Review of construction employer case studies of safety and health equipment interventions

This paper presents a review of 153 case studies of equipment interventions to improve safety and health of construction businesses in Ohio in 2003-2016. These represent $6.46 million (2016 USD) in purchases incentivized through the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (OHBWC) Safety Intervention Grant (SIG) program. The source data in the review were extracted from employer grant applications and final reports of the case studies. Results were aggregated by type of construction equipment and included the reduction in safety and ergonomic hazards (risk factors for work-related musculoskeletal disorders), and an assessment of the quality of the case studies as determined through criteria established by the authors. Equipment associated with greatest reduction in risk factors and with case studies of higher quality were electrical cable feeding/pulling systems, concrete sawing equipment, skid steer attachments for concrete breaking, and manlifts (boom lifts). This review illustrates challenges in demonstrating efficacy of equipment interventions to improve construction safety/health-even from case studies within a structured health/safety program. The authors are aware of no other systematic review of case studies reporting on experiences with health/safety intervention equipment specific to the construction industry.