{"id":14607,"date":"2023-03-25T14:41:59","date_gmt":"2023-03-25T21:41:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/construction-execs-discuss-future-of-safety-technology\/"},"modified":"2023-03-25T14:41:59","modified_gmt":"2023-03-25T21:41:59","slug":"construction-execs-discuss-future-of-safety-technology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/construction-execs-discuss-future-of-safety-technology\/","title":{"rendered":"Construction execs discuss future of safety technology"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Construction executives pinpointed a shift from lagging to leading safety indicators enabled by technology during a 2023 New York Build Conference panel session.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it comes to safety, we only think of it when something happens. Those indicators are lagging safety indicators in the accident,\u201d said Mark Drozdov, an environmental health and safety industry expert and university professor at The Cooper Union, a New York City-based private college. \u201cThe fact is, it\u2019s the leading indicators that we need to focus on. I was very impressed by some of the technology that\u2019s available out there on those specifically.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The construction industry traditionally analyzes labor safety in terms of total recordable incident or experience modifier rates. That\u2019s an issue, because both of those ratings look backward at accidents, and are not the best way to prevent future accidents, said Drozdov.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur industry is used to evaluating numbers that really represent events that already took place,\u201d said Dana Kfir, director of customer success at Otoos, a New York-based artificial intelligence firm. \u201cSafety, unfortunately, is looked at as a checkbox, you have to just do compliance and that\u2019s it.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Leading safety indicators<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

That could soon change as contractors increasingly explore technology that identifies leading safety indicators \u2014 ones that look into the future with an eye toward prevention \u2014 at jobsites.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

For example, Otoos uses algorithms to identify <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>high risk behavior patterns<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> beforehand and automates proactive safety decisions in real time, according to Kfir. The product collects data from on site via mobile apps, sensors and smart cameras. The technology helps teams foster a culture of safety, quality control and data driven decision-making, said Kfir.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Data collection via apps, cameras and sensors marks the initial step in understanding why accidents happen, said Kyle Becker, director of construction at Carmel Partners, a San Francisco-based real estate investment management company.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Yet combining meaningful data from a wide range of sources into actionable takeaways, and then sending those results to a construction team open to adapt its methodology, remains the most challenging aspect of using labor safety-focused technology, said Becker.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not going to get where you need to be unless people are committed to the process and feeding in good data,\u201d said Becker. \u201cThen you can really learn and understand what you\u2019re doing well on that project and evaluate your jobsites and your subcontractors, not just based on ratings or some other criteria, but on live data that you\u2019re feeding into a system.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A sea of data<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

Nevertheless, those leading accident indicators are moving targets, said <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>Linda Martin, principal at Boston-based construction safety consultancy KLME Martin Associates. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

She added while the technology continues to improve, the challenge remains to accurately identify valuable leading indicators. That\u2019s because these behavioral patterns frequently change.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat usually happens is there\u2019s so many leading indicators you\u2019re looking at, that it\u2019s hard to pick one, or pick two or pick three,\u201d said Martin. \u201cThat\u2019s something that technology is doing now, is that they\u2019re bringing all of these leading indicators and they\u2019re making it easier so you can actually gather that data.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Tracking subs and safety<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

Getting that piece right is critical, since future use cases of this tech could include leveraging those leading indicators to assess subcontractors\u2019 performance as well, said Becker.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe next step we see is rolling out safety first and then evaluating the quality of subcontractors,\u201d said Becker. \u201cLet\u2019s evaluate the efficiency of our subcontractors, the speed in which they\u2019re moving at, put metrics to that and allow ourselves to evaluate our decision making that speaks more than just to an EMR. That quantification is that next data point that we\u2019re searching for. That will come naturally as we all buy into it.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n