There are certain high-risk jobs in construction that we always want to succeed in. Life-saving safety practices and actions emphasize the importance of high-risk jobs.
Zero-accident programs in construction companies have yielded excellent results: work techniques, organization, and expertise are much better than in previous years. When work is planned, trained, and implemented in a controlled manner, everything runs smoothly. Yet fatal accidents still occur in construction.
Everyone makes mistakes, and yet they can't be forgiven.
Humans are fallible and everyone makes mistakes. Human errors related to construction safety can be divided into three groups:
- Errors related to doing familiar work: Activities are routine and almost unconscious. This can lead to incorrect actions or forgetting things, even though the intention is right.
- Errors based on following rules: A person applies rules, instructions, and operating models learned at work, but chooses the wrong rule or applies the right rule to the wrong situation. The error is then related to decision-making, not to the performance of the work.
- Knowledge-based errors: An error occurs when the situation is new, complex, or unclear and the rules are not ready. In this case, the knowledge is insufficient or the situation itself is assessed incorrectly.
Legislation requires hazard identification and risk management as part of work planning. The aim is to reduce human error. The plans must also be communicated to all those involved in the work and their implementation monitored.
Higher weight must be given to high-risk jobs
The most serious accidents typically occur in situations where a person is exposed to high energy, such as moving vehicles or lifting loads. In these situations, a person can obviously be the underdog. The following lessons can be learned from serious accidents:
- Prevent falls. The primary method is to completely eliminate the risk of people and objects falling, and the secondary method is to use guardrails and other technical solutions. Personal fall protection is used as a last resort.
- Plan and manage lifting operations, whether done manually or mechanically.
- Disconnect from energy. Before installation and repair work, machines and equipment must be safely disconnected from all energy sources, such as electricity and hydraulics.
- Use vehicles and machinery in a controlled manner. It is important to try to avoid collisions between vehicles and people. Only competent and authorized persons should use machinery.
- Keep people out of the danger zone. Avoid working in areas where there is a risk of exposure to moving earth, loads, elements, machinery or pressure release.
Incorporate vital safety practices into your daily routines
Our attitude has a strong influence on how successful we are – in every case. When we understand that accidents can have irreversible consequences, it gives us the motivation to act. Even if our attitude is in order, people are forgetful. That is why we need reminders. Since a mistake can also be due to a lack of knowledge, we need training and review of things.
In general, work management is achieved by identifying hazards and creating measures to manage risks, educating them and ensuring their implementation.
There is no room for fatal mistakes in high-risk work. Therefore, whenever vital safety practices are not being implemented, work cannot begin. Unsafe work must be stopped, and everyone has not only the right but also the obligation to do so. The new materials from the Construction Industry RT guide and remind builders of vital safety practices.
Every accident is preventable. It is therefore important for everyone to adopt and follow life-saving safety practices.
We will be publishing the construction industry's essential safety practices on Monday, May 4, 2026, as part of Safety Week. See Monday's security guard recording, where Nordkalk's Production Director Jussi Puustinen and the Finnish Building Construction Industry Association's safety expert Henri Litmanen will tell you more about the topic.
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