In Finland proper, there have already been competitions in construction work safety 28 times. Asunto Oy Naantalin Pressa was awarded as the safest construction site of 2018.
Peab is rightly proud of winning the occupational safety competition. The company's staff is committed to complying with the OHSAS 18001 standard regarding the occupational health and safety (OHS) system, and safety has been internalized to guide all of the company's activities.
"Naantali Pressa's award is proof of the whole site's good attitude towards safe construction. At Peab, we are satisfied that the continuous investment in the development of occupational safety can be seen in practice on our sites. One of our three strategic goals is to be the best place to work. It includes a safe and healthy work environment. Our absolute goal is that every employee goes home healthy after the work day. We are also committed to the national zero-accident goal by 2020," says Peab Oy's Turku unit manager Petri Valkeinen.
Veijo Holopainen, occupational health and safety representative of the Pressa site in Naantali, responsible foreman Juuso Lilja and Turku unit manager of Peab Oy Petri Valkeinen.
Occupational safety requires the right attitude and practical actions
On a national level, the frequency of accidents and the number of serious accidents in the construction industry have decreased significantly over the past 15 years. In the fall of 2017, there was news about an increase in the accident frequency, which is at least partially seen to be due to the rapid increase in the volume of construction.
"We are happy that in connection with the growth of the Turku unit, we have been able to improve occupational safety and the attitude model of a safe working environment. It is not only our own personnel, but also the attitude of subcontractors that is important at our sites. We oblige all subcontractors to follow our company's occupational safety and environmental guidelines," says Petri Valkeinen.
"In order to maintain and improve occupational safety, we implement many preventive measures. We monitor occupational safety with a weekly TR measurement, which is a common method of observing occupational safety in the construction industry. We have introduced electronic software to facilitate the making of safety observations. We challenge our personnel to think about occupational safety during the annual occupational safety week and other safety-themed events. We systematically train our personnel. Accidents, near misses and safety observations are analyzed and reported on. With systematization, cleanliness, the right attitude and knowledge, the safety of construction sites improves even more. We want to continue and develop this work in the future as well, because we want to be good builders", sums up Valkeinen.
Background of occupational safety competitions
There is also national competition in occupational safety. The "Safety starts with me" competition is open to all building construction companies, including non-member companies of Talonrakennus-teollisuus ry. The evaluation criteria in the competition are the general safety level of the construction site evaluated with the TR meter (80%) and the number of work accidents at the competition construction site (20%). In the 2018 national competition, a historic result of one hundred points was achieved for the first time. The victory of the national competition went to Vantaa.
In Finland proper, an occupational safety competition between building construction companies has been organized since 1991. Last year, the rules of the national competition were used for the first time in the regional competition.
For more information:
- Esa Laine, Area of responsibility for occupational health and safety at the Regional Administrative Agency, 029 501 8153
- Kimmo Lang, Building Construction Industry Association, 050 595 6422
- Jouni Ruotsalainen, Rakennusliitto ry, 050 369 9922