CIF Safety Month 2023: How ADCO is prioritising Safety in Construction

Construction Safety Month this year focuses on controlling critical risks and what all of us working on building sites each day can do to reduce and eliminate them. “Just what are critical risks?” we hear you ask.

Critical risks refer to things like the movement and operation of plant and machinery around pedestrians, working at height, operating near hidden electrical cables or underground gas or water pipes.

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Safety is critical, whatever month it is

There is some form of risk in all industries, but construction is one where the risks come with consequences more serious than most. An accident on a construction site where team members are often working at height could result in injury, property damage, project delays, or worse.

The sobering reality is that falls from roofs, scaffolds or ladders are the leading cause of death in the Irish construction industry, accounting for 40% of all construction fatalities.

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Ask the critical questions about safety risks

The bottom line is that the more curious we all are about potential dangers on construction sites, the safer we’ll all be. That means asking the key questions:

• Do you know your critical risks?
• Are there controls in place to manage these risks?
• Are your colleagues aware of these risks?
• Are there controls in place to protect safety adequately?

Each person who walks through ADCO’s doors and onto sites up and down the country shares our devotion to one principle: that everyone who works with us or for us goes home safe every day.

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Our safety policy could be the difference between life and death

Having a strong safety policy in place doesn’t just help to protect the health and safety of construction workers, it instils an acceptance and understanding of its importance by all employees, as well as their voluntary, pro-active compliance. Promoting a health and safety culture means construction companies can create a safe and productive work environment for their employees.?

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The ADCO pledge to maximise Health and Safety

“ADCO Contracting will conduct all their activities in such a manner as to take foremost account of the Health and Safety of all of our employees, contractors and all those affected by the Company’s activities.”

We’ve put in place systems to identify hazards and associated risks, and to establish procedures for eliminating such risks, as well as ensuring that safe work processes are developed and implemented.?

Of course, psychological safety and protecting the mental health of the people who work with us has become more important than ever. Mental health is now a critical safety risk too with stress, depression or anxiety accounting for?27% of all work-related illnesses?in the construction industry.

It is also one of the reasons why we were the winner of the Excellence in Health & Safety award at the 2022 Irish Construction Industry Awards for our “Mind Your Mental Health” safety campaign.

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We’re A-rated for Safe-T

ADCO has achieved an A rating on?Safe-T-Cert for the procedures and structures we have in place to safeguard all our employees, contractors, people and property affected by our work.?Our safety record is one of the reasons why over 80% of our work is sourced from repeat business clients.

Safety should always be a top priority in the construction industry. By understanding construction safety statistics, maintaining safety standards and continuous improvement, and implementing safety measures and controls, construction and engineering contractors can collectively minimise the risks of accidents and injuries on the job site.

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For us, CIF Safety Month is a celebration of doing the right thing

Health and safety has become such a part of our culture at ADCO that sometimes we can forget why it’s so important, especially with zero safe man-hours lost to incidents or accidents on ADCO projects.

This month is an opportunity for the clients we have forged lasting relationships with, as well as the other contractors out there, to celebrate the hard work we put into prioritising our health and wellbeing all year round to build a stronger, safer industry together.

To mark CIF Safety Month, we’re communicating the importance of mindfulness around critical risks to all of our team members as well as our sub-contractors and visitors to our sites by way of pull-up banners on entrance. The banner highlights the variety of critical risks as well as the agenda for CIF Safety Month.

The return of the Big Pink Breakfast

We all know someone who’s been affected by cancer, so to tie in with CIF Safety Month and our celebration of doing the right thing, we held our own special fundraiser in support of the Irish Cancer Society and their Big Pink Breakfast Campaign.

We raised valuable funds for cancer research. Fundraising activities included guessing the weight of a cake, trivia quizzes, bra pong (yes, you read that right!) and a raffle.?

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Learn more about how ADCO does safety?

To learn more about our culture of Health and Safety click here or reach out to Robert and his Environmental Health & Safety team. We’re always happy to share new ideas and thinking on how we can raise the standards of health and safety protection in construction to even higher levels.

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For more information on CIF Safety Month, visit the Construction Industry Federation website.