vessels. The Port of Long Beach and the federal government will share the costs, estimated at almost $170 million. The Port’s portion is estimated at $109 million.

“By improving navigation in Long Beach Harbor, goods will speed faster around the supply chain, yielding enormous economic benefits for our city, region, and the nation,” said Harbor Commission President Sharon L. Weissman. “At the same time, it will make operations safer and help lessen environmental impacts on our community.”

“We already accommodate some of the largest ships in the world here,” said Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero. “Deepening and improving our waterways will give these vessels more room to maneuver, and to do so more efficiently by taking on more containers, reducing the number of ship calls and associated emissions.”

Among other features, the project includes deepening the Long Beach Approach Channel from 76 feet to 80 feet deep, easing turning bends in the Main Channel to deepen a wider area to 76 feet, deepening parts of the West Basin from 50 to 55 feet, constructing an approach channel and turning basin to Pier J South with a depth of 55 feet, improving the breakwaters at the entrance to Pier J, and depositing dredged material in nearshore sites for refuse or in federally approved ocean disposal sites.

Last October, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers concluded a multi-year federal study that showed deepening and widening channels in the harbor would lead to improved vessel navigation, safety, and national economic benefits of almost $21 million annually. In July, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a Record of Decision concluding the federal environmental review process for the project. The important milestone opens the way for projects to compete for federal funding. An environmental impact report the Commission approved Monday is available at www.polb.com/ceqa.

The Port of Long Beach is one of the world’s premier seaports, a gateway for trans-Pacific trade and a trailblazer in goods movement and environmental stewardship. With 175 shipping lines connecting Long Beach to 217 seaports, the Port handles $200 billion in trade annually, supporting more than 575,000 Southern California jobs.

“Roofing materials such as BUR, TPO, EPDM, PVC, Modified Bitumen and even green roofs can be vulnerable to environmental stressors such as organic debris, growing vegetation or ponding water,” said Gender. “Other contributors to premature roof failure may include poor craftsmanship, improper flashing, clogged or leaking downspouts, or damage by other contractors.”

When roofs are not maintained properly, open seams, splits, blistering, wrinkling and cracking can result, which can lead to expensive damage to a building’s interior and exterior, if not identified and repaired promptly.

Gender recommends a roof inspection by an experienced roofing specialty contractor at least twice a year, preferably in the spring and fall, and after severe weather, such as hail, heavy rains and high winds, to check for any roof damage.

A great way to begin any roof preventative maintenance program, said Gender, is to create a file of all records related to that roof, which may include warranties, repairs and maintenance, past inspections, and original drawings and specifications for the building.

“Keep in mind that the ultimate goal of the preventative maintenance program is to get the maximum service life out of the roof, for the least possible cost. So, keeping accurate records of each roof’s history is vital to its overall maintenance.”

There are several basic preventative measures that facility managers/owners can perform throughout the year to extend the life of a roof and deter water infiltration, including:

• Removing debris such as leaves, branches, dirt and trash from gutters, scuppers, downspouts and drains to ensure proper water drainage.
• Keeping metal roof components such as flashings, expansion joints and pitch pockets in good working condition by replacing deteriorated sealants, painting rust and making necessary repairs.
• Maintaining rooftop equipment (satellite dishes, solar panels, air conditioners, skylights) and checking the roof after equipment service calls and repairs to make sure the roof wasn’t accidentally damaged in the process.
• Repairing roof coatings and membranes damaged by spilled oils, grease, coolants and other liquids.
• Minimizing roof traffic by authorized personnel and installing walkway pads in high-traffic areas.

To learn more about preventative roof maintenance, contact the Western Specialty Contractors branch location nearest you: https://www.westernspecialtycontractors.com/western-locations/.

About Western Specialty Contractors

Family-owned and operated for more than 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective, corrective measures that can add years of useful life to a variety of structures including: industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational and government buildings, parking structures and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology. For more information about Western Specialty Contractors, visit www.westernspecialtycontractors.com.

Derek Sikora, co-founder and CTO of Vita Inclinata, explains why the Load Navigator offers lifting companies a safer and more efficient system than taglines.

How do the Load Navigator and its load stabilization technology work?

The Vita Load Navigator is a remotely operated, suspended load system that utilizes load stabilization technology. The system uses an aviation sensor suited to sense position and motion and automatically stabilizes loads, ensuring high-precision lifts in even the most challenging environments. The Navigator captures well over 1,000 data points per second and feeds the motion control engine to dynamically adjust to load sizes, crane movement, and environmental conditions. Four independent electric thrusters’ pulse vectored air to reorient the load either autonomously, or by a user via the single-hand control pendant.

With what precision can a Load Navigator navigate and place loads?

The Navigator can continually hold loads with up to 1° precision, also enabling the operator to position and reorient a load within 1° of accuracy. The wireless system has a handshake feature that enables one operator to pass control to another operator in a different position that is optimally situated to place a load due to their line of site. Remote control response time is under a second, allowing for fast reactivity and reorientation.

How does load stabilization technology increase the ability to use cranes in higher wind speeds (safety envelope)?

High wind speed exerts a large force on loads. This makes the crane use some of its load capacity to withstand this force and reduce its effective capacity. Neglecting the effect of high wind could lead to miscalculation of the crane capacity and raise serious safety concerns on the job site. High wind could also cause load spinning, which leads to job site accidents. The thruster technology in the Navigator stabilizes loads and enables control in wind gusts as high as 30 knots. This increase in wind envelopes allows the crane to operate on more occasions, thus increasing crane utilization and expediting construction progress.

What are the implications of eliminating taglines on the job site?

Taglines have been used for thousands of years, really. But they are inefficient, unstable, and more importantly, dangerous. With the Navigator, loads remain stable, in a pre-set orientation, despite wind or slew impacts on the load. This eliminates the need for long taglines and significantly enhances operational efficiency and safety. Load stabilization technology enables crews to place loads exactly where they want without running a tagline at the ground level. This is a much better utilization of space and labor. It is also much safer. According to MAC Safety Consultants’ research, utilizing stabilization technology can reduce crane-related fatalities by 75% and risk of a crane-related injury by 63%.

Are Load Navigators already in use on job sites in North America?

Yes, Navigators are already being utilized at construction sites. For example, Creative Lifting Services has also tested the Navigator for a tower crane erection on a busy city block in Boulder, Colorado, and was impressed by the performance. There is a Navigator deployed on a wind farm in Texas for tower construction, and another helping with construction at an oil refinery. Our customers are happy with the increased efficiency and safety they are seeing so far, and we anticipate widespread adoption of Navigators in the future.

“We’re excited to welcome a talented group of EAR and EHS professionals to the Verdantas team. This acquisition helps to strengthen Verdantas’ position in the Mid-Atlantic and brings enhanced capabilities to our clients across the United States,” said Gerry Salontai, CEO of Verdantas.

“Bringing our two teams together was a natural progression after teaming with JM Sorge for the last decade. We are excited to welcome JM Sorge to Verdantas,” said Craig Kasper, EVP of Verdantas.

“Joining Verdantas ensures that JM Sorge will continue to provide the same high level of services that our clients have come to expect,” said Peter Sorge, President of JM Sorge. “We at JM Sorge are excited for this transition and the opportunities that lie ahead in expanding our value to clients and enabling employee professional growth.”

Tony Brindisi, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at RTC Partners, said, “We are very pleased to welcome the entire JM Sorge team to Verdantas. The strength of the JM Sorge organization supports our focus on strategic growth and represents a win for everyone involved— enhancing the service offering to clients, providing additional opportunities for employees, and creating value for shareholders.”

Rhino HySafe, a specialist subsidiary of Rhino Engineering Group, has successfully completed the design and simulation testing phase of its inaugural Project UFER.

Creative Lifting Services (CLS) completed a trial with Vita Industrial to test the company’s Load Navigator on a recent tower crane erection in Colorado. The Brighton-based company was seeking a way to increase the efficiency and safety of erecting a tower crane in a crowded city center with multiple obstacles on the jobsite.

CLS handled the lifting work for the construction of a new high-end hotel in a bustling section of downtown Boulder. As with most projects in high-traffic city centers, the project presented tight working quarters on the jobsite with vehicle and pedestrian traffic, nearby buildings, and other obstacles.

The Vita Load Navigator enabled CLS to eliminate the use of taglines on the site, which made the tower crane erection more efficient, more precise, and much safer. It uses load stabilization technology, which features high-powered thrusters that eliminate load movement during crane lifts, enabling riggers to remotely stabilize loads and precisely place them via remote control.

“One of the biggest challenges we have when erecting a tower crane is running long taglines through a congested jobsite. Using Vita’s system can eliminate that,” said Josiah Rausch, crane tech manager for CLS. “We also usually try to stage the crane sections as close to the base of the tower as possible but on this job we couldn’t, due to the tight working quarters of the site.”

CLS staged sections of the tower crane on an adjacent street. The loads were then picked from behind the crane using a mobile crane outfitted with the Load Navigator. The loads then swung across the jobsite to be added to the tower crane assembly. The loads were guided and placed via the Load Navigator’s remote-control system, which features a “handshake” feature enabling crew members to pass control of a load depending on where it is on the jobsite. The Load Navigator can position and reorient loads within 1° of accuracy, providing precision placement, and it can handle loads up to 40 tons.

Rausch said the precision with which the Load Navigator was able to guide and place loads was particularly useful when constructing the tower crane’s T-sections and counter deck.

“Using the Vita Load Navigator meant we did not have to run through an obstacle course, making it much more efficient and safer for the crew,” he explained. “The guys at the top of the crane were happy with the process — instead of coordinating with two tagline operators on the ground, the crew was able to guide it in via a remote. Communication can be a major issue on construction sites. Heavy machinery and bustling operating environments make a lot of noise. The remote function really solved that issue.”

CLS used the Load Navigator on site for 2 days and considers the trial a complete success. Rausch said the company looks forward to using the product in future operations.

“On jobs where we are working in tight spaces this technology is incredibly helpful,” he said. “We really see a tremendous application for panel lifts, pre-cast concrete, or any job with repetitive picks.”

WASHINGTON – In an ongoing effort to help states repair and rebuild critical infrastructure that residents and businesses rely on following extreme weather events that are becoming more frequent, hard to predict, and severe due to a changing climate, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) today announced that it will provide $11.9 million in Emergency Relief Program funds to Arkansas. The funds will be used to reimburse the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department and the Forest Service for repairs to roads and bridges damaged by flooding in the Northwest part of the state in 2021 and Ozark-St.Francis National Forest in 2021.

The funds provided to Arkansas are part of an overall $513.2 million in Emergency Relief Program funding package to help 30 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico make repairs to roads and bridges damaged by storms, floods, wildfires and other events in recent years.

“These funds with help communities across our nation repair roads and bridges damaged by severe weather events, which are becoming increasingly common because of climate change,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “From recent hurricanes that struck the Gulf Coast, to wildfires in California and floods and mudslides in numerous states, we must address the devastating impacts of climate change and work to build more sustainable transportation infrastructure to better withstand its impacts for years to come.”

“Climate change impacts the lives of Americans on a daily basis and has increasingly meant that our nation’s transportation infrastructure is facing more frequent and unpredictable damage from severe weather events,” Acting Federal Highway Administrator Stephanie Pollack said. “The Emergency Relief funding this Administration is announcing today will overwhelming go toward repairing damage caused by these extreme weather events tied to climate change as we work with states to repair roads and bridges relied upon by communities across the country.”

The Emergency Relief program complements the Biden-Harris Administration’s comprehensive approach to combatting climate change and mitigating its ongoing effects by encouraging transportation agencies to identify and implement measures that make restored infrastructure more resilient and better able to withstand damage from future events. Specifically, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law addresses the future resiliency of transportation infrastructure in the face of climate change through new programs and expanded eligibilities, including the Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-saving Transportation (PROTECT) program. The PROTECT program will advance the use of materials and structural techniques to ensure highways are better prepared to withstand extreme events.

FHWA is taking additional steps to tackle climate change by updating its Emergency Relief Manual for 2022 to spotlight the program’s impact on improvements to system resilience. The agency has also embarked on a rulemaking to amend the FHWA Emergency Relief program regulations to incorporate climate resiliency while making it possible to use more ER funds toward improving system resilience.

ERDC is investigating advanced solutions in the field of AR/VR to address challenges associated with the flood risk management infrastructure portfolio. The scope of the project is focused on applying AR/VR capabilities to three flood risk management application areas: enhanced infrastructure maintenance, infrastructure inspection, and model visualization. Proposed solutions must address the development of AR/VR software applications, be adaptable to USACE cybersecurity requirements, and meet a Technology Readiness Level of 6 or higher.

Industry, academia, national labs, individual innovators, and other parties are encouraged to submit brief white papers that meet certain requirements. Top submissions, as determined by ERDC, will receive a $15,000 prize award from ERDCWERX and be hosted by ERDC for a physical demonstration.

There is no requirement that submitting parties be certified to do business with the federal government. Registration in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov) will be required prior to award of any federal government agreement resulting from the submission process.

Submissions will be accepted through September 8, 2022. For details and to submit, visit www.erdcwerx.org/AR-VR-in-FRM.

ERDCWERX encourages those who would like to learn more about opportunities launched in conjunction with ERDC to sign up to receive project announcements at www.erdcwerx.org/join-our-ecosystem.

By Thomas Renner

Last November, with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Congress appropriated $55 billion for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to improve wastewater and drinking water infrastructure. Undoubtedly, such investment is needed. 

A 2021 report card from the American Society of Civil Engineers awarded the United States a D+ for its wastewater infrastructure. The report found 15 percent of wastewater treatment plants are exceeding capacity. Of the 16,000 wastewater treatment plants in the U.S., 81 percent have reached their design limits.  “As many treatment plants and collection networks approach the end of their lifespans, the financial responsibilities for operation and maintenance will become more costly” the ACSE report noted. The same analysis found that in 2019, the investment gap in the wastewater industry was a staggering $81 billion.

Unlike many other communities, the city of Greenville, S.C., found itself ahead of the curve when it comes to improving its wastewater management system. Nearly 15 years ago, community leaders recognized the population growth and understood that the city’s wastewater conveyance infrastructure needed a major upgrade. Earlier this year, a 1.3-mile gravity-fed sewer line opened in Greenville. The Dig Greenville project, also called the Reedy River Basin Sewer Tunnel, cost $46 million and is the largest infrastructure project in the city’s 191-year history. 

“It definitely puts not just the downtown, but rather the whole city in a better position for the future,’’ Mayor Knox White said when the project was introduced in 2016.

Renewable Water Resources (ReWa), a 97-year-old organization that protects the region’s waterways and wastewater infrastructure, spearheaded the effort. Black & Veatch led the design and provided construction management services. The tunnel is expected to serve the Greenville community for the next century. 

“Dig Greenville is one of the most important infrastructure investments needed to ensure economic growth in the area,’’ said Graham W. Rich, Chief Executive Officer of ReWa, when the project started. “With this investment and hard work, sewer lines and the area along the Reedy River will be at lower risk for sewer overflows, especially when rainfall is high. This investment and work were also required to ensure Greenville’s future economic development since, without it, no additional wastewater flows could be added to the existing lines.”

Growing Community

Mayor White knows Greenville better than anyone. A city native, he joined the City Council in 1983 and became Mayor in 1995. When he took office, the city’s population stood at around 240,000. 

Now, the city’s population stands at more than 550,000. White and city leaders have transformed the municipality. His tenure as mayor has been defined by neighborhood revitalization, economic development, and critical projects for downtown. “I’ve always wanted Greenville to be the most beautiful, livable, welcoming city in America,’’ White wrote on the city’s website.

White’s vision has helped him earn national recognition. In 2018, Time magazine selected White as one of “31 People Changing the South.” He has spearheaded economic development in the city, located in the state’s “Upstate Region” and about halfway between Charlotte and Atlanta. With shopping, restaurants, cultural events, craft breweries and events nearly 300 days a year, residents and visitors certainly dig Greenville.

In many growing communities in the U.S. population growth strains existing infrastructure, and that problem also faced Greenville. Without more capacity, the community would be at risk from increased overflows. This risk posed a direct threat to water quality, the environment and economic development. 

“If nothing is done, ReWa’s sewer lines and the area along the Reedy River would be at a higher risk for the environmental impact of sewer overflows,’’ Rich said. “Furthermore, economic development would be threatened because no additional wastewater flows can be added to the sewer lines. While the project is a long-term fix, Dig Greenville will also meet immediate needs by providing an increased buffer against sewer surcharges due to inflow and infiltration during rain events.”

ReWa considered 18 alternatives before deciding on the gravity sewer tunnel. Rebuilding the sewer line was prohibitive, and too disruptive to the city and water basin. Planners chose to install the new line underground, approximately 100 feet below the heart of the city. 

“While it is pricier to build, a deep sewer tunnel powered by gravity will be far less costly over its lifecycle for ReWa while providing the reliable additional capacity Greenville needed as it continues to grow,’’ said ReWa Chief Executive Officer Joel Jones, who took over as Executive Director from Rich earlier this year. 

Hidden Tunnel

The tunnel is 7 feet in diameter and virtually invisible to the public. Entry shafts at each end are the only hint of the massive pipe under the surface. The pipes are encased in granite, lined with fiberglass and grouted. The gravity fed system means no mechanical equipment is needed to convey the flow of wastewater. 

“The tunnel is bored from one end, resulting in surface impact only at either end of the tunnel, rather than all along the sewer route if conventional construction methods were used,’’ Jones said. 

The initial plan was to drill from the downstream access shaft through the hard rock below with a tunnel boring machine. Before the TBM could be launched, however, a geotechnical investigation found the tunnel zone was composed of soil and different types of rock in varying conditions.

“The tunnel boring machine can only work through one type of material,’’ Jones said. “Right when we were getting started, we saw that the granite was not where we thought it was.”

The complication resulted in hand-digging a starter tunnel. Starter tunnel construction also included drill and blast methods that required 41 blasts over a 9-month period. Each blastwas modified to fit the zone’s complex geology. Workers also fabricated and installed a customized steel shield to secure ground support for the 14-foot-round horseshoe-shaped starter tunnel.

“What we found was about 240 feet of clay and rock that we had to dig out,’’ Jones said. 

“It cost us about 10 months of project time. The tunnel boring machine can dig out about 40-50 feet per day. We were only digging out about two feet per day. It was very time-intensive and labor-intensive just to get started.”

The tunnel boring machine helped workers pick up the pace after completing the starter tunnel. The 130-ton TBM, made by The Robbins Company in Canada, measures 249 feet and is one of only a handful of similar pieces of equipment in the world. Super Excavators of Wisconsin started tunnel digging in March 2018 and completed their work in September 2020. 

The TBM was critical to the completion of the project in that it offered a far more efficient drilling method. TBMs are used as an alternative to drilling, blasting and hand-mining to excavate tunnels with a circular cross-section through layers of soil and rock. 

The machines significantly minimize disturbance to the surrounding ground and area. They are frequently used in urban areas and reduce project completion times. 

Out of Sight

For a project of this magnitude and duration, workers were surprisingly able to stay out of the public glare. Almost all the construction took place underground, out of sight of city residents. 

Teams constructed wooden fencing around the construction to minimize the aesthetic impact of the project. During a two-month winter period, one roadway was closed off to facilitate quicker construction for a sewer crossing across Richland Creek and to accommodate the city’s streambank restoration project. 

While largely hidden from the public, the beginning and end points of the construction are identifiable by access doors. 

The BILCO Company manufactured 13 floor access doors of various sizes for the project. The doors allow access to vertical shafts – one is 35 feet deep, the other is 105 feet deep – in which workers will descend into the tunnel or lower equipment into the tunnel. BILCO floor doors are designed with engineered lift assistance to ensure safe, easy, door operation.

“We used those types of doors fairly often on our projects, especially at pump stations,’’ Jones said. “We find they have good durability and reliability.”

Keeping Residents Connected

While most of the work was hidden, ReWa made sure to maintain a dialogue with city residents. The construction sites were near city residences and a local zoo. Residents were understandably concerned about how the project would impact their quality of life. 

“We put in a good bit of effort to educate the public, get their feedback and learn what they had concerns about,’’ Jones said. “We wanted to gain the trust of the community from the very beginning. We had a series of meetings where we showed the community that we were serious about their concerns and taking them into consideration.”

While largely unseen, the community impact was substantial. Road closures, noise, vibration, safety and site restoration were all of community concern. Two important community cornerstones, Cleveland Park and the Greenville Zoo, were directly within the conveyance line. 

ReWa established different communication vehicles, including a website dedicated to the project, a Facebook page, a 24-hour hotline, quarterly meetings and e-blasts. Greenville citizens had a wealth of resources to keep tabs on the project and voice their concerns. 

“Some of the most concerned community members were our biggest advocates at the end,’’ Rich said. “They appreciated the transparency we provided. We told them they were going to hear noise and we’d do what we can to mitigate disruption. If they heard something of concern, they could reach out to us. Relationships with the community were our biggest challenges, but also one of our biggest accomplishments.”

A Model to Follow

When it comes to wastewater, America’s commitment to improvement has been sorely lacking. 

In 1988, the ASCE awarded the U.S. a “C” grade for its wastewater infrastructure. That is the high-water mark for the last 30-plus years. Every grade since has been a D+ or worse. Overall, the U.S. earned a “C-“ from the ASCE in 2021. While no categories earned a failing grade, 11 of the 17 categories earned marks of “D+” or worse. Rail (“B”) and Ports (”B-“) earned the highest marks. In most U.S. homes, such a report card would result in extra chores, confiscation of the smartphone and angry phone calls to educators. 

The federal legislation passed last year is a promising start. In addition, the Dig Greenville project sets up a template other communities can follow. Planning, research, communication and commitment – financial and mentally – are solid starting points. 

While large-scale infrastructure projects frequently experience significant overruns in budget and time, the Dig Greenville project proved that does not always have to be the case. The project experienced a setback in drilling the starter tunnel, but that was the only hiccup in a multi-year project that also included fallout from an international pandemic. 

“We had to add about 10 months due to the schedule, but we were able to keep it within the original project budget,’’ Jones said. “We were able to find some cost savings in some other areas and we had some good bids when we started.”

On its own, Dig Greenville will do little to improve the nation’s poor infrastructure grade. Its completion is evidence, however, that communities that demonstrate vision, intelligence and commitment can provide solutions to address infrastructure issues.

“It’s been a challenging project, but a fun one to be involved with,’’ Jones said. “It’s a good feeling to know that we are contributing to the long-term viability of the community. It took a lot of work to make it a success, and it came about through the efforts of a large group of people.”

Project at a Glance 

What: Dig Greenville, also known as the Reedy River Basin Sewer Tunnel, is a 1.3-mile gravity-fed sewer line in South Carolina.

Project details: The $46 million project started in 2018 and concluded in 2022. It is the largest infrastructure project in Greenville’s history. The project is expected to support Greenville’s wastewater conveyance needs for the next century. 

Why it’s important: The existing sewer line face pressure from increasing population. Without more capacity, the community would be at risk for overflow. 

Digging deep: The tunnel is located as far as 100 feet beneath the surface. Few people will even know it’s there. The only evidence visible are access points at each end. 13 floor access doors manufactured  by BILCO provide workers access to install, remove and repair equipment. 

Did you know? Greenville is sixth in population and growth rate in South Carolina. 

Thomas Renner writes about construction, engineering, architecture, and other trade industry topics for publications throughout the United States. 

The increased demand for quality labor is one of the most significant issues in the construction industry these past few years. According to the Association Builders and Contractors group, “the construction industry will need to attract 650,000 additional workers on top of the normal pace of hiring in 2022 to meet the demand for labor.” 

According to the Bureau of Labor, the construction workforce is forecast to grow seven percent between 2020 and 2030, adding over 100,000 jobs yearly. Women are stepping in to fill more roles in the construction industry, occupying almost eleven percent of the jobs in construction and showing a 94 percent growth in female-owned construction firms over the past decade. 

One of the biggest boosters of employment in the construction industry came from the recent Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed into law in mid-November of 2021. In this Act, the US government committed to investing $1.2 trillion into infrastructure and construction over the next five years. This new bill includes $450 billion for highway and public transportation investments and new, 5-year reauthorization of the federal surface transportation programs. The IIJA will deliver generational transportation investments, with 90 percent of the resources for roads and bridges distributed by formula directly to the states.

This funding will affect everyone in the construction ecosystem, creating more jobs than ever. Contractors will need to deploy technology to give them a competitive edge, or they will be left behind. While this bill will provide many new jobs, the workforce shortage is still a challenge companies will need to overcome. Empowering every employee with technology that maximizes their productivity will enable the workforce to handle more work with less need for more workers. Great technology can help employees do the work of two. Still, firms need to be sure that the technology partner they choose to work with is familiar with the industry, can provide support references, and can help businesses reduce the risk of adopting technology. 

The ongoing workforce shortage means many companies will be looking to double or triple the productivity of their current workforce to keep pace with the industry. Technology helps businesses increase efficiency and productivity by automating processes, providing better data, and improving communications. 

Using Technology to Increase Productivity

Firms are learning to get creative about finding and hiring talent and use technology to help workers do more with less. Some of the technology that firms can use to address the labor shortage in construction includes:

• Mobile communications and software keep construction teams informed on what is happening across the jobsite while eliminating paperwork, which takes time away from working on the project.
• Safety management software digitally captures compliance regulations and safety reports and promptly shares them to avoid penalties.
• Digitally manage plans so that everyone is on the same version of the plan. 
• Manage all resources across your company in one easy-to-use construction dispatch scheduling software that allows your dispatcher to track equipment, crews, tools, and rentals.
• Use construction timecard software to minimize time spent capturing time entries each day and eliminate back-and-forth phone calls or drive time to jobs.
• Create and customize proposals digitally that can be shared with project stakeholders.

One of the critical technologies that help recruit and retain talent is a comprehensive safety management program.  

Turn Your Safety Program into a Competitive Hiring & Retention Tool

Each new hire within a construction firm is an investment in onboarding and training. If an employee leaves, companies must make a new investment in a new employee. If a company sees turnover in its crews, an investment in a construction safety program can offset new hire investments. Plus, it improves employee loyalty by showing that your business cares about its people.

Use your safety program as a hiring tool. If you’re recruiting, applicants will search for your company online to learn more about your company. Applicants may be discouraged if online results show an incident or other safety problems. People want to work for companies that care about protecting their employees. Plus, a strong safety record can show a solid commitment to growth. Incidents can damage your company’s reputation and prevent you from bidding on specific projects. A strong safety record may make your company eligible to bid on more projects.

A safety management program can help retain crews long-term and increase loyalty. Companies that work to ensure their employees’ safety, educate them about safety and involve them in safety processes are likely to have more loyal employees. By focusing on safety, you’re showing that you know that your most important business asset is your people.

If an incident or near miss occurs, it can cost your firm money and affect indirect costs like low morale, loss of productivity, and damage to reputation. By collecting and analyzing safety records before any work starts, you can control things that could cause a near-miss or incident after the work starts. A safety management program allows your business and crews to learn from past jobs, prepare for future jobs, and pivot safety efforts when needed.

With mobile tools, crews can collect and send real-time safety data directly from the field in seconds. Using the data collected to teach your crews about safety, your safety management program can help you move away from rule enforcement and towards a progressive, people-based safety culture.

About HCSS

HCSS is the trusted leader in construction software for estimating, field entry, project management, safety, digital plans, 3-D drone imaging, fleet management, and telematics. For 35 years, the company has used annual user group meetings to listen to customers resulting in innovative software to manage every part of the project lifecycle. With 24/7 instant support and a proven implementation process, HCSS has helped improve operations for over 3,500 companies ranging from $1M to billions in revenue across the United States and Canada. HCSS, a 14-time Best Place to Work in Texas, has a unique 12-acre campus in Sugar Land, Texas, with three buildings capable of housing 700 employees. Learn more at hcss.com.

Gen Simmons is Project Manager, HCSS Safety.

It’s no secret that accidents are too frequent on construction sites. Job sites are among the most dangerous workplaces in the US. Thousands of people die or are injured on construction sites each year. The construction industry has the highest number of fatal accidents. The accident rate at the construction job sites is 71 percent higher than in other work sites. 

Despite spending on average 2.6 percent of their budget on safety training, on-site safety still needs much improvement to keep workers safe. 

Here are some construction accident statistics from OSHA: 

1. 1 in 5 employee-related deaths in the US is from construction
2. Approximately 1,061 workers die per year as a result of falls 
3. OSHA says 60 percent of construction fatalities are from the “Fatal Four” – electrocutions, falls, being struck by an object, and being caught in between machinery
4. Younger and newer workers account for most of the accidents
5. Each year, construction accidents and injuries result in workers’ comp claims that cost an estimated $2.5 billion
6. An estimated 130,000 construction workers missed a day of work due to an injury
7. Smaller employers account for approximately 75 percent of injuries

According to OSHA, implementing a safety program could save a construction company $4-$6 for every $1 put into the safety program. The estimated average cost of a construction injury is $42,000 per person. When employers take the time to implement in-depth safety programs and prioritize safety protocols, their employees are less likely to be injured on the job.

Signage, safety huddle, equipment, and training all aim to minimize the number of accidents on the job site. Despite all these efforts, the dynamic nature of construction sites results in injuries and fatalities. Many people continue to get hurt while on the jobsite.

Many fatal accidents are preventable.  Accidents happen more often when the contractor companies do not adopt safety as a culture.

Accidents can result in a work stoppage that can cost everyone involved in the project. On-site safety is as much a culture as it is an accident prevention program. General contractors and sub-contractors can work together to enforce the safety culture both on & off the job site.

A culture of safety must be implemented top-down and set by the upper management. Contractors who put safety first will enforce the culture of safety. A safety office with clear responsibilities for evaluating, advising and implementing safety protocols on and off the field can help build a safety culture.

Giving priority to job site safety when a project is being planned and field work scheduled goes a long way in preventing incidents later.  Project planners must consider the cost and time involved in safety-related activities like strong scaffolding, crane spotting, trench worker training, equipment operator downtime, sick days, and more.

Here are a few onsite practices that can be part of the safety culture:

• Daily safety huddle. 15 minutes before work starts for the day, every foreman or supervisor should hold a huddle to discuss the day’s work planned and the safety protocols in place. Tracking daily huddles for compliance and congratulatory badges will reinforce the safety culture
• Daily 2×10-min work breaks are shown to both reduce accidents and improve work quality
• Mandatory harnesses and tethers when working at heights can prevent fatal falls. Video and image analysis tools can help enforce the use of safety equipment
• Site cleanliness with no debris or construction waste prevents accidents and injuries
• Many workers leave their power tools plugged in, resulting in tripping injuries. Onsite safety culture must reinforce unplugging power tools when not in use
• Coordinated and shared work plan where every team onsite knows where they are supposed to be and how for how long
• Mentor and train younger workers on-site about site behavior, tool use, work methods and staying focussed on work safety
• Awarding safety behavior, running safety drills, and training employees help reinforce the safety culture both on & off the site
• Upgrade equipment to take advantage of built-in safety upgrades
• Check equipment operator licenses for validity and if training updates are required

Safety inspections & checklists

The standards of OSHA, ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers), and CMAA (Construction Management Association of America) require initial, frequent, and periodic inspections of crane and other lifting equipment. Today it is easy to set up a digital checklist with images to conduct these regular inspections efficiently. Mobile apps and video tools make it possible to automate routing equipment inspections.

Contractors can improve safety with routine onsite inspections for compliance and rectifying issues through enforcement protocols and training. The safety officer must schedule surprise site visits and record their findings.

Keeping track of who, what, when & where is a big task on a construction site. Contractors who use construction management solutions that connect the entire team – Owners, GCs, Subs & Designers–do better with planning, organizing, coordinating, and structuring job site work. 

Technology for Safety

Sometimes when there’s an accident on a job site, someone’s not doing the job they’re supposed to be doing, when they’re supposed to be doing it. This gap in instructions may occur due to schedule changes, misinterpretation, poor judgment, or other reasons.

The best way to prevent this is by providing clear instructions to every worker. This is most typically the task of the foreman. A mobile app to pull daily task plans from the scheduled work list makes it easy to delegate work and keep everyone in sync.

Construction management software can make the exact plans with instructions available to each worker when they need them. This eliminates all potential misunderstandings and keeps everyone on task. A CMS can efficiently communicate work progress and inform subs when they are scheduled to start on site.

Work package planning with crew count, equipment & material helps track if a scheduled task is ready to start. Having only the correct number of people on the job site goes a long way in preventing people from getting hurt.

Onsite Material Tracking

Construction materials are often heavy, unstable, and stored in locations that make them easy to access and move. Accidents occur while moving construction materials around. They fall, roll, tip, bend, break, or otherwise end up in a state where they endanger the crew around them. 

Communicating when materials are delivered, handled and moved across the site to on-site contractors can keep people out of trouble. Continuously monitoring material stores for quantity, movement & waste will help stop accidents before they have a chance to happen.

Onsite Equipment 

Every construction project uses specialized equipment for various complex tasks. From excavators to 100 ft tall cranes, many equipment and tools are familiar sights on any job site. This specialized equipment must be operated only by trained operators with special licenses. Checking operator license, training and adherence to operating procedures must be part of safety inspections. Keep only equipment needed on the site. Tracking and recording equipment delivery, use and removal from the site must be part of the standard operating procedure. Construction managers can easily manage onsite equipment with mobile apps designed for this purpose. As with people and materials, the less equipment around, the better. 

Always Communicate

Job sites are full of construction crews from all walks of life and work for various companies. While on a project, they must stay in sync and work harmoniously.

Communication is the key to keeping the project team connected and sharing critical safety and progress data. Mobile-based location-aware solutions can help connect the field to the office and workers on the job site to each other.

Construction site safety is a matter of culture, protocol, and technology. The right mix of all three can keep workers safe and sites humming. With OSHA’s data showing that for every $1 spent on site worker safety, the ROI is $4-$6, contractors who focus on safety culture are rewarded with happy workers, no down days, and better returns.

Shanthi Rajan is the founder and CEO of Linarc, the newest construction project management solution for mid to large-scale projects. She’s a seasoned entrepreneur focussed on enterprise applications. She is a product leader with experience in all aspects of company building – ideation, product development including product-market fit, product strategy, building teams and go-to market. She has built multiple successful companies.

Introduction

Several devastating fires in recent years have put a spotlight upon the safety and quality of buildings in the United Kingdom. Following the Grenfell Tower disaster, in 2018 Dame Judith Hackitt, the former chair of the Health and Safety Executive, challenged the construction industry to implement “culture change.” 

Dame Hackitt’s report set out six broad areas for change candidates, notably identifying the prioritization of life safety over the entire lifetime of a building, improvement of competence levels within the design profession and building industry, proper enforcement of regulations, and ensuring that regulation and guidance is risk-based. Dame Hackitt has issued a challenge to the building industry to change its culture to bring about these goals and to ensure the ultimate objective of making buildings safe. The question that is required to answer this is: Are enhanced regulations sufficient to achieve this ultimate objective, or must the construction industry also institute a true culture change within a more robust regulatory environment in order to bring about the objective? 

This paper will discuss recent legislation designed to improve building and fire safety, but also assert that culture change is necessary and must come from not just an improved regulatory regime, but also by more effective utilization of mechanisms available within design and construction contracts. 

Legislative Actions Expected to Bring Sweeping Changes

The Fire Safety Act 2021 and the Building Safety Act 2022 will bring widespread changes to the construction industry and will impose new statutory obligations on architects. This includes giving new powers to the Architect’s Registration Board to ensure continuing professional development is carried out by architects throughout their careers, as well as the ability to list disciplinary outcomes on an architect’s register entry. The Building Safety Act amends the Architects Act 1997 by giving the Board the power to monitor and assess the competence of architects and also provide that the Board will establish a new appeals committee.

To achieve culture change, the regulatory framework to address key areas of high-risk projects must be successfully addressed. Some of these key areas include effective solutions for means of escape in buildings; the extent of spread of fire on external walls; compartmentation for certain types of buildings; and a more transparent and effective testing regime.

Additionally, inspection duties, workmanship on site, robustness of construction information and specification all play an important role in culture change. Dame Hackitt argued that penalties for non-compliance with regulations must be tougher, with duties and responsibility delegated to the client, the principal designer, and the principal contractor. The Building Safety Act reflects these proposals; however, fundamental questions remain on how these duties will be performed in practice. 

The current environment in the building industry whereby the scope of the architect (and consultants) roles and responsibilities have been reduced, combined with the increasing adoption of contractor-led procurement methods and design delegation, has led to the diminution of quality, and consequently impacted on building safety.

With the increase in design and build contracts and value engineering, there are many examples where uncontrolled and undocumented changes have been made to the original design intent often resulting in poor quality. Managing quality should be improved by evaluating the whole process of design as well as construction over the life cycle of a building. The concept of building safety must rise to be a top priority within the culture.  

The Importance of Design and Construction Contracts in Bringing About Culture Change   

The Hackitt Report clearly confirms construction contracts are an important part of a culture change to bring about the ultimate objective of building safety. Construction contracts should be utilised as much as possible to ensure that safety requirements and quality are implemented. Furthermore, these contracts must clearly and unambiguously define delegated roles and who is accountable for the enumerated responsibilities. Construction contracts should be written to prevent over-reliance upon the delegation of technical and contractual risk to the subcontractor which has, and can, lead to poor quality outcomes. Construction contracts should also specifically identify safety requirements in higher risk buildings. Effective third-party inspections and the mechanisms for quality should be clearly delineated and should not simply be an afterthought, as is much too common.  

Competence is also an important driver for culture change. The construction industry must establish a regimen to first prove, and then monitor, competence. Building professionals must increase their awareness level of their liability to monitor key scopes related to building and fire safety and to ensure that a proper quality control and assurance program is in place from the outset of the design and build processes, and then implement such processes. Professional bodies are undertaking greater scrutiny of competence and robustness of its members. This includes the publication of the Architect’s Registration Board Competency Guidelines for Fire and Life Safety Design (published in March 2021) and the Royal Institute of British Architects mandatory Health and Safety Test. 

The architectural profession is at the forefront of the movement for culture change and the proposed regulatory improvements. Architects are often involved in the design of complex, high- risk projects including those with large basements and complex facades and cladding systems. The responsibilities of an architect typically include the coordination of increasingly complex elements of buildings including security systems, water, ventilation, fire safety, and acoustics. However, notwithstanding this current framework, should the architectural profession be placing a higher priority on ensuring that the design of higher risk elements – such as basements and cladding – have safety as a primary feature? 

To achieve culture change, a holistic view needs to be taken of fire and life safety from both the architectural profession and construction industry.

Conclusion

Culture change is challenging and can only be realised by addressing the entirety of the processes at the core of the design and construction over the life cycle of a building. The utilisation of design and construction contracts in that process is a fundamental part of any shifts that can bring about such change. The solution to the challenge is the combining of a robust regulatory regime with clear design and construction contracts which provide suitable mechanisms for quality, inspection, accountability, and enforcement.  

Matt Cousins is a Chartered Architect with the Royal Institute of British Architects, a Forensic Architect, and Expert Witness with Sense Studio, a part of J.S. Held’s Construction Advisory Services Practice. He has 20 years of experience working for architecture practices in London on complex projects, including schools, commercial projects, hotels, and government buildings. He has worked on a number of cases for Sense Studio, including the investigation of building defects and he is the author of the Architect’s Legal Pocket Book. He can be reached at mcousins@jsheld.com.

Although San Francisco Mission was founded in the same year of America’s independence in 1776, the community that sprung from this Spanish settlement didn’t officially become part of the United States nearly nine decades later at the end of the Spanish-American War in 1846.  Soon after, the 1849 Gold Rush began, and the small settlement expanded into a busy port.  By the time California was granted statehood two years later, the town’s population exploded from around 1,000 to over 25,000.  In addition to an expanding population to support a gold mining industry, there was also a steady stream of Chinese immigrants moving to the area to work on the Central Pacific Railroad.  A few years later, San Francisco’s population and wealth grew again when gold was discovered in Nevada.  

San Francisco’s location meant that there was a significant amount of infrastructure needed to support a modest population, let alone a growing cosmopolitan port city.  Sitting atop more than 50 hills, surrounded by marshland, the city sits at the end of the San Francisco Peninsula with the eponymous bay on to its east and the Pacific ocean to its west.  San Francisco is also notable for its proximity to both the San Andreas and Hayward Faults, which means the area is highly seismically active.

One of the first major infrastructure projects designed to support the growing population was started and completed in the late 19th century: a system of cable cars that would connect the city’s steepest hills, thus increasing the population’s mobility to different parts of the city.  However, despite this and many other infrastructure and building projects, much of the city was destroyed by an earthquake in 1906.  Luckily, San Francisco’s economic importance and influence meant that the city would be rebuilt quickly and with improvements.  This improvement and the subsequent World’s Fair just nine years later sparked a golden age of improvement in the city, which led to several notable infrastructure projects such as the construction of Treasure island as well as tunnels, reservoirs, and other projects that improved the city’s water supply and supported the population’s mobility.  

However, the most iconic of these projects–the one which has become nearly synonymous with San Francisco itself–is the Golden Gate Bridge.  Spanning nearly two miles across the mouth of the San Francisco Bay, the Golden Gate Bridge is one of the world’s most iconic structures.  The structure is named for the strait it crosses, which opens the San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean.  Likewise, the bridge opens the city of San Francisco to Marin County and a large portion of the surrounding bay.

The need for a bridge spanning the Golden Gate strait was first recognized when gold was discovered in the area, but no serious proposals were started until 1916.  A journalist and former engineering student, James Wilkins, proposed a suspension bridge with a center span of 3,000 feet.  This proposal also came with an unbearable $100 million price tag, but the idea of a suspension bridge with a massive center span sparked the interest of San Francisco’s city engineer Michael O’Shaughnessy who began searching for a similar but less expensive proposal.  O’Shaughnessy soon found Joseph Strauss who proposed an even larger center span–at 4,000 feet–at a fraction of the cost.

Strauss–a poet, engineer, and native Ohioan–revolutionized not only the design of bridges, but also the approach to building them.  In the era of the Golden Gate Bridge’s construction, the injury and death rate of workers was astronomically high, and most large scale projects expected to lose dozens of workers to workplace hazards.  However, Strauss was determined to change the way things were done.  Although Strauss was originally chosen for the project partially due to his ability to shrink the budget, this frugal mindset didn’t apply to the health and safety of the people working on the project.  Strauss required all workers to wear hard hats, making it the first project in the United States to do so.  Additionally, Strauss ordered the construction of a $130,000 movable safety net suspended under the bridge deck.  

During the four years the Golden Gate Bridge was under construction, only 11 workers died as a result of workplace injuries.  This was staggeringly low compared to similar projects such as the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, which opened 6 months before and lost 28 workers during its construction.  Strauss’ innovations are directly credited with saving the lives of 19 workers who fell but were caught by the safety net.  When the Golden Gate Bridge opened in 1937, it was both the longest and tallest suspension bridge in the world–spanning 4,200 feet in length and 746 feet in height.  The structure is iconic in its scale, design, and aesthetics, but it is equally important for its legacy in safety.  

Projects like the Golden Gate Bridge are emblematic of San Francisco’s importance to the historical development of the United States.  Just as the city’s earliest infrastructure projects laid the groundwork for a growing gold rush, the Golden Gate Bridge laid the groundwork for a new era of construction that pushed the boundaries of what is physically possible while also maintaining a strict standard of safety.  Safety measures such as hard hats and safety netting are now ubiquitous, and Strauss’ legacy has been elevated to new heights with each new safety technology development.

Luke Carothers is the Editor for Civil + Structural Engineer Media. If you want us to cover your project or want to feature your own article, he can be reached at lcarothers@zweiggroup.com.  

As the volatility in market movements within the construction industry continue, many building design and construction professionals are struggling to find the balance between cost-consciousness and innovative design. Prices continue to surge, raw materials are scarce, and staffing shortages are everywhere. But amidst this frenzy and uncertainty, there is a trusted methodology that savvy professionals are now employing to bring discipline and confidence to their projects: Value Engineering.

Value engineering is a function-oriented, systematic team approach to building design and construction that enables teams to identify unwanted costs, improve the quality of projects and make data-driven decisions. The result is successful construction projects that deliver the best possible value for the lowest cost. But the benefits of value engineering can go well beyond cutting costs.

The Best Time to Value Engineer

While there is never a bad time to add value, there is an optimal time to Value Engineer. No one likes to hear about how they could have saved money by using aluminum wiring right after the last copper wire is in place. If VE is brought into the conversation too late in the construction process, it may not truly add value. The closer the process is to the schematic stage, the better. Planning and design are the two stages of the building lifecycle where value analysis truly lives up to its name. If value engineering creates rework or causes project delays, it may no longer be beneficial to the project. This graph shows when value engineering moves from presenting a financial gain to a financial loss. 

It’s important to note that value engineering isn’t simply a knee-jerk reaction to avoid going over budget. Value engineering is a methodology that ensures the owner is not overpaying for quality when an equally effective, less expensive option exists. Product quality is the ultimate prize.

Step by Step Methodology

Value engineering is more than a concept; it’s a methodology, an organized procedure for providing the necessary functions in a project at the lowest cost. Whether a team wants to substitute one material or system for another, consider alternative building methods or limit environmental impact, the process of value engineering remains generally consistent. Here is a step-by-step roadmap for creating a value engineering methodology:

Step 1: Information Gathering

The first is all about gathering information and getting a clear understanding of the project. The material makeup and scope of a project must be identified and documented. Materials, schedule, costs, drawings and specifications are studied until the team is comfortable with the project concept, who will be using the end product and what the expectations entail. Once the foundational elements of the project are identified, functions can be analyzed.

Step 2: Function Analysis

Functionality cannot be sacrificed for value engineering to be effective. Therefore, a function analysis must be conducted on the elements identified in the previous step, along with an evaluation of their necessity to the goals of the project. There are two forms of functions; primary functions, vital to the existence of the final product, and secondary functions, notable but not critical to the core of the project. Once these are identified, the team can get creative and investigate solutions.

Step 3: Creative Speculation

In this stage, the value engineering team brainstorms to generate potential design solutions to reach the project functions. It’s smart to focus on the big-ticket items because they have the most opportunity to deliver value. At this stage of the game, no viable options are eliminated, even those with serious flaws. Next, designers and their teammates will eliminate the weak plays to present only their strongest options on game day.  

Step 4: Evaluation

By turning to subject matter experts and questioning the available options, the team can begin weighing alternatives against one another. The primary focus of this discussion should be how well each alternative can perform the function of the original solution. This may involve where the facility will be built, how it will be used and the weather in the area. 

The details are critical in this step, as are the owner’s expectations. Delivering value is tremendous but if the facility does not do what the owner intends and the vision is unexecuted, the team has missed the mark. The team must discuss the holistic effects of each alternative, as a change in one system or area of the facility can affect multiple parts of the project or even the function of other systems. 

Step 5: Cost Analysis

The team will need to allocate costs to the alternative solutions. These cost estimates should include not only the current cost but also the total cost of ownership over the building’s lifecycle. 

The design team’s best tool in this step of the process is accurate construction cost data. Historical pricing is great for a rough projection of costs for known materials, equipment and tasks, but it may prove inadequate in the value engineering process. 

Project estimates need to be detailed down to the unit costs. To help get to this level and assess feasible alternative solutions, many architects, owners, engineers and other construction professionals rely on accurate cost data from a reliable industry expert. RSMeans data from Gordian is a highly trusted, detailed, localized and accurate construction cost database. Such a robust resource is ideal for value engineering because it contains tens of thousands of viable alternatives. 

Input from the maintenance team and lifecycle cost of products will help to answer how much the alternative solution will cost long term, or the total cost of ownership — quantifying the cost of the material, system or piece of equipment across the product’s entire lifecycle. This step will likely conclude with three options to choose from: the original design, one that costs more now and less later, and another that costs less now and more later. 

Step 6: Development

Only the alternatives with the highest likelihood of success should make it to this final step. The project timeline and available resources will determine the actions that are taken during this step. At the very least, the team needs to assemble all recommendations, their advantages and disadvantages, and implementation plans to present to project owners.  

Following these steps will help to ensure that the value analysis leads to beneficial results throughout the building lifecycle. There are a handful of value engineering tips and common pitfalls to remember:

• Never compromise health and safety. Any change that would result in a violation of building code or otherwise jeopardize the well-being of the people who use the facility should be rejected immediately.
• Design professionals can often find value in large systems — think HVAC, lighting and electrical systems. This is not to suggest one should go looking for discount systems, quite the opposite. Often, spending more on a higher-performing system early will save in maintenance costs over the building’s lifespan. It would be wise to conduct a lifecycle cost analysis and get input from the team responsible for maintaining the building to gather the long-term cost implications of major systems. 
• The design should meet client’s cost expectations — that’s the design team’s professional responsibility. Value engineering often comes up after bidding because bids are too high based on the owner’s budget. This can be avoided if cost estimates are provided to the owner after each stage of the design process using reliable, trustworthy cost information.
• Every choice has consequences. A change in one area of a facility can affect any or all other areas of the facility.
• Don’t lose sight of function while focusing on costs. Function is the basis of value engineering. The goal is to maximize function at the lowest possible cost, not to trim the bottom line.

Giles Munyard is Senior Engineer at Gordian.

Leica Geosystems previously introduced the safety awareness solution portfolio, including Leica iCON PA10, iCON PA80 and iCON CAS, which addressed the need to immediately warn on- and off-machine field personnel of potential machine-to-people, machine-to-machine and machine-to-object and collisions.

The next step announced today, integrates the field-generated safety data into the cloud-based collaboration platform Leica ConX, allowing decision makers to review incidents and assess the entire operation over time and space. These insights support important safety initiatives by providing visualisation, analysis, monitoring, reporting and data management functions, and address communication and integration needs.

“Our ConX cloud platform leverages machine and site-specific data and has become an integrated site management solution for many contractors,” says Kris Maas, Director Product Management at Leica Geosystems. “For a comprehensive approach to operations, it is essential to include people and safety functions. With the new safety awareness module in ConX, contractors can improve communication, interaction and safety for all workers operating with and around equipment on a job site.”

For maximum accident prevention, the new safety awareness module allows site managers to send real-time alerts to specific machine operators in case of potential incidents, such as blasting, demolitions or storms. They can also send SOS alerts, such as evacuation orders to all machines on site at the click of a button. System-generated alerts and user responses are saved, providing traceability and clarity. An API provides access to the safety awareness data in ConX so that it can be used in safety systems from other providers.

“Construction sites hold numerous safety hazards, which is why we strive to increase safety on-site. With the new Leica ConX safety awareness module, Leica Geosystems has closed the gap between existing solutions and a cloud platform that allows our customers to makemore data-driven decisions,” says Neil Williams, UK Business Director, Heavy Construction at Hexagon’s Geosystems division. “The new safety awareness module in ConX provides crucial insights that enable acute focus on safety-optimised environments.”

Rhino Doors has successfully tested its full range of CPNI doors, with both single and double leaf variations achieving impressive results for fire integrity and acoustic attenuation.

#GLAD2022 will see the Lifting Industry reach out to a broad coalition of end user sectors by uniting to share material promoting safety and high standards of load lifting. Anyone with an interest in lifting and working at height can contribute. Participating can be as easy as using the hashtag #GLAD2022 across social media platforms such as of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikToK, adding the GLAD2022 logo to email signatures, all the way through to producing unique content.

Now in its third year, the aim for GLAD in 2022 is very much to expand its scope. So for #GLAD2022, there will be a loose coalition of organisations and trade associations that all share an interest in height safety, drop prevention and lifting. These include: ABMEC (The British Mining Association), AWRF (Associated Wire Rope Fabricators), Bridger Howes (Industry Public Relations business), DROPS (Drop Objects Prevention Scheme), EIC (Energy Industries Council), HASANZ (Health and Safety Association New Zealand), ICHCA (International Cargo Handling Coordination Association), Institution of Mechanical Engineers, IPAF (International Powered Access Federation), Lift and Hoist International magazine, MHI (the US’s largest material handling, logistics and supply chain association), NRAG (National Rigging Advisory Group), RIDBA (Rural & Industrial Design & Building Association), UKWA (United Kingdom Warehousing Association), WAHSA (Work at Height Safety Association) and LEEA (Lifting Equipment Engineers Association).

Among LEEA plans currently being organised for GLAD will be the launch of the Association’s new state-of-the-art online training available in a variety of languages. There will be webinars on technical issues for industry specialists. A supply chain event, co-hosted by LEEA and other lifting-related trade associations, will support member companies across the board. A Think Lifting online event will showcase the toolkit available to support companies engaging with schools in their local communities. In addition, other plans LEEA is making for #GLAD2022 include free training events, Q&A sessions with trade association and industry leaders and the launch of films and other tools.

Ross Moloney, CEO of LEEA said: “We are excited to see what you have planned for the day. At LEEA, we are particularly interested in material regarding Apprenticeships, Military recruitment, Diversity, Sustainability and involvement in technology and transforming to the digital world.  A special LEEA Award will be going to the best submission. So we encourage companies and organisations working in the sector to share their content with us so we can post it on globalliftingawarenessday.com.”

You can send content using the contact form or by emailing ross.moloney@leeaint.com.

Lexington, KY – Bullard, the Kentucky-based manufacturer of high-quality personal protective equipment and systems, announced that Edward W. Bullard will be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame next month. E. W. is being recognized posthumously for his invention of the Hard Boiled® hard hat, the first commercially available industrial head protection device, in 1919.

Founded in San Francisco by E. W.’s father Edward Dickinson Bullard, the E.D. Bullard Co. originally supplied carbine lamps and mining equipment to gold and copper miners. Upon returning home from serving in the U.S. Army in France during WWI, E. W. began working for his family’s business, and it was during this time that he recognized a need for improved safety in the mines. Inspired by the steel doughboy helmet he had worn in the Army, E. W. designed the Hard Boiled hard hat for gold and copper miners.

Though created initially for workers in the mines, Bullard’s hard hat was quickly adopted by workers in other industries. The Hard Boiled hard hat grew exponentially in popularity, ultimately leading to Bullard’s close work with Joseph B. Strauss, engineer of the Golden Gate Bridge, to adapt Bullard hats to protect the bridge workers. Bullard hard hats were also used to protect workers on the Hoover Dam.

“For over 100 years, Bullard has been innovating and evolving our processes and our products to fit our customers’ ever-changing needs,” said Wells Bullard, CEO of Bullard. “Inspired by the vision and ingenuity of E. W. and his Hard Boiled hard hat, our team today follows a simple formula for success: watch, listen, learn. We watch our customers work and listen to their needs, and we learn about their specific job hazards, so that we can always provide them with the innovative products they need to go home safely at the end of the day.”

Today, Bullard, which relocated from California to Kentucky in 1972, is led by E. W. Bullard’s great-granddaughter Wells Bullard. The fifth-generation company, which still produces hard hats, has expanded to produce protective equipment and systems, including hard hats, fire helmets, respirators, and thermal imagers, for workers in a range of industries worldwide.

W. Bullard will be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame at the 2022 Induction Event on May 5, 2022, in Washington, DC.

PORTLAND, Ore. /PRNewswire/ — The basic design of hard hats has not changed in over 50 years, until now. WaveCel announces a new line of hard hats created to better protect workers against traumatic brain injury (TBI), one of the leading workplace injuries as a result of slips, falls and strikes to the head by falling or moving objects. A hard hat is required on the job by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration when there is possible danger for head injury and is a worker’s first line of defense against TBI. Backed by trusted science and rigorous testing, WaveCel is a spatial cellular structure that lines the inside of the hard hat and is made from a collapsible material that absorbs energy from a head impact in multiple, superior ways. The WaveCel hard hat is designed for various industries, including construction, engineering, manufacturing, aerospace, mining, gas, oil and forestry.

Proudly made in the U.S., WaveCel first debuted in the sports industry in Treks cycling helmets and Burton ski and snowboard helmets. In sport helmets, WaveCel has been proven to absorb up to 73% more rotational force caused from a blow to the head and can reduce the predicted risk of a concussion by up to 98% [1].

“For over 15-years our team has been dedicated to chasing the safest head protection, especially since there has been little to no advancement made to hard hat technology in five decades,” said Dr. Michael Bottlang, WaveCel Co-Founder and Biomechanical Engineer. “The WaveCel hard hat has been meticulously tested and strategically designed to ensure an increase in safety of employees working in environments where risk of TBI is high.”

All hard hats are NOT created equal. In fact, work-related traumatic brain injury (TBI) accounts for 18% of the estimated 1.7 million TBIs that occur in the Unites States annually [2] and can cost anywhere from $600,000 to $1.8 million per case [3]. The construction industry faces the highest number of occupational TBIs of any industry in the U.S., accounting for 25% of all work-related TBIs [4]. Hard hats were originally designed to protect against skull fractures occurring from objects falling from above, but do not take into account the rotational force and impact from slips and falls, which are much more common and can carry a greater risk. WaveCel is a network of hundreds of interconnected shock absorbers attenuating impacts through three principal mechanisms: crumple, flex, and glide. Cells crumple to absorb linear forces. More importantly, they also flex and glide to attenuate rotational forces.

“You only get one brain, and even one injury to the head is one too many,” said Dr. Steve Madey, WaveCel Co-Founder and Orthopedic Surgeon. “The reality is that accidents happen, and the physical ramification of a head injury can be long-lasting and debilitating. At WaveCel, we are committed to shining a light on the impact of TBI and making the workplace safer for all.”

Providing the same unprecedented level of protection, there are two different models of the WaveCel hard hat – the WaveCel T2⁺ PRO and the WaveCel T2⁺ MAX. The WaveCel T2⁺ PRO is a non-vented hard hat perfect for workers in the electrical industry. The WaveCel T2⁺ MAX is a vented option for those looking for increased air flow for all-day wear. While most hard hats in the industry are only Type I certified, both WaveCel hard hats not only meet Type II standard requirements, but also go one step further to protect against rotational forces as well as lateral impacts. WaveCel hard hats are not only designed with safety in mind, but also comfort and ease of use. Key features include:

• Low Profile – The lowest profile available on the market with a dome that is approximately 1 inch lower than that of a standard hard hat. The WaveCel liner eliminates the need for a tall air space at the crown that traditional hard hats need to absorb impacts.
• 360º Protection: The WaveCel dome lines the entire shell, crown and sides, which is critical to provide Type II level protection from lateral and crown impacts. Both models are also designed with a full brim to offer even more protection from all sides.
• Light Weight: All WaveCel hard hats weigh less than 500g for all-day comfort.
• Breathable – Unlike insulating impact foams, WaveCel is porous, allowing air to circulate freely through 93% of the WaveCel dome. This unique structure keeps workers cooler while on the job.
• Comfort Liner – The WaveCel dome and headband is lined with a soft foam and moisture-wicking, anti-bacterial microfiber textile to keep workers’ heads comfortable and dry.
• Accessories – To suit workers’ needs, the hard hats feature rails and slots that universally integrate third party accessories such as headlamps, face shields, earmuffs, and pen holders.
• Chin Strap – The optional four-point chin strap is made of soft nylon fabric and has a magnetic FIDLOCK^® buckle that securely locks and releases with a single-handed “snap” motion.
• 360 Fit System – The system circumferentially cradles the head and comfortably adjusts to all sizes with an oversized dial that is easy to grip with gloves.
• Customizable – The hard hats can be customized with graphics on the front or side and are available in three standard colors: white, black, and blue as well as two high-visibility colors: yellow and orange.

WaveCel has been rigorously tested at the state-of-the-art Helmet Impact Testing (HIT) facility at Legacy Biomechanics Laboratory in Portland, OR. The team – comprised of engineers, surgeons, scientists, and researchers – tested the hard hat with over three times more impact force than traditional testing methods.

“Having been involved since day one, we are very excited and honored to support WaveCel as they launch this innovative new hard hat technology,” said Ted Rees, President of TPR Industrial, WaveCel’s exclusive launch partner for the U.S. “Their patented, game-changing products are uniquely positioned for success in several vertical markets, and we are excited to be a part of their North American channel plans.”

WaveCel hard hats are Type II certified according to standard ANSI Z87.1 (USA). The new WaveCel hard hats, the WaveCel T2⁺ PRO and the WaveCel T2⁺ MAX, will be available for purchase on WaveCel.com and at launch from TPR Industrial.

WaveCel products will begin shipping between Q2 and Q3 of 2022 with prices ranging from $169–$189. Pre-orders are now being accepted at www.WaveCel.com and www.TPRindustrial.com.

For more information visit WaveCel.com

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. /PRNewswire/ — Fulcrum announced the addition of next-generation intelligent team automation capabilities to its Field Inspection Management platform. Intelligent team automation delivers a revolutionary new way for safety, quality, and maintenance inspection teams to dramatically improve productivity, operational excellence, and organization-wide performance at scale.

Fulcrum’s new intelligent team automation capabilities include a complete framework for managing issues and tasks, which is the industry’s first lightly configurable solution for streamlining safety, quality, and maintenance inspections at scale. Intelligent team automation will transform the way safety, quality, and maintenance teams perform inspections, with enhanced functionality to:

●  Streamline inspections on Day 1 by automating inspection processes out-of-the-box — and at scale

●  Unify inspection teams, while optimizing each role, using performance dashboards and end-to-end inspection program visibility

●  Gain actionable inspection insights organization-wide using a single-pane-of-glass view across teams and projects

By digitizing their inspection processes, Fulcrum enables organizations to get complete, end-to-end visibility across all inspection teams, which promotes collaboration and reduces remediation time. Insights generated from Fulcrum-based inspection processes helps them demonstrate their safety and quality posture, which directly drives their ability to negotiate insurance contracts, land new customers, and provide essential information to regulators and third parties, as well as to take actions and make better decisions based on events and trends.

Larger organizations in construction, engineering, utilities, and other industries will particularly benefit from the new “public issues” capability, which allows anyone onsite to report a hazard or other issue in real time just by scanning a QR code from their mobile device, without downloading any software. This enables a “see it, report it” approach to safety and quality issue reporting across entire worksites.

“Fulcrum has been our go-to field inspection management platform for years now, and this release raises the bar for team management,” said Chris Agneta, who manages field technology to provide planning, mapping, and design services for fiber, cable, and utility companies at Precision Valley Communications of Vermont. “I think the new out-of-the-box issue and task management framework is really going to empower companies of all sizes to deploy a scalable issue tracking and resolution framework without the need for developing complicated data models or automation. The addition of Intelligent Team Automation to the Fulcrum platform will enable companies to shorten deployment timelines while reducing costs, which will ultimately help them execute high-quality work in a safer environment.”

“New government investment in infrastructure, increasing maintenance costs, government oversight, and labor challenges are driving demand for digitized safety and quality inspections,” said Fulcrum CEO Jim Grady. “By creating the platform needed to manage teams for safety and quality inspections, we’re delivering unprecedented service to a large and growing, but historically underserved, market.”

For more information about Fulcrum Field Inspection Management platform with intelligent team automation, visit the blog on fulcrumapp.com.

In the past few years, fire has been an increasing concern when buildings are being retrofitted, restored, or modernized. On June 14^th, 2017, a fire broke out in the 24 storey Grenfell Tower, widely reported as the worst residential fire to take place in the U.K since the second World War, due to failures by design.

As concerns over fire safety spread through the country, Prime Minister Theresa May ordered a public inquiry. As stated in the final report of the review of building regulations and fire safety, England is by no means alone in needing to improve building safety, as building regulations are a global concern.

Under the terms of the EC Construction Products Directive, resistance to fire is one of the essential requirements for which performance tests are required. In Europe, thin-joint mortars have become popular, thus there are a number of situations where fixings are made using organic polymers as either the tie body, or in the form of resin glues. Such ties are not inherently fire resistant and could fail and shorten the life of a cavity wall in a fire, or lead to the collapse of cladding resulting in danger to escaping occupants and fire fighters.

As a leader in structural preservation, Cintec has always been an advocate for the restoration of safe buildings through fire-resistant anchors, as long ago as 1993 fire tests were carried out by the internationally recognized Building Research Establishment in accordance with BS476^([1]),

[1] BS476: Part 20: 1987, Fire tests on building materials & structures. British Standards Institute, London, 1987

ISO^([1]), and CEN^([2]). The fire rig was designed for use in the measurement of the performance of Cintec’s anchors in a fire situation while subjected to a mechanical load which might be a result of wind suction of fire-induced thermal movement.

Cintec’s remedial anchors survived a two-hour test without failure of any of the samples. Every sample reached several hundred degrees in the part of the anchor nearest to the fire face. This indicates the anchor system can be recommended for repair work to buildings requiring a fire rating of up to two hours.

Cintec Anchors were later, unintentionally, put to the test at the Fullers Brewery in London. The Cintec anchor system had been used extensively to repair and restore the Brewery’s facade. A fierce fire followed, destroying large sections of the building. Despite the brickwork being subjected to extremely high temperatures, tests revealed that the cementitious Cintec anchors did not fail, performing to their original design. They retained their integrity and could be reused for the repair work. If the anchors were an epoxy or resin type, they would have melted, releasing potentially dangerous fumes in the process and have been easily pulled out, allowing the wall to collapse. One could say that the Cintec Anchors having survived the fire are in fact fire proof.

[1] ISO/DIS 834 – Fire resistance tests – Elements of building construction. Part 1: General requirements for fire resistance testing; Part 2: Fire resistance testing of non-loadbearing elements; Part 3: Fire resistance testing of loadbearing elements

[2] CEN prENYYY1, prENYYY2, prENYYY3 (Renumbered equivalents of ISO drafts).

In New York City, according to the NYC Buildings Department, adhesive anchors are not permitted to support fire-resistance rated construction unless the use of such anchors meets the conditions set forth in the acceptance criteria. Post-installed anchors in masonry must be designed in accordance with the NYC Construction Codes, describing the masonry substrate type and condition, as well as proof of pull tests.

Howard Zimmerman, the well-known NY Architects, had concerns about the lack of fire ratings for resin-based anchor systems in high rise apartments near Central Park, New York. After reviewing Fire Test Data and performance tests on a severely damaged building after a fire, it was determined that the Cintec System was the best anchor to meet the project engineers’ concerns.

Cintec anchors are the cementitious fire-resistant alternative to resin anchors. Since Cintec’s anchors are based on reliable restoration materials, cementitious grout and stainless steel, they easily provided the elusive fire rating typically absent in other systems.

The U8000 assembly underwent an exhaustive and unprecedented fire-testing process without glass or other infills conducted by Intertek Laboratories and was overseen by Specified Technologies Inc. (STI), the most respected safety expert in the industry. This peer reviewed public listing proves RWW’s cladding system can be used on stone, metal, glass, porcelain facades and rain screen applications.

According to Eric Lacroix, the Firestop Industry’s Curtain Wall Specialist and Director of Strategic Accounts at STI, “An installation for a fire-resistant joint system (required by code for all notched, and un-notched Curtain Walls) is not code compliant unless it is installed per the listing criteria using Listed products in a Listed system by an approved third-party agency.”

Additionally, as more and more urban dense jurisdictions around the country are requiring visual inspections of the fire safing installation before it is hidden; blind safing practices are not only ill advised and unsafe, but now illegal in many urban centers.

UWALL^® is the first and only system to combine verifiable field installed speed and unprecedented safety of a notched CW system. The U8000 saves critical time and labor costs as the assembly can be installed in a shorter time frame with greater precision and reliability.

On February 11, 2022, RWW completed the installation of the U8000 on the attractive Outpatient Surgery Center and Outpatient Facility for UI Health at University of Illinois Chicago. Upcoming projects include 1400 S. Wabash in Chicago, Il. While RWWs peer reviewed public Listing not only gives developers peace of mind, the U8000 also gives architects and designers more creative freedom and choices.

Rodrigo d’Escoto, President and Founder of RWW notes. “RWW has always been on the forefront of design innovation. Beginning with our multi-patent and award-winning flush wall window wall designs, and now our best-in-class UWALL^® U-8000 curtainwall; RWW products continue to overdeliver on price, aesthetics and system performance.” https://reflectionwindow.com/

Burlington, NJ – Cementex, the safety tool specialists, highlights the Cementex Contractor Series of Arc Flash Protective Clothing PPE, a simple option that does not sacrifice quality or safety. While still using premium USA labor and materials, Cementex offers Arc Flash Task Wear with reliable, classic protection for the safety of personnel in environments in and around energized equipment.

The Contractor Series provides a total system of arc-rated protective clothing with kits that include hood, hard hat, coats, pants, coveralls, ear canal hearing protection, and safety glasses or goggles, as well as optional gloves and hard hat liners or balaclavas as needed.

This PPE is available in 8 CAL/cm² and 40 CAL/cm² levels of protection and complies with the NFPA 70E® and CSA Z462 standards. It covers Category 1 and 2 with the 8 CAL/cm² and Category 3 and 4 with the 40 CAL/cm² for complete protection with minimal redundancy.

The 40 CAL/cm² Contractor Series of Arc Flash PPE Task Wear is compatible with an innovative ventilation system that ensures greater air circulation, provides cooling, reduces the risk of dehydration, and makes long-term wear easier and safer for users.

In addition to the Contractor Series of Arc Flash Protective Clothing PPE, Cementex also offers the Feature Series for the next level of comfort, safety, durability and protection and the UltraLite Series, with innovative design and materials for the lightest, most comfortable Arc Flash PPE Task Wear available. All Cementex PPE is made with USA labor and materials to ensure quality and peace of mind.

For more information about Cementex’s industry-leading Arc Flash PPE Task Wear, visit www.cementexusa.com or call 1-800-654-1292.

St. Paul, Minn (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Despite being commonly underreported, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates that—between 2011 and 2019—environmental heat cases still accounted for an average of 38 fatalities per year and 2,700 incidents resulting in missed workdays.

This, coupled with alarming upward trends in global temperature, has triggered an intensified effort among occupational safety leaders such as the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP), International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) members and the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) to urge protection of workers from heat exposure through prevention programs and products. These include water, rest, shade and supplemental body cooling personal protective equipment (PPE).

“Considering the past 7 years were far and away the hottest on record, OSHA’s advanced notice of proposed rulemaking is a critical step in beginning to address this serious and growing workplace issue,” said Tom Votel, Ergodyne President & CEO and Board Chair of ISEA. ISEA is a recognized leader in the development of American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and other globally accredited safety equipment standards, as well as a key stakeholder in occupational safety rule making.

In parallel with state-led regulations and broad-scale public service campaigns such as OSHA’s Water.Rest.Shade program, ISEA members including safety work gear manufacturer Ergodyne have long worked to fill the absence of a federal heat stress standard with grassroots efforts to draw awareness, develop prevention programs and provide portable work shelters, hydration solutions and cooling PPE such as evaporative cooling vests, hats and towels for curbing heat-related illnesses and fatalities.

Those initiatives continue in full as momentum for OSHA to implement a federal heat stress standard builds. Last fall, the agency announced their intent to start work on a federal standard in concert with enhanced enforcement efforts—including a National Emphasis Program (NEP) that leverages the agency’s General Duty Clause to prioritize heat-related inspections at indoor facilities and outdoor worksites.

According to a memorandum released by OSHA in September 2021 (Heat Initiative: Inspection Guidance), compliance officers will emphasize the availability of training to assist in recognition of heat stress symptoms (such as toolbox talks) as well as the importance of administrative controls like acclimatization, work/rest protocols and accessibility to water and shade. In addition, officers will be guided to make recommendations on appropriate PPE, including evaporative and phase change cooling gear and sun-blocking garments to help supplement programs when other controls are insufficient in reducing heat exposure to a safe level.

“Water and rest are pretty obvious heat stress prevention measures, but acclimatization and body cooling are equally important to protecting both new and experienced workers throughout the entire shift,” said Alsie Nelson, Ergodyne Product Director. “Whether they’re mid-task or on a break, wearable cooling PPE and portable shelters are easy and effective ways to help maintain safe body temperatures.”

“Ergodyne has an extensive offering of heat stress prevention and training programs, as well as decades of experience helping organizations implement their own programs,” continued Nelson. “With rising average temperatures putting more and more crews at risk, we remain dedicated to delivering the resources, training and solutions workers need to stay safe.”

To learn more, email support@ergodyne.com or call 800-225-8238 // (651) 642-9889.

Most of this year’s winners have earned the Institute’s top safety award, the Safety Award of Honor, which is presented for a perfect record of no disabling injuries (DART=0–see below for more info about DART data).

“AISC’s annual Safety Awards program recognizes excellent records of safety performance, and we commend these facilities for their effective accident prevention programs,” said Tom Schlafly, AISC’s director of safety. “Periodic recognition of safety in the workplace has been demonstrated to provide worker incentive and a reminder of the importance of safe practices.”

In order to facilitate data collection and make statistics meaningful in terms familiar to safety professionals, AISC’s Safety Awards program uses data that companies also report to OSHA as measured in terms of Days Away, Restricted or Transferred (DART) rate. The DART measures the number of recordable lost work cases per 200,000 man hours worked. AISC bases the awards on cases (not days) as reported to OSHA on the 300A form, along with the hours worked in the year.

AISC presents a Safety Award of Honor to fabricators and erectors with perfect records (a DART of zero). Those with excellent records (0<DART≤1) earn a Safety Award of Merit, and Safety Commendations recognize companies with DARTs greater than one and less than or equal to two.

The awards program is open to all AISC member fabricators and erectors, and applications for the program are solicited annually. Awards are issued separately for fabrication and erection companies. In order to be eligible to win an award, the member company must submit a copy of their OSHA 300A form for verification purposes.

To learn more about the awards, visit aisc.org/safetyawards. For more information and resources on safety for the fabricated and erected structural steel industry, visit aisc.org/safety.

Safety Award of Honor (DART = 0) – Fabrication

Associated Steel Fabricators, Inc., Tomball, Texas

Ben Hur Steel Worx, LLC, St. Louis

BENCHMARK Fabricated Steel, Terre Haute, Ind.

Center Point Contractors, Inc., Bentonville, Ark.

Champion Bridge Company, Wilmington, Ohio

Covenant Steel Warehouse, Inc., Dothan, Ala.

Custom Metals, a Division of Lexicon, Inc., Little Rock, Ark.

Design Build Structures, LLC, Peosta, Iowa

Dixie Southern Industrial, Inc., Polk City, Fla.

Douglas Steel Fabricating Corporation, Lansing, Mich.

East Coast Metal Structures, Corp., Riviera Beach, Fla.

Eddy’s Welding, Inc., Ellicott City, Md,

F.A. Wilhelm Construction Co. Inc., Indianapolis

Gayle Manufacturing Company, Caldwell, Idaho

Geiger & Peters, Inc., Indianapolis

George’s Welding Services, Inc., Miami

Gerace Construction Co., Inc., Midland, Mich

Industrial Resources, Inc., Fairmont, W.V.

J.R. Hoe and Sons, Middlesboro, Ky.

Kienlen Constructors, St. Louis

Larwel Industries, Bedford, Texas

Lyndon Steel Company, Winston-Salem, N.C.

Maccabee Industrial Inc., Belle Vernon, Pa.

McPeak Supply, LLC, Roanoke, Va.

Mike Owen Fabrication, Inc., Bakersfield, Calif.

Miscellaneous Steel Industries, Inc., Kyle, Texas

Mobil Steel International, Inc., Houston

Newport Industrial Fabrication, Inc., Newport, Maine

NOVA Group, Inc., Napa, Calif.

PAX, LLC., Gonzales, La.

Phoenix Fabrication & Supply, Inc., Peotone, Ill.

Pikes Peak Steel LLC, Colorado Springs, Colo.

Prospect Steel, a Division of Lexicon, Inc., Little Rock, Ark.

RCC Fabricators, Inc., Paterson, N.J.

Rens Welding & Fabricating, Inc., Taunton, Mass.

Rochester Rigging & Erectors, Inc., Bloomfield, N.Y.

Rochester Structural, LLC, Rochester, N.Y.

Schuff Steel Midwest, Overland Park, KS

Scott Steel Services, Inc., Crown Point, Ind.

Shure Line Construction, Kenton, Del.

Southwest Steel LLC, Henderson, Nev.

Steel Service Corporation, Jackson, Miss.

Steel Specialty, Inc., Belmont, N.C.

Structural Steel & Plate Fabrication, Co., North Salt Lake, Utah

Systems Fab & Machine, Inc., El Dorado, Ark.

The Arthur Louis Steel Company, Geneva, Ohio

The Gateway Company of Missouri LLC, St. Louis

The Haskell Company, Jacksonville, Fla.

TrueNorth Steel, Fargo, N.D.

Twin Brothers Marine, LLC, Morgan City, La.

United Weld Services, LLC, York, Pa.

Universal Steel of NC, LLC, Thomasville, N.C.

Western Slope Iron & Supply, Inc., Grand Junction, Colo.

Zimkor LLC, Littleton, Colo.

Safety Award of Honor (DART=0) – Erection

Diversified Metalworks, Orange, Calif.

Dixie Southern Industrial, Inc., Polk City, Fla.

East Coast Metal Structures, Corp., Riviera Beach, Fla.

F.A. Wilhelm Construction Co. Inc., Indianapolis

Ideal Contracting, Detroit

Kienlen Constructors, St. Louis

National Steel City, LLC, Plymouth, Mich.

North Alabama Fabricating Company, Inc., Birmingham, Ala.

Rens Welding & Fabricating, Inc., Taunton, Mass.

ROC Steel, LLC, Suffolk, Va.

Rochester Structural, LLC, Rochester, N.Y.

Shure Line Construction, Kenton, Del.

Systems Fab & Machine, Inc., El Dorado, Ark.

The Arthur Louis Steel Company, Geneva, Ohio

United Weld Services, LLC, York, Pa.

Safety Award of Merit (0<DART≤1) – Fabrication

Corebrace, LLC, West Jordan, Utah

DIS-TRAN Steel, LLC, Pineville, La.

Jesse Engineering Company, Tacoma, Wash.

Metal Pros, LLC, Wichita, Kan.

North Alabama Fabricating Company, Inc., Birmingham, Ala.

Prospect Steel, a Division of Lexicon, Inc., Armorel, Ark.

Schuff Steel Company, Eloy, Ariz.

SME Steel Contractors, Inc., West Jordan, Utah

Transco Ind., Inc., Portland, Ore.

Veritas Steel, Palatka, Fla.

Safety Award of Merit (0<DART≤1) – Erection

Ben Hur Steel Worx, LLC, St. Louis

Derr Steel Erection Co., Euless, Texas

SME Steel Contractors, Inc., West Jordan, Utah

Southwest Steel LLC, Henderson, Nev.

Safety Commendation (1<DART≤2) – Fabrication

Ford Steel, LLC, Porter, Texas

Johnson Machine Works, Inc., Chariton, Iowa

JPW Structural Contracting, Inc., Syracuse, N.Y.

Padgett, Inc., New Albany, Ind.

Schuff Steel Company, Phoenix, Ariz.

Steel Fabricators of Monroe, Monroe, La.

Steward Steel, Inc., Sikeston, Mo.

Safety Commendation (1<DART≤2) – Erection

Padgett, Inc., New Albany, Ind.

GREENWOOD, Ind. – The board of directors of Underground Safety Alliance (USA), the umbrella non-profit organization for Indiana 811 and Kentucky 811, today announced Justin Sell as the organization’s new Executive Director.

Sell has been with the organization since 2011 and most recently served as Director of Operations and Technology for the last four years. In 2021, Sell led USA’s transition to a new software platform, Exactix, which serves as the technology backbone of the organization. Prior to joining USA, Sell was a Senior Systems Engineer for three years at USIC, the largest utility locate contractor in the United States.

In his new role, Sell will lead all strategic planning, administration, program execution and staff management for the “811 Before You Dig” centers in Indiana and Kentucky. He will also provide thoughtful, fiscally sound recommendations and counsel to the USA Board of Directors.

Sell assumes day-to-day leadership of an organization that plays a vital role in protecting the safety and utility service connections of Indiana and Kentucky residents. Indiana 811 and Kentucky 811 transmit information provided by professionals and homeowners who plan to dig to member utilities that operate underground gas, oil, electric, communications, water, sewer and other facilities to help prevent damages to vital infrastructure during excavation.

“Justin Sell is the right person to lead the Underground Safety Alliance team in providing the best service to all members and everyone who digs in Indiana and Kentucky,” said George Kemp, Chairman of the Underground Safety Alliance Board of Directors. “Justin’s deep experience in utility damage prevention and previous leading roles in executing USA’s mission made him the ideal candidate for the important public safety work this organization performs every day.”

“I’m eager to get started in my new role and lead the incredibly talented and hard-working team I’ve been fortunate to work with for the last decade,” said Sell. “I’m ready to connect with all of our teams, confirm plans for the year ahead and work hard to protect our members’ underground facilities and the safety of everyone who digs in Indiana and Kentucky.”

Sell begins his new role at an incredibly busy time for the organization. In 2021, USA staff processed a combined 2.1 million inbound requests online and by phone at 811 from professional excavators and homeowners in 2021, resulting in 12.5 million notifications to member facility operators.

For more information about Underground Safety Alliance, please visit usa811.org. Information about Indiana 811 and Kentucky 811 can be found at Indiana811.org and Kentucky811.org, respectively.

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland – The Society of Fire Protection Engineers, the Charles Pankow Foundation, and the International Code Council are pleased to host a webinar on expanding the implementation and adoption of performance-based structural fire design.  The webinar is scheduled for Tuesday, May 10, 2022, and is free to all individuals who pre-register.

Performance-Based Structural Fire Design (PBSFD) is one of the most promising tools for designing, analyzing, and evaluating thermal effects on structural systems. Introduced in Appendix E of ASCE 7-16, PBSFD is an approach that permits the explicit evaluation of a structure’s ability to meet specific performance objectives under a variety of realistic design fire scenarios, unlike current prescriptive methods where satisfactory performance is implicit. This webinar will provide an overview for individuals who are involved with the design, construction, or regulatory approvals of buildings.

“Performance-Based Structural Fire Design is quickly gaining momentum in the engineering community as a viable approach to delivering safe, reliable, and efficient building designs in a way that has many advantages over traditional prescriptive methodologies,” stated Robert A. Chmielowski, PE, SE, Senior Principal at Magnusson Klemencic Associates, and industry champion of the Charles Pankow Foundation PBSFD education initiative. “We are excited to sponsor an education program geared towards building officials and fire marshals which will help promote the adoption of PBSFD nationwide.”

Participants to the free 90-minute webinar will hear about the differences between standard fire design and PBSFD, learn the state of practice of PBSFD in the U.S., understand the approval process through Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs), and identify new and emerging resources.

“Performance-Based Structural Fire Design is a promising tool that demonstrates the performance of structures based upon specific performance objectives and realistic fire design scenarios,” continued Beth Tubbs, PE, FSFPE, Senior Staff Engineer at the International Code Council, and President at the Society of Fire Protection Engineers.  “In addition to this webinar, we hope that resources from the International Code Council, Society of Fire Protection Engineers, and others, will aid in the successful implementation of this important design tool.”

Details of the free webinar on May 10, 2022: https://www.sfpe.org/membership-communities/sfpeconnect/communities/events/event-description?CalendarEventKey=7927a605-a659-4b06-b471-0640c4fc1522&Home=/events-education/calendar

Demand for this free webinar is expected to be high, and interested individuals are encouraged to pre-register early through the Society of Fire Protection Engineers website at sfpe.org to ensure availability.

• 28 April 2022 – Oil & Gas Sector
• 07 July 2022 – Entertainment Sector
• 21 September 2022 – Renewables Sector
• 23 November 2022 – Lift & Escalator Sector, which will be a joint LEEA/LEIA (Lift and Escalator Industry Association) presentation.

Each webinar will be geared towards end users in the relevant sector and will run for approximately one hour, split into four 15-minute sessions, wrapping up with a question and answer session. Delving into sector–specific safety issues and best practice surrounding lifting, the webinars aim to start conversations between LEEA members and end users, particularly those further up the supply chain. Two guest industry speakers, with expertise in the relevant sectors, will join a duo of LEEA presenters for each webinar.

LEEA’s webinar series will kick off with the Oil and Gas sector event on 28 April 2022. Lifting equipment plays an essential role in Oil and Gas operations of all kinds but the consequences of non-compliance to standards and ignorance in relation to lifting can result in severe consequences beyond handicapping a company’s progress: an accident, a visit from health and safety inspectors and, ultimately, punishment. So it is vital that company management are educated about their responsibilities. We would therefore highly recommend that Oil and Gas industry managers view this informative webinar. There will be more details on speakers and content to follow in the coming weeks. Register your interest by e-mailing: events@leeaint.com.

Cashman Equipment – Winnemucca worked with SCATS consultants to develop their employee safety program and strives toward continuous growth.

“We’re honored to receive the SHARP designation again in our continuing commitment to employee safety,” said Katherine Henkelman, Environmental Health and Safety Manager, Cashman Equipment – Winnemucca. “Our partnership with SCATS helps us identify areas of improvement and provides us the resources to maintain a top employee safety program.”

Cashman Equipment – Winnemucca is part of an elite group of businesses that have renewed their status with SHARP by maintaining exemplary health and safety protocols. Participation in the no-cost program provides incentives and support to employers to develop, implement and continuously improve programs at their worksite(s). By taking these proactive measures, businesses can reduce accident costs and ensure compliance with Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) regulations.

“Cashman Equipment – Winnemucca sets an incredible safety standard for its teams and community,” said Todd Schultz, Chief Administrative Officer for SCATS. “It’s an honor to support companies like Cashman which put its employees first every day.”

SCATS consultants provide employers with confidential hazard identification, program development, implementation assistance and training. Employers who implement effective safety programs and have a days away restricted transfer (DART) rate below the national average for their industry may be recognized by SCATS. Successful SHARP participants may receive up to a three-year deferral from OSHA’s general schedule inspections.

Businesses interested in SHARP can contact SCATS at 775-824-4630. For more information or for a schedule of free training courses offered by SCATS, businesses can call 1-877-4SAFENV or visit 4safenv.state.nv.us.

Xavier will lead a multidisciplinary national team to execute an aggressive health and safety strategy; provide expertise on compliance with federal, state and local safety and health laws; create world-class resources and educational programs; and develop strategies that help ABC’s members meet the health and safety needs of the future workforce.

“It is vital that construction industry workers feel safe and are safe on the job and in the office, and that requires a daily commitment by leadership to decisions, routines and business models that prioritizes safety as a core value and builds a culture of total human health,” said Greg Sizemore, ABC vice president of health, safety, environment and workforce development. “Joe will be instrumental in ensuring safety continues to be in the DNA of our members and chapters, and that the leaders across ABC cultivate strategies that focus on total human health. We are thrilled that Joe brings to ABC more than three decades of safety experience to this role; our association, members and industry will be safer and healthier for it.”

Xavier has served in leadership, quality, health, safety and compliance roles since 1992. Most recently, Xavier was the CEO of Summit Sustainability Solutions, advising construction, manufacturing and hospitality clients in the mid-Atlantic region on safety and health risk control and prevention. His company was a member of ABC of Greater Baltimore and facilitated the chapter’s Safety Professional Peer Group.

He also served the H&S Bakery family of commercial bakers as director of safety and workers compensation, where he led the safety and health program and educated managers, supervisors and front-line employees on safety standards and how to apply that knowledge to reduce workplace hazards. Those efforts also improved product quality and scores on supply chain audits. Xavier returned to the construction industry with Tate Engineering and then a Caterpillar dealer.

“Safety and total human health are fundamental to every person, task and job, and I look forward to strengthening these foundational pillars for ABC and its member companies,” said Xavier. “The industry has made great strides to make our workforce physically safer. We now have an opportunity to integrate mental health and occupational safety, launching the total human health era of construction safety.”

The SFPE Foundation’s Grand Challenges Initiative aims to identify global challenges and develop a collaborative research and educational framework on how fire safety science and fire protection engineering can be a part of the solutions.  The Virtual Summit is free for participants and will include four half-day sessions for individuals from throughout the fire protection industry, academia, government, non-profit organizations, and beyond, to draw on their collective creativity and real-world experience to envision how the fire engineering professionals can contribute to tackling the grand, global challenges that communities around the world face.

“We know that fire scientists and fire protection engineers have the insight and knowledge to contribute solutions to some of society’s grand challenges, like energy, infrastructure, resilience, sustainability, climate change, digitization, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and more,” stated Leslie Marshall, Ph.D., Director, SFPE Foundation.  “Through the SFPE Foundation’s Grand Challenges Initiative, we will engage with a diverse group of participants to define the path that will take us from where we are now, to where we want to be in five, ten, twenty years, and beyond.  I extend a warm invitation to students, professionals, experts, and organizations to join us as we kickoff this transformational initiative.”

The SFPE Foundation’s Grand Challenges Initiative is envisioned as a multi-year program with opportunities throughout for sharing expertise, engaging with new audiences and collaborators, reporting on progress, and providing feedback.  It also includes a new opportunity for advanced graduate students through research fellowships. The Grand Challenges Initiative is being administered through generous funding and support from industry/corporate partners, foundations, individuals, SFPE, and the SFPE Foundation – with opportunities available to become a founding partner.  The existing research roadmap developed by the Society of Fire Protection Engineers will serve as a guide and key reference document.

“Addressing the complex and significant fire safety challenges facing communities around the world takes a collaborative effort. We are proud to support the Grand Challenges Initiative and urge others in the research and education communities to participate in developing a strategy for action,” stated Steve Kerber, Vice President and Executive Director, Fire Safety Research Institute, a founding partner of the Grand Challenges Initiative.

For additional information about the Grand Challenges Initiative or to register for the Virtual Summit, visit the SFPE Foundation website at sfpe.org/foundation.

A specialist team at engineering company Forth has designed a pig retrieval tool to more efficiently remove the devices, known in the industry as Pigs, from oil and gas process pipelines and significantly reduce production downtime.

The retrieval of the Pigs is crucial to allow the production of a plant to continue, but the process is often a laborious one and there is a potential risk to human life.

Forth’s gas and oil experts stationed at the company’s base in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, were approached by a customer who was frustrated with the labour intensive process of removing the Pigs.

The Forth team developed a flexible tool, which can be adjusted up to 15 metres, fitted with an ATEX Zone 1 pneumatic winch which can safely be used in explosive atmospheres, and can pull weights up to one tonne.

Using an auto-locking grab, the device connects to the Pig on contact with the latching point and is used in tandem with a mounted ATEX

Zone 1 camera to provide live images back to a tablet operated on the ground by an engineer.

The use of the Pig Retrieval Equipment reduces manual handling and operating time, and allows production to return much quicker than usual while making the whole process safer for the operators.

The winch and the design of the front grab can be modified to suit different Pig latching point designs wherever applicable.

Rob Sneesby, Lead Mechanical Engineer, said: “By designing and manufacturing the Pig Recovery System, we were able to speed up the process significantly which meant that the production of the plant was able to resume much quicker, thus saving a substantial amount of money.

“There is always a risk element associated with the retrieval process too, and removing the need for such close human interface has made the job significantly safer to carry out.

“The team at Forth is proud to carry out such pioneering projects, and it is great that the work we conducted proved a game changer to our customer.

“The recovery system can be adapted for all industries and we look forward to working with further clients across all sectors.”

The Pig Retrieval Tool is one of many innovations manufactured for the oil gas industry by Forth.

The Forth team has also manufactured a system to improve the ease of removing spherical pigs from launch tubes which have been stuck in situ for a long time after previous attempts to retrieve them by traditional methods had been unsuccessful.

Rob said: “Time and again, customers approach us with problem statements and ask us to find a solution. And they keep coming back because we successfully manufacture products that significantly make their lives easier.

“We can work with any businesses looking for solutions to their problems across the gas and oil industry, and we take great pride in being able to deliver on our promise.”

Forth has bases in Flimby, Cleator Moor and Barrow, all in Cumbria, and works across all sectors in engineering, from gas and oil to renewables, and decommissioning to nuclear.

Versatile is a turnkey provider of fall protection solutions and one of the leading safety system providers on the West Coast; RTA is a leader in rooftop and suspended access fall protection solutions. Terms of the transactions were not announced.

Versatile offers a complete fall protection capabilities portfolio, including engineering, design, fabrication, installation, and training. It offers extensive experience in specific California regulations and applications, and detailed OSHA and ANSI certified inspections. RTA designs, engineers, manufacturers, inspects, and tests fall protection systems and are one of the leading safety and system providers for rooftop fall protection applications in the United States.

“We’re excited to have Versatile Systems and Rooftop Anchor join the DFP family, as they collectively provide a full portfolio of fall protection services that complements our existing market strengths,” said Jeff Schneid, CEO, DFP. “This combination further expands our organization to better serve our customers in creating safer work environments. These acquisitions are consistent with our growth strategy and demonstrate our commitment to expanding the organization to become the largest turnkey fall protection provider in North America.”

Schneid noted that the combination of these two companies joining DFP offers the marketplace a truly unique three-point value proposition:

1. Turnkey Solutions – Together, we design, install, and service fall protection solutions with our in-house teams to ensure the highest levels of customer satisfaction, value, and safety.
2. Product Portfolio – As the combined fall protection leader, we can design and install an integrated fall protection solution for any application in any industry.
3. Direct Partnerships – From coast to coast, we work directly with our customers to deliver consistent and repeatable fall protection solutions and services.

Versatile and RTA are the latest entities to join the ever-growing DFP organization. The company recently acquired Fall Protection Systems, Hazelwood (St. Louis) Missouri, and Peak Fall Protection, Apex (Raleigh) North Carolina, further expanding DFP’s national services footprint.

Established in 1994, DFP is headquartered in Westlake (Cleveland), Ohio, and specializes in the design, fabrication, and installation of complete fall protection solutions to keep workers safe while working at heights. It utilizes a turnkey approach that creates single-source responsibility for all phases of its clients’ projects, from engineering and fabrication to installation, training, and system re-certification. In addition, DFP continues to support its clients’ safety and compliance over time with educational and training resources and follow-up safety inspections.

For more information about Diversified Fall Protection, go to https://www.fallprotect.com/

The much needed and long awaited training opportunity for the Lifting Industry is the result of a tremendous amount of hard work, particularly from the Trailblazer group led by Kat Moss, who will be able to observe the take up as LEEA’s new Chair.

The apprenticeship’s many benefits were highlighted during a LEEA-hosted webinar in December 2021, which can be watched via an online stream at: leeaint.com/presentation/apprenticeship-webinar-december-2021. During this thorough overview, Kat Moss explains what is included in the new apprenticeship standard. Simon Arnold of City of Bristol College describes how the standard may be delivered and how providers can support students and employers. Sunbelt Rentals relates its experience and is joined by the company’s own apprentice, Lewis Behai, winner of ‘Outstanding Apprentice’ at the recent LEEA Awards 2021, who provides a powerful personal testimony of how he came to do an apprenticeship, the experience he has gained and achievements that have shaped his development. The webinar concludes with the employer experience of William Hackett Lifting Products.

The Lifting Equipment Technician apprenticeship is available across the whole of England and its details are listed at the Institute for Apprenticeships website here: www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/lifting-equipment-technician. With this being a new standard training providers will be in the process of developing its delivery.  City of Bristol College is the first training institution to engage and LEEA is also working with an End Point Assessment (EPA) organisation to ensure that apprentices get the best possible support throughout their course.

The apprenticeship has funding in England but the framework can be applied globally. It is being looked at in Australia and New Zealand and Ross Moloney has written to the Scottish Government to discuss how to take the apprenticeship forward there.

Ross Moloney said: “There are many reasons why you should get involved with the apprenticeship: it works for employers, recruits, the industry and for LEEA because we want our industry to be professionalised. We will work with our partners to make sure delivery and assessment of the Lifting Equipment Technician apprenticeship is best in class. With the City of Bristol College, the target is to enrol the first set of apprentices in April 2022, for a May start. LEEA members should contact me directly for more information.”

For further information and to sign up, contact ross.moloney@leeaint.com.
More information about the apprenticeship can be found here: www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/lifting-equipment-technician

The American Red Cross continues to coordinate with the Philippine Red Cross to determine the full scope of materials and assistance needed, including deploying trained specialists, mobilizing supplies, and providing financial support. Relief items such as blankets, tarpaulins, first aid kits and water containers have been provided to families in several badly hit areas.

To help with these efforts, Simpson Strong-Tie has donated $25,000 to the Red Cross for relief and recovery from Super Typhoon Rai.

To make a contribution and aid in disaster recovery efforts, visit redcross.org or send a donation to your local Red Cross chapter.

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland – The Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE), the world’s leading professional society for fire protection and fire safety engineering, has named Beth Tubbs, PE, FSFPE, as its 2022 President.

Beth Tubbs at the International Code Council (ICC), headquartered in Washington D.C., USA, serves as a key engineering resource and contributor to the International Existing Building Code (IEBC), the International Fire Code (IFC), the International Building Code (IBC), and the ICC Performance Code (ICCPC) as a Senior Staff Engineer with the Codes and Standards Development Department.  Tubbs has been an SFPE member since 1995, elected a Fellow of SFPE in 2010, and has served on and/or chaired numerous SFPE committees and boards.  She holds degrees in Fire Protection and Civil Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.  As SFPE President, Tubbs is currently serving as the Program Committee Chair of the SFPE International Conference on Performance-Based Codes and Fire Safety Design Methods scheduled for March 2022 and the SFPE Annual Conference and Expo scheduled for October 2022 in Detroit, MI, USA, among other SFPE committees.

Jimmy Jönsson, Director with JVVA in Madrid, Spain, was named President-Elect.  Jonsson has worked on a wide range of fire- and life-safety projects internationally over the last 20 years, with extensive experience in developing performance-based fire engineering design and analysis.  He has been an SFPE member since 2002, past President of SFPE Europe, and current President of the SFPE Spanish Chapter. Christopher Butts, PE, PMSFPE, AET, SET, CFPS, ARM, Elizabeth Pennacchio, PE, PMSFPE, Michael Wojcik, PE, PMSFPE, and John Denhardt, PE, FSFPE, have joined the SFPE Board of Directors effective January 2022.

“SFPE has benefited from exceptional leadership in recent years, and we are so fortunate to have leaders like Beth, Jimmy, and our entire Board of Directors to guide us in 2022 and beyond,” stated Nicole Boston, CAE, Chief Executive Officer, Society of Fire Protection Engineers.  “With plans this year to reach more fire protection engineers through our industry-leading education programs, to publish our first standard since being accredited by ANSI, and to increase the recognition and competencies of fire protection engineers, our leadership has the depth and diverse experience to advance the Society and the profession of fire protection engineering.”

Amanda Kimball, PE, FSFPE, Jack Poole, PE, FSFPE, John Campbell, PE, PEng, CFPS, FIFireE, PMSFPE, Shaun Kelly, PEng, CEng, MIEI, PMSFPE, Bob Libby, PE, FSFPE, Albert Simeoni, PhD, PMSFPE, and Shamim Rashid-Sumar, PE, FSFPE, continue their service on the Society’s Board of Directors. SFPE will be establishing its 2022 Nominating Committee and soliciting nominations for the Society’s future leadership roles in the coming months.

Additional information about the Society of Fire Protection Engineers and its programs is available at sfpe.org.

 SEATTLE, WA — Magnusson Klemencic Associates (MKA) is pleased to announce Juliette Peyroux, PE, SE, has been named one of Building Design + Construction (BD+C) magazine’s 40 Under 40 honorees for 2021.  A Senior Associate at MKA, Juliette, 32, focuses on promoting structural solutions for seismically safe and resilient airport terminals, concourses, and inspection stations in areas known for high seismic activity, such as San Diego, San Francisco, and Seattle.

Juliette acquired the advanced training necessary to become a WAsafe Program Certified Instructor and State Coordinator—an achievement that allows her to teach building safety evaluation classes to her co-workers at MKA, her industry colleagues, and Seattle-area university students who represent the next generation of engineering professionals.  She leads MKA’s in-house Earthquake Technical Specialist Team in its efforts to research the latest developments in earthquake engineering, develop training and tools to improve the design process, and facilitate office-wide dissemination of the latest information and trends surrounding earthquake engineering.  Juliette has also co-written in-house seismic hazard and ground motion guides that are essential reference tools for her structural engineering colleagues. 

“I rarely have an opportunity to work alongside someone with the innate talent, drive, and intellect—as well as a singular curiosity about the field of earthquake engineering—expressed by Juliette,” said MKA Senior Principal and Director of Earthquake Engineering John Hooper, PE, SE.  “In less than 10 years at MKA, she has emerged as our firm’s go-to resource for the latest information and trends related to engineering and designing seismically safe aviation facilities.  With earthquake safety being top-of-mind for many Americans, Juliette’s engineering experience and enhanced knowledge of seismicity could not come at a more critical time.  Simply put, Juliette is MKA’s ‘Seismic Superstar.’”

Juliette earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Washington and a Master of Science degree in Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.  She serves on the Structural Engineers Association of Washington Earthquake Engineering and Disaster Preparedness & Response Committees. 

BD+C magazine editors selected 40 Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) professionals from around the world to comprise this year’s list of honorees.  Successful and well-rounded individuals under the age of 40 are chosen based on criteria such as leadership, community outreach, sustained career progress, personal integrity, inventiveness, academic training, and other qualities and characteristics.

“I am deeply honored to be part of this year’s class of 40 under 40,” said Juliette. “Since major earthquakes do not happen frequently, it is easy to forget about the impact a large earthquake can have on an unprepared community.  I am passionate about advancing the earthquake engineering field with respect to building designs and preparing Washington to respond quickly and effectively in the case of ‘The Big One.’  This recognition motivates me to continue to challenge myself and the AEC industry to do better when it comes to earthquake design and preparedness.”

CoorsTek, a leading manufacturer of technical ceramics, operates more than 30 manufacturing facilities across three continents. At its Gumi, South Korea plant, which provides a variety of high-performance ceramics engineered specifically for semiconductor processing applications (including PureSiC silicon carbides and PlasmaPure aluminas), a wide range of hazardous materials are used. Due to the extensive use of these materials, the plant is subject to regular inspections to review safety procedures and chemical spill prevention plans.

Gumi employees passed last summer’s chemical safety inspection with marks so high that representatives from the NICS asked them to share best practices at a conference in November. CoorsTek team members accepted the offer and used the opportunity to showcase the plant’s comprehensive accident prevention program. The Gumi facility has grown in serving partners since 2000, including a recent expansion to support semiconductor and electronics industry growth as well as many additional customers in the region.

CoorsTek was among 12 organizations that were highlighted at the event, but one of only five to receive the Director’s Award for Chemical Safety. CoorsTek was in excellent company; the other four winning organizations were Sam-Yang, SK Materials, Hyundai Motor, and Samsung.

According to plant manager BW Han, the Gumi team delivered outstanding results thanks to the steps they have taken to prevent the leakage of hazardous chemicals into nearby bodies of water.

“We established a mobile-based wireless network to keep materials from flowing into the rivers here, and developed strong evacuation plans to keep workers and local residents safe if we are faced with an emergency,” he said.

CoorsTek Vice President of Environmental Health, Safety, Sustainability, and Security Scott Dolan congratulated the team and expressed pride in their accomplishment.

“CoorsTek is committed to being a safe, environmentally friendly and socially responsible company,” he said. “Our EHS teams worldwide take this responsibility seriously. We’re proud of the great work they’re doing in Gumi and pleased with the steps they are taking to create a safe environment.”

ST. LOUIS (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — “At Complete Warehouse Supply (CWS), we design our supply chain lines to be flexible to respond to our customers’ needs,” said Dustin McGuire, CEO, Complete Warehouse Supply. “Heartland Steel’s safety products are a great addition to our growing inventory and can easily be matched with our ready-made and in-stock racking solutions to offer our customers a one-stop-shop experience.”

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland – The Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE), the world’s leading professional society for fire protection and fire safety engineering, the International Code Council (ICC), the leading global source of model building codes and standards and building safety solutions, and Springer, a leading global scientific and technical publisher, announce the release of a new engineering guide: “Fire Safety for Very Tall Buildings.”

The 2021 edition of “Fire Safety for Very Tall Buildings” provides information on the fire safety performance of tall, very tall, and super tall buildings. Topics featured in the engineering guide include emergency egress, fire resistance, building envelope, suppression, detection, alarms, and smoke control, with new guidance on considerations for existing buildings, energy storage systems, aerial vehicle platforms, and unique building features such as observation decks and fireworks displays. Additional information in the guide consists of performance-based design and international practices.

“We know that very tall buildings impose unique fire protection challenges and require new engineering solutions above and beyond traditional methods,” stated Nicole Boston, CAE, Chief Executive Officer, Society of Fire Protection Engineers. “This engineering guide provides fire safety engineers and fire protection professionals with specific and necessary engineering principles to overcome the challenges of fire and to protect very tall buildings, their occupants, and first responders.”

As leaders in engineering a fire-safe world, SFPE provides rapid dissemination of the most recent and advanced work in fire protection engineering, fire science, and the social/human dimensions of fire. Recently published books in the SFPE book series include “Fire Safety for Very Tall Buildings” and the 2021 “International Handbook of Structural Fire Engineering,” with additional titles forthcoming. Added to the expertise of the Code Council in model codes, standards and building safety solutions, and Springer’s scientific and technology experience, the new publication provides a tool for all fire safety and design professionals all over the world.

“The population growth of many urban centers in numerous countries and the increase in the number of super-tall buildings being built have necessitated advances in fire protection engineering and associated technologies,” said Beth Tubbs, PE, FSFPE, ICC Senior Staff Engineer and incoming SFPE President. “The second edition of “Fire Safety for Very Tall Buildings,” is an excellent product of the partnership between SFPE, ICC and Springer Publishing and provides critical guidance for engineers and fire safety professionals.”

The new “Fire Safety for Very Tall Buildings” is available for prices beginning at $109.00, with an additional 40% discount to SFPE members, and the standard ICC member price discounts. The 276-page guide is available in various formats from SFPE and ICC. Institutional licensing options are available to academic, government, and corporate entities from SFPE.

“Springer Nature is very pleased to publish the Fire Safety for Very Tall Buildings Engineering Guide, second edition, making this important work available in print and electronically through the extensive SpringerLink platform,” remarked Michael Luby, Senior Editor and Publisher Liaison, Springer.  “This marks an important milestone in our strategic collaboration with the Society and its affiliates.”

A complete table of contents, purchase options, and additional information is available from SFPE at sfpe.org or from ICC at shop.iccsafe.org.

However, statistics show that construction is still one of the most hazardous occupations with 20% of all worker deaths occurring on US construction sites in 2019 – the highest number in any sector. Non-fatal injuries are also a real risk. Accidents often involve heavy machinery and vehicles, which have numerous blind spots that limit operators’ visibility, and greatly increase the danger of collision with those working on the ground.

With the number of construction sites increasing, more people than ever will be working with, and around, construction vehicles and mobile machinery. It is vital that every precaution is taken to prioritize the safety of all those on site.

The introduction of commercial vehicle safety systems, such as cameras, alarms, sensors, and vehicle CCTV, have revolutionized the driver and operator experience. These include Brigade’s best-selling Backeye®360, which provides a real-time 360-degree surround view of a vehicle in a single image. This system provides the driver with instant visibility of the numerous blind spots found on large vehicles, allowing operators to quickly see and react to hazards on the ground. This is especially useful on construction sites where drivers are regularly required to perform low-speed maneuvers in challenging situations.

Vehicles present a significant risk to construction workers and back over incidents are a real concern. Currently, “beep beep” style reversing alarms are still used widely around the world. However, White Sound® reversing alarms provide a much safer alternative. These alarms emit a multi frequency “shh-shh” sound which is more easily detectable by pedestrians and ground workers, allowing them to easily locate where and in what direction a vehicle is reversing – even while wearing hearing protection or working in noisy conditions.

As the country prepares for a building boom, construction companies should ensure that worksite safety remains the top priority for everyone concerned. While technology alone will not solve this issue, it will certainly go a long way towards mitigating hazards and preventing deaths and injuries. ]]> 2051378 https://csengineermag.com/leea-to-host-lifting-and-safety-in-ports-and-maritime-zoom-event/ Thu, 23 Sep 2021 16:00:12 +0000 https://live-cs-engineer-magazine.pantheonsite.io/?p=2050381 The Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA) will host the Lifting and Safety in Ports and Maritime event on 26 October 2021 via Zoom. The free to attend event will be joined by Richard Steele from ICHCA International Cargo Handling Coordination Association, as well as LEEA colleagues who will be delving into safety issues surrounding work around ports and maritime organizations.

Lifting and Safety in Ports and Maritime is open to anyone who will find this event helpful or works in the ‘wet logistics’ industry, including the maritime and ports sectors. LEEA will be focusing on lifting equipment used in these settings. Ross Moloney, CEO of LEEA said: “The event aims to start conversations between LEEA Members and end users, particularly those further up the supply chain, to share knowledge around lifting safely and make sure that normal practice is best practice.”

For more information and to register, contact: events@leeaint.com.