Construction safety: Economics, information and management involvement

In order to induce top management of construction companies in Israel to become involved in safety, the present research undertook to prove that in Israel, too, uninsured accident costs are very high. Through indepth interviews of 50 site managers concerning 210 accidents, complementary interviews with other officials in construction and insurance companies, study of records, and conduct of direct observations of accidents after they occurred, a conclusion contradicting the accepted view in insurance circles is reached. The research establishes that uninsured costs in construction companies with an average safety performance record amount to a mere 0.76% of the payroll. In a parallel research in large, developed companies in the USA, existing safety measurement methods feeding the information system were studied.