Development and Initial Validation of Sustainable Construction Safety and Health Rating System

This paper presents a study to develop and validate a sustainable construction safety and health (SCSH) rating system. The rating system provides an opportunity to rate projects based on the importance given to construction worker safety and health and the degree of implementation of safety and health elements. A Delphi survey using an expert panel of 12 experienced safety and health professionals representing different sectors of the construction industry was employed to develop the SCSH rating system. The study resulted in a rating system consisting of a total of 50 safety and health elements organized into 13 categories. Each category contains safety and health elements which carry credits based on their effectiveness in preventing construction worker injuries and illnesses. The rating system was initially validated based on data from 25 construction projects and found to accurately represent the safety performance of large projects. The SCSH rating system can be used as an effective tool to develop and plan construction safety and health programs and evaluate the potential safety performance of construction projects.