An information approach for enhancing the health and safety file

Today in the construction industry, buildings are becoming increasingly complex and sophisticated. Efficient monitoring, control, operation, maintenance, repair and refurbishment of these buildings require a great deal of information about the facilities to be handed over to the client/end user. Clients need to identify the information they will need from the project participants, instruct them to provide it. Typically, construction projects miss these aspects. Important documentation and information is produced very late in the project life cycle and often to an inadequate standard for the business needs of the client/end user.This thesis is about handover information that is passed to the client/end user of any building at the end of the construction works. It uses the CDM regulations health and safety file as a base for developing handover information management strategy. This strategy will be used by the client/end user to identify and manage the handover information needed for operation and maintenance purposes.The business requirements of the handover information have been identified. This was done by literature review, reviewing some published and a number of in house company guidance notes for the preparation of the health and safety file, reviewing some health and safety files and interviews with some project participants.The handover information activity model developed using the modelling method IDEFO. This model is used to describe how to collect the handover information and provide a description of the overall handover process. Also, it was used as the base for producing the handover information model.The handover information model is an integrated information infrastructure to define and provide the information needed to operate and control the activities produced from the activity model. The information model was implemented using the EXPRESS-G methodology.A prototype database, called e-safety, was produced to demonstrate a practical application of the activity and information models principles and to facilitate the verification of these model. Microsoft Access 2002 was used to create this prototype database.The models were validated by a number of experts in the CDM regulations field and are participating in preparing, issuing guidance notes for the preparation of the health and safety file and using the health and safety files.Implementing the handover information management strategy helps in the forward planning of information requirements by the client/end user, produces a structured approach to the handover information process and increases the efficiency and effectiveness of the handover information process.