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City Makes Construction Safety A Major Priority

Faced with a rash of fatal construction accidents, the New York Department of Buildings and the City Council are developing new regulations to make worksites safer.

By Diane Greer

OSHA inspectors believe construction accidents are the result of a lack of training, risk perception and supervision.

During the jump of a tower crane at 303 E. 51st St. in March, something went terribly wrong and seven people were killed. Preliminary findings indicate that a steel collar intended to attach the crane to the building fell, damaging a lower steel collar anchoring the crane at the ninth floor.

Without the ninth-floor support, the crane collapsed, demolishing a townhouse and damaging adjacent structures.

On May 30 a second tower crane collapsed at 335 E. 91st St., killing two workers and damaging a building across the street. A defective weld in the crane’s turntable, which connects the cab to the crane, is the suspected cause of the accident.

Earlier this year a laborer fell to his death while pouring concrete at 246 Spring St.

During the first six months of 2008, falls, the leading cause of accidents at city construction sites, claimed the lives of nine workers, says Richard Mendelson, area director for OSHA’s Manhattan office.

Construction fatalities are up markedly this year, with 20 workers total killed during the first six months, compared to 15 in all of 2007, according to OSHA statistics.

“It is a major challenge to try to find something systemic in the recent increase,” says Richard Anderson, New York Building Congress president. “It could simply be an aberration. A couple of serious accidents really spike the data.”

Mendelson says the root causes of many construction accidents can be attributed to a lack of training, risk perception and supervision. He adds that in four recent accidents, where falls either seriously injured or killed a worker, “the employee was wearing a harness but wasn’t tied off.”

Each accident was different, he added. Either the safety rules were not properly enforced; the employee did not perceive the need to be tied off; a proper anchorage was not available; or the employee was moving from point to point, which was not anticipated.

“Someone is dropping the ball,” he adds. “It is the employer’s responsibility to make worksites safe and enforce safety regulations.”

Forensic investigations are under way to determine the causes of recent accidents. Meanwhile, in an effort to improve oversight strategies, DOB is investing $4 million to assess three high-risk construction areas, concrete operations, excavations and crane operations. Outside technical resources are working with the department to identify problems, says Robert LiMandri, acting building commissioner.

The team is employing unannounced inspections to gather data and is comparing local code requirements with other jurisdictions. “Coupling those two processes, we will be able to come up with good recommendations on how we make construction sites safer,” LiMandri says.

New Crane Regulations

As the assessments progress, DOB is proposing new regulations as soon as the need is clear. “We cannot wait,” LiMandri says.

After the crane collapse in March, DOB issued new regulations requiring a building inspector to be present during the erection, jumping and dismantling of all tower cranes. After a review of jumps from March 25 to May 16, the department revised its protocols. Rather than witnessing all crane jumps, DOB is conducting random, unannounced visits to verify enforcement of safety procedures.

Additional regulations proposed by DOB need to be codified into law. On June 4 the City Council introduced a 13-point legislative agenda incorporating the new regulations.

Proposed legislation will require general contractors erecting or dismantling tower cranes to submit plans detailing procedures, to conduct safety meetings and to submit inspection reports. Workers must complete a 30-hour safety course before participating in rigging operations. The legislation also places restrictions on the use of nylon slings.

Subsequent changes announced by LiMandri will require owners and users of tower cranes to maintain inspection, repair and maintenance records.

LiMandri also recommended that OSHA adopt new crane regulations formulated in July 2004 by representatives from the industry, labor unions, crane manufacturers and safety experts. The current regulations were created in 1971.

After a spate of crane accidents around the country, OSHA indicated it would publish the proposed regulations in August. But the White House subsequently said no new rules could be published after June 1.

Beyond Cranes

City legislation proposed on June 4 extends beyond cranes. It requires general contractors to register for safety control numbers prior to obtaining building permits; mandates concrete safety managers on jobsites; reclassifies certain housekeeping violations, such as poor site maintenance, as immediate hazards; and permits DOB to assign project safety monitors to sites with multiple immediate hazard violations.

The New York Building Congress’ Anderson and others question the need for new regulations. “This is a safe industry with an excellent record,” Anderson says. “I think it is about enforcing what already exists, not layering on additional reviews, inspections and procedures.”

Louis Coletti, president of the Building Trades Employers’ Association, expresses concern that DOB is at risk of collapsing under the weight of its own reform. “The inspectors do the best job they can, but they are undertrained, underpaid and do not have the technical expertise required in many instances to perform the kinds of new policies the department is moving forward on,” Coletti says.

LiMandri points to support from the City Council and the mayor, who recently announced $5.3 million in additional funding for DOB to hire 63 new inspectors. Since 2002, DOB’s headcount has increased from 800 to more than 1,300, with inspectors increasing from 250 to 400.

The industry is currently working with DOB to review the regulatory framework and identify new means and methods, Coletti says. Discussions are also under way with the City Council on revisions to proposed legislation.

In July, the industry formed the New York City Construction Industry Safety Council, a privately funded group dedicated to enhancing construction safety. CICS intends to provide a forum for industry members to share ideas and best practices and to conduct research on how to implement those practices in the city.

CICS will first explore the development of a database, akin to the CARFAX Vehicle History Reports, to document the maintenance records of tower cranes, Coletti says. “The project is intended to compliment what DOB, OSHA and other government agencies are doing,” he adds. “This is going to be a collaborative effort.”

LiMandri says: “Right now it is all about coming together. We are all on the same page. I am really optimistic that we will see positive change in the way construction sites are regulated.”