No abstract

No abstract

PurposeConstruction work involves high-risk activities and requires intense focus and physical exertion. Accordingly, working conditions at construction sites contribute to physical fatigue and mental stress in workers, which is the primary cause of accidents. This study aims to examine the relation between construction accidents and physiological variables, indicative of physical fatigue and mental stress.Design/methodology/approachFour different real-time physiological values of the construction workers were measured including blood sugar level (BSL), electrodermal activity (EDA), heart rate (HR) and skin temperature (ST). The data were collected from 21 different workers during the summer and winter seasons. Both seasonal and hourly correlation analyses were performed between the construction accidents and the four physiological variables gathered.FindingsThe analysis results demonstrate that BSL values of the workers are correlated inversely with construction accidents taking place before lunch break. In addition, except BSL a significant seasonal association between the physiological variables and construction accidents was found.Originality/valueIt is disclosed that variations in physiological risk factors at certain working periods pose a high risk for construction workers. Therefore, efficient work-cycle rests can be arranged to provide frequent but short breaks for workers to overcome such issues. Besides, an early warning system could be introduced to monitor the real-time physiological values of the workers.

As occupational accidents usually occur due to unsafe human behaviours in the construction industry, safety training is inevitably necessary for site personnel. On construction sites, various training methods including traditional and innovative ones, have been adopted to prevent accidents. In recent years, virtual safety training has been more prevalent because of providing highly engaging practice in a risk-free environment. Although these training tools have innumerable advantages in providing safety knowledge and awareness, they can be further improved. This study introduces a virtual safety training tool, V-SAFE.v2, to provide a more reliable and effective safety training for high-risk construction works. V-SAFE.v2 consists of three main modules; i) Training Module, ii) Testing Module 1, and iii) Testing Module 2. These modules are generated firstly to provide safety training for scaffolding and formwork activities and then to evaluate the safety performance of the trainees. An experiment was conducted with fifteen construction workers and ten engineers to measure the effectiveness of the training tool. The findings showed that V-SAFE.v2 is a reliable safety training tool for high-risk construction tasks as it supports collaboration, provides individual feedback, and repeatable practice. Also, the participants stated that V-SAFE.v2 has a great potential to reduce the falling from height accidents in the construction workplaces.