Factors influencing dfs adoption: The case of Malaysian construction organisations

Despite the introduction of the Occupational Safety and Health in Construction Industry (Management) (OSHCIM) guidelines in 2017, little is known about the factors contributing to Design for Safety (DfS) adoption in the Malaysian construction industry. Previous studies have identified three main groups of factors for DfS implementation - organisational factors, industry related factors and external factors. To understand the DfS factors in the local Malaysian context, a gap analysis was conducted through an online questionnaire survey during four series of DfS webinars. The findings suggest that legislation, guidelines, training, client influence, and incentives were among the top five significant factors identified by construction organizations. This indicates that a strong regulatory and educational framework is crucial in promoting DfS. The study also found that different types of organizations may prioritize different factors in adopting DfS practices based on their specific needs and motivations. Understanding these factors would enable key duty holders to manage DfS more effectively throughout project lifecycles. This research contributes to the discourse on the promises of DfS as a preventive practice to improve safety and health performance in the Malaysian construction industry.