The number of accidents per 1,000 workers in the construction industry fell from 198 in 1999 to 57 last year, while the figure for public works contracts dropped from 56 to 17, the Environment, Transport & Works Bureau says. However, the number of fatal accidents rose almost 30% from 21 in 2004 to 27 last year.

Officiating at the Considerate Contractors Site Award Scheme 2005 presentation ceremony today, Acting Permanent Secretary for the Environment, Transport & Works (Works) Mak Chai-kwong said there has been a remarkable improvement in construction site safety since the launch of the scheme in 1995. He said such remarkable achievements could not have been possible without the concerted efforts of all parties.

"We must continue to strive to better our performance. Our target is to further lower the number of accidents as well as their severity to a level comparable with that of the elite of the developed countries," Mr Mak said.

Construction design, management

The bureau has been promoting the concept of construction design and management (CDM). It is a risk assessment and management tool that enables the project team to systemically identify and deal with safety hazards throughout project delivery, from preliminary design to project completion.

"We have adopted the use of CDM in a number of pilot projects for trial since 2003. So far, feedback from project teams has been very encouraging, and the pilot projects have been running smoothly with a good safety performance. The next step is to identify more public works projects to use CDM, and to promote its use in non-government projects by setting an example for the industry to follow," Mr Mak said.

The Considerate Contractors Site Award promotes safe construction practices. A total of 135 entries were received for the 2005 scheme. Of them, 38 get the Considerate Contractors Site Award - 17 from public works projects and 21 from the non-public works sector, while 21 get the Outstanding Waste Management Performance Grand Award.