A Clean Job Site is a Happy Job Site
Posted by jondavis on Thursday, 29 of November , 2007 at 8:01 am
Unlike commercial construction which has clear safety regulations that must be followed, residential construction has few, if any, formal safety procedures. It amazes me how many residential work sites are hazardous. From my informal surveys, it appears that more than half of all workers don’t even use safety glasses, which I consider a no-brainer. Between nail guns, skill saws, and other power tools, there are all kinds of projectiles flying around the job site. Add to that all the stationary dangers such as wire, nails, splinters, chunks of concrete just lying in wait to jump out and bite the unwary worker or visitor. Steel toed work boots, leather gloves and ear plugs should be standard tools of the trade, in my opinion. Why so many contractors don’t insist on workers protecting themselves with these things is something I have never understood.
Cluttered job sites are an accident waiting to happen. There could be negative ramifications if your builder lets the job site turn into a chaotic mess. One of your builder’s top priorities is to reduce the chances for injury at your job site. In spite of having Workers Compensation Insurance, you and your builder could become embroiled in a lawsuit if someone would get seriously injured at 
your site and that could have huge negative consequences.
In the builders contract that we offer to our customers, there is a clause that stipulates that the builder will do a daily cleanup of the work area and also a weekly major job site cleanup. In addition to making the site safer, a clean, organized job site creates a positive work environment and a more pleasant tone. People seem to take more care and do better work when they see that the builder cares enough about the project to keep it clean.
Many people like to stop and look at homes under construction, especially over the week ends, and they have less experience navigating over the obstacles, especially with young children in tow. Teens have been known to visit job sites at night when obstacles are even less obvious. Most residential job sites aren’t fenced, so anyone can “visit” at any time, which leaves your builder, and you, exposed to problems.
The photo below shows a foundation crew at work, illustrating another one of my pet peeves. Notice the numerous pieces of sharp rebar sticking up from the concrete without safety caps (like the orange ones in the top photo). The man in the center of this bottom photo, like the man in the photo on the left, is directing the flow of concrete from the large pumper hose which is connected to a cement truck. When concrete is flowing through the hose, it’s heavy and can move around unpredictably. 
With holes and obstacles everywhere on the ground, one wrong move and an eye is lost forever or a worker could be injured or killed by falling on the unprotected rebar. This is a very dangerous situation.
When you visit your home (or any other home) under construction and you notice safety issues such as this, speak up! It’s easy for builders to become too casual about safety when they are around job sites every day. Even the most experienced construction workers can slip and fall, and visitors to your job site are at even greater risk. It’s in everyone’s best interest to be aware of job site dangers and being diligent about this can prevent injury.
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Category: Construction
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