The competition between construction sites in the building industry for last year's safest site in the Satakunta region has been resolved. In 2023, there was a nationwide competition and the winner of Satakunta made it to the national competition.
Astora-Rakennus Oy and the Noormarku fire station construction site, completed in the fall of 2023, won the work safety competition in the Satakunta area organized by the Building Construction Industry, Rakennusliitto and the Regional Administration Office's area of responsibility for occupational health and safety.
Astora's victory can also be said to mark the 20th anniversary of the Satakunta district's occupational safety competition, as the competition was first held in the region in 2004. The last time Astora was able to claim the victory in that competition was in 2017 from the occupational safety team at Vanhankylä Koulu's site. Astoran was announced for the 2023 competition by the responsible foreman of the Noormarku fire station site Mikko as Yrja. A funny nuance after registering for the competition was that even the site organization itself forgot that they had registered for the competition. When the information about the win was announced, the Regional Manager of the Building Construction Industry Katja Suovon by the CEO of Astora Building Mika Rajamäki, he was positively surprised:
"Participating in the competition came as a surprise, but the win in itself was not a surprise, because occupational safety is an important part of the quality of the Astora building. However, occupational safety is not the sum of individual factors, but good occupational safety is part of the cooperation of all actors involved in the construction project. In my opinion, thanks go to the customer, supervisors, designers, various contractors and, of course, the builders, i.e. the construction professionals," praises Rajamäki.
Occupational safety as a central value of the company
When the news of the win reached the responsible foreman Mikko Yrjänän, Yrjänän's first comment tells how occupational safety is treated at Astora:
"Yes, I could completely forget about being in the competition, and there was nothing so-called about it at the construction site in the beginning. number done. It's really great to notice that on our so-called basic level, i.e. how we operate every day on the construction site and take safety aspects into account, the victory came out. We do not have the so-called monitoring of occupational safety and measures to maintain it. activity glued on top, which would only be pursued if there was a carrot, i.e. participating in the race and winning in mind," Yrjänä explains after winning.
Astora's occupational health and safety representative and a timpuri who has worked at Astora since 1992 Jouni Suominen has seen how the field of occupational health and safety has changed and developed over the decades.
"When I started working as a carpenter at a young age, there were no helmets, no safety shoes - not to mention safety clothing. Work was done in open overalls with a jacket. They wore sneakers and wore caps on the construction sites. Fortunately, helmets with hearing and eye protection, as well as, of course, appropriate safety clothing and shoes have been in use for a long time."
According to Suominen, Astora always makes sure that everyone has the appropriate safety equipment and protective clothing with attention colors on the construction sites. New employees are introduced by the foreman, but of course everyone has an obligation to promote occupational safety in their workplace. Nowadays, trainings are also regularly attended.
At Astora, we are not satisfied with the existing - things are improved and developed together
At Astora, occupational safety is monitored at all sites with weekly TR measurements. Safety findings are carefully recorded. Yrjänä says that both at the Noormarkku fire station and at the other sites he manages, there is an open and forward-looking discussion with his own personnel about occupational safety and how to improve and develop in it. The aim is to share operating methods that have been found to be good - "Best practice" practices - also among other Astora foremen between the work sites.
"Our own staff boldly brings up occupational safety considerations and also intervenes and helps other workers on the site if the need arises. Routines are always born with repetitions and become well-established practices over time. I think it's great to notice that occupational safety at Astora is now an automatic part of everyday life on the construction site. That's how it should be. Of course, you can never be satisfied with what you have, but there is always something to develop and improve", sums up Yrjänä.
Occupational safety is a matter of attitude
According to Yrjänn, occupational safety and acting according to it is very much a matter of attitude. Safe working methods and the use of personal protective equipment are all for the benefit and safety of the individual and the entire construction site community, so that everyone can get home safely at the end of the working day.
"Although our own person has perfectly internalized the importance of safe working methods and the use of protective equipment, every now and then there are situations on the construction site where it is appropriate to remind some of those working on the site about safety aspects. So there is still work to be done with how to make all actors understand the importance of safety! At the site orientation, we as a contractor give the so-called tools and instructions for safe working as an individual and part of a community, but after this it is of course the individual's responsibility how and with what attitude the person puts these lessons into practice. But as this award shows, attitudes and understanding have been fine at the Noormarkku fire station. A big thank you for the good end result goes to our own professional staff and all operators at the construction site", praises Yrjänä.
Text: Heidi-Marja Paasi
In 2024, occupational safety will be competed for as a regional competition, in which all construction sites in the building construction industry, to which AVI makes an inspection visit during the calendar year, will participate.
More information
- Tuuli Harjunpää, Regional Administration Agency's area of responsibility for occupational health and safety, tuuli.harjunpaa@avi.fi
- Tarmo Keränen, Rakennusliitto ry, tarmo.keranen@rakennusliitto.fi
- Katja Suovo, Building Construction Industry Association, katja.suovo@rt.fi