By Kevin Leamy, Operations Support Manager
Are you ready if a disaster strikes? Does your company have a plan to address emergencies on the jobsite? Are your tradespeople prepared and familiar with emergency procedures? Who is supposed to do what? How long is it going to take for your operations to return to normal? Don’t wait for a setback to take place to get answers to these questions. Taking control of risk management is key for the construction safety of your workers and the success of your projects. Other than getting strong construction skills, your organization needs to also focus on building a solid construction site emergency plan.
Proactivity vs. Reactivity
Big or small, emergencies on a construction site can take place anytime. That being said, what is going to help your organization minimize the effects of a setback is being prepared for it. Having a construction site emergency plan in place allows you to be proactive and better protect your tradespeople from getting hurt. For example, is there a procedure in case you have a fire onsite? Where should your workers meet if they need to evacuate the site? Don’t wait to get answers on the day things go wrong. Be proactive in determining the actions that your crews need to take during a crisis and make sure they step out unharmed.
More Safety
The best way for tradespeople to improve their construction skills is through practice. The same is true for their safety. Having a construction site emergency plan is a great way to maintain and strengthen the construction safety of your workforce. Once you establish the right emergency procedures, you need to test them and make sure they work. The best way to do this is through ongoing safety training. The more familiar your tradespeople become with the emergency action plan, the more prepared they are for the unexpected and the less risk they are going to face.
Improved Teamwork
Let’s assume that an accident takes place on your construction jobsite. Who is responsible to contact the emergency response authorities? Who is assigned to manage the evacuation process? As you put a construction site emergency plan in place, you need to assign responsibilities and duties to individuals within your team. This promotes their role in the company and increases accountability across borders. It also creates a level of trust between management and employees as they realize that they depend on each other in case a crisis strikes. Your team needs to work together to safeguard their well-being.
Back to Productivity
According to OSHA, nearly 40% of businesses that experience a disaster never reopen. The reason is that they don’t have procedures in place to overcome setbacks. To make sure that your company doesn’t fall into this category, you must be ready to get your operations back on track as fast as possible in case an incident occurs. Having a construction site emergency plan serves exactly this purpose. It allows your organization to survive a difficult situation, as wells as quickly recover after a breakdown. It starts by training your workers on how to properly act and limit a crisis, and it includes all the necessary structural steps to resume operations.
Ahead of Competition
Construction projects are collective tasks. They involve many moving pieces as well as different parties. If a piece is missing or a party fails, the entire project is put in jeopardy. When accidents occur, schedules and deadlines are in danger. Large businesses want to avoid such pain by working with contractors who are prepared to address emergencies and keep their operations going. If you don’t have a construction site emergency plan that helps you address interruptions, you run the risk of losing business to competitors who offer more security and confidence to clients.
Key Takeaways for Why Your Construction Site Needs An Emergency Action Plan:
- Implementing an emergency plan enables you to have control of a crisis
- Ongoing training for emergencies increases construction safety standards
- A construction site emergency plan is a great way to promote team spirit
- Being prepared for emergencies allows you to quickly resume operations
- Having a construction site emergency plan gives your clients confidence to work with you
About TradeSource
Founded in 1993, TradeSource is a construction labor solutions firm focused on delivering labor solutions to contractors throughout the United States. By supplying skilled tradespeople – where and when they’re needed – we help contractors grow their companies, without the associated costs and hassles of full-time hires. Likewise, we match qualified employees with rewarding and well-paying job opportunities in the construction industry. www.tradesource.com
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