Fluor Program For Construction Safety
At
The University Of
Florida
Mission
The
mission of the Fluor Program for Construction Safety is to acquire and
disseminate information on matters related to construction safety and health.
Purpose
The
primary purpose of the Program is to be the leader in construction safety
research and to advance our understanding of how projects can be completed
without injuries. Another purpose of the
Program is to educate graduates of the
About the Director 
About the program
Safety Affiliations of the Center 
Safety Education
Safety Research 
Contact Information
Photos
from the CIB Conference Held in Gainesville, Florida in March 2008
About the Director
Dr. Hinze has
published numerous trade and refereed articles on the subject of
construction safety and health. He
was honored in 2002 as the
The
Director of the Fluor Program for Construction Safety is Dr.
Jimmie Hinze. His introduction
to construction safety was as the safety director for a medium-sized
construction firm more than 35 years ago.
He has been an active researcher in the area of construction safety
since 1975 when he was working on is doctoral degree at
Fluor Program for Construction Safety
The mission
of the Fluor Program for Construction Safety is to utilize
the resources of both the University of
Florida and Fluor
Corporation to promote and improve construction technology and educational
opportunity. Our mission supports
research, development and implementation of leading edge technology, state of
the art education, consulting programs and products designed to improve safety
and health in the construction industry.
The goal is to develop a partnership which enhances construction productivity,
quality of work, and safety services within the construction and educational
community. The alliance of the
·
Promote and improve
the construction profession through the education and development of the body
of construction knowledge.
·
Promote integrity,
responsibility, and a strong ethical awareness in the students and construction
community.
·
Provide proactive
input to the curricula of the training and education programs of both Fluor and
the
·
Advance and support
the highest quality of construction educational programs and facilities at the
·
Provide liaison
between interested Fluor personnel and the
·
Develop and implement
innovative programs that will provide mutual benefits to the
·
Through active
participation of the board membership, we shall offer advice, counsel, and
vision to the
·
Provide educational
consulting for the sharing of ideas, name recognition, development, and financial
viability.
·
Utilize the alliance
between the
Safety Affiliations of the Center
ASSE (American Society of Safety Engineers): The Center is the headquarters for the student chapter
CIB (Int' Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction): Active participation in the conferences and meetings held by Working Commission W-99 (Construction Site Safety, Health, Environment and Quality).
NCCER (Nat' Center for Construction Education and Research): Active participation in the Safety Committee
ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers): Active participation in the Committee on Construction Safety and the Committee on Social and Environmental Concerns in Construction
CII (Construction Industry Institute): Completed several research studies on construction safety for the CII. Currently developing educational modules to translate research findings into materials that can be taught to practitioners and students that plan careers in construction
CPWR (Center to Protect Workers' Rights): Participate in activities of the CPWR, by conducting research, providing advice on research directions and defining possible research studies in construction safety
Safety Education
Two Courses on Construction
Safety are Currently being Offered in the Rinker School
There is one undergraduate class on Construction Safety that is required for all undergraduates
BCN 4735 Construction Safety (3), Prereq: senior standing. Construction safety issues, concerns, requirements and procedures. The analysis includes costs, planning, administration, inspection, prevention, loss control and the drug-free work place.
There is one graduate class on Advanced Issues in Construction Safety
BCN
5737 Advanced Issues in Construction Safety and Health (3), Prereq: BCN
4735, graduate standing. Current
construction safety and health issues.
Development of specific methodology to provide hazard reduction on job
sites.
Safety Research
Recent Research Reports/Theses since 2000
Recent Publications (since 2000)
Possible Research Topics in Construction Safety
Titles of Recent Research
Reports/Theses since 2000
Agaj,
Glenn, W. (2000).
Safety In Residential Construction. Master Thesis, 2000,
Said, M. (2000).
Best Safety Practices In The
Madigan, P. (2001).
The Scope Of Injuries And Fatalities In Residential Construction. Master
Report, 2001,
Godfrey, R. (2002).
Extending The Scope Of "Making Zero Injuries A Reality" Focusing On
Shutdowns, Turnarounds And Outages. Master Thesis, 2002,
Mansour, S. (2002). Safety
& Productivity: The Hard Equation. Master Report, 2002,
Sturgis, M. (2002). Safety
Guideline For The Deconstruction Of A Single Family House. Master Report,
2002,
Berg, R. (2003).
Jobsite Security On Commercial Construction Projects. Master Thesis, 2003,
Hinze, J. (2003). Trenching
Practices Involving Trench Boxes For Worker Protection. Research Report,
2003,
Huang, X. (2003).
The Owner's Role In Construction Safety.
Ph.D. Dissertation, 2003,
Montealegre, F. (2003).
Jobsite Security In Residential Construction. Master Thesis, 2003,
Recent Publications (since 2000)
Gambatese, J.A. and Hinze, J.W. (2000). “Computer-Assisted Safety Training to
Evaluate Construction Site Hazards.” International Journal of Computer-Integrated
Design and Construction (CIDAC), SETO,
Gambatese, J. and J. Hinze, “Computer Software for Construction Practice and Education,” AIC, The American Professional Constructor, Vol. 24, No. 1, June 2000.
Hinze, J. and G. Wilson, “Moving Toward a Zero Injury Objective,” Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, ASCE, Vol. 126, No. 5, September/October 2000.
Hinze, J, “Safety Incentives: Do They Reduce Injuries?” ASCE Practice Periodical on Structures and Construction, Vol. 7, No. 2, May 2002.
Hinze, J and R. Godfrey. “An Evaluation of Safety Performance Measures for Construction Projects,” Special Issue 1 in Construction Health & Safety, Journal of Construction Research, Vol. 4, No. 1, March, 2003.
Hinze, J. and J. Gambatese, “Factors That Influence The Safety Performance of Specialty Contractors,” Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, ASCE, April, 2003.
Huang, X., and J. Hinze. “Analysis of Construction Worker Fall Accidents,” Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, ASCE, June, 2003.
Hinze, J., (2003), "Safety Training Practices for U.S. Construction Workers", in International Electronic Journal of Construction, (Special Issue: Construction Safety Education and Training: A Global Perspective,10 pp, http://www.bcn.ufl.edu/iejc
Fang, D., X.
Huang and J. Hinze. “Benchmarking Studies on Construction Safety
Management in
Huang, X., and J. Hinze. “The Owner’s Role in Construction Safety,” ASCE Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, (submitted for publication).
Huang, X., and J. Hinze. “The Owner’s Role in Construction Safety: A Guidance Model,” ASCE Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, (submitted for publication).
Hinze, J, “Successful Safety Techniques for Large Construction Projects,” ASCE Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, (submitted for publication).
Hinze, Jimmie, “The Need for Academia to Address
Construction Site Safety Through Design,” ASCE Construction Congress VI,
Hinze, Jimmie, “Designing for Life Cycle Safety” Designing
for Safety – An International Conference,
Hinze, Jimmie, “Achieving Safety Excellence in Large
Construction Firms,” Annual Conference of the Canadian Society of Civil
Engineers,
Hinze, Jimmie, “Designing for Deconstruction Safety,”
Hinze, J., X. Huang, and J. McGlothlin, “Analysis of Construction Worker Fall Accidents” CIB W-65 Symposium on Organization and Management of Construction, Cincinnati, Ohio, September 2002.
Hinze, Jimmie, “Analysis of Trench Shield Injury
Accidents” CIB W-65 Symposium on Organization and Management of Construction,
Gambatese, J., M. Behm and J. Hinze, “Engineering Mandates
Stipulated in OSHA Regulations,” ASCE Construction Congress VI,
Hinze, Jimmie, “Improving Safety Performance on Large
Construction Sites” CIB W-99 International Conference in
Huang, Xinyu, and J. Hinze “Analysis of Construction
Caught-in-or-between Accidents” 3rd International Postgraduate Research
Conference In The Built And Human Environment,
Hinze, Jimmie “Owner’s Blueprint for Construction Safety,” prepared first draft for the Construction Users Roundtable, August 2003.
Hinze, Jimmie, “Designing for Life Cycle Safety” Design
for Safety Conference,
Lentz, Thomas and Jimmie Hinze, "Surveys of
Occupational Safety and Health Priorities in Selected Small and Large
Construction Firms," 6th World Conference on Injury Prevention and
Control,
Possible Research Topics in Safety
Safety Bibliography: The Center for Construction Safety and Loss Control has been developing an extensive bibliography on publications (books, journal articles, conference proceedings papers) related to various topics in construction safety and health. Initial funding for this effort was provided by the Halliburton Foundation.
Safety Training: Training is perhaps the single most important aspect of a safety program. A training module will be developed that will help to educate the worker on the basics of construction safety. The training module will be in the form of a three-dimensional construction that can be traversed and the training will have the appearance of a video game that will be played in two ways. The first will consist of a project walk-through in which the trainee will see various unsafe conditions and/or violations of the OSHA regulations. The trainee will be drawn to each condition and a “pop-up” message will give information about the fundamentals of safety related to that condition. The second aspect of the training is the evaluation component in which a walk-through is conducted and the trainee is asked to identify the safety violations.
Residential Safety: Safety in the residential sector has generally been lax. A training module will be developed that will help identify those areas on most residential construction projects where most serious injuries are known to occur. Where not obvious, alternative approaches will be presented that will help constructors to install certain components in a safer manner.
Safety and Productivity: It is often alleged that some construction industry professionals sense that safety and productivity are not mutually achievable. When this mindset exists, safety can suffer quickly when production issues arise that might impact project costs. While most safety experts no longer have this view, this view is still known to exist among some practitioners. This study will examine the literature for findings that show that safety and productivity do go hand-in-hand. Data from construction firms will also be sought to examine the historical experiences that firms have had with projects that have had good safety performances and how those projects performed on other measures.
Training: A study will be conducted on the training practices of different construction firms. Differing firms have different approaches to training, but both may still be successful. The research is intended to identify the successful training approaches being implemented by construction firms. Training will include new worker orientation, toolbox meetings, pre-task planning, training on specialized topics, supervisory training, and other novel training approaches that are identified. Subjects to be examined include the use of testing methods to evaluate comprehension, the qualifications of those providing the training, the type of worker participation that is sought as part of the training, etc.
Construction Materials: Safety and Health Implications : A myriad of construction materials go into virtually every constructed facility. In addition to the obvious “bricks and mortar” are the consumables that do not even appear a facility components. These are the additives, adhesives, cleansers, and other chemicals that have become an integral component of the construction process. Many of the chemicals are hazardous to workers. While employers are required to maintain the MSDS files on these products, workers still suffer from harmful exposures. A study will be conducted to determine which materials are involved in most of the harmful exposures to construction workers.
Safety in Small and Medium-Sized Construction Firms: Safety excellence has been exhibited by many large construction firms. These firms see a payback in the investment in safety. Are there also some small or medium-sized firms in which the same is true? This research will conduct a survey of the construction industry with a focus on smaller firms than are traditionally included in safety research. Best safety practices in smaller firms are expected to be somewhat different than in large firms. The objective is to identify those practices of smaller construction firms that favorably impact construction safety.
Impact of Contract Safety Requirements: Part of the contractor’s focus in construction is developed through the construction contract. If that contract mandates that certain safety procedures be implemented, these will probably be put in place. Would these same practices exist without the contract requirements? This study will explore the nature of construction contracts and compare safety provisions with actual field practices. Where contractors go beyond the contract provisions, information will be sought as to the prime movers for that phenomenon.
Safety as Addressed by Public Owners: Little is known about the role that public owners play in construction safety. The safety performances are poorer on public projects, when compared with similar private projects. Is this a reflection of the competitive bid process that is common in the public sector or is it a reduced level of involvement of the public owners in the construction process. One aspect of this research will be to examine construction contract documents of different public agencies (including federal, state, and municipality) to determine the extent to which the contract is a pro-active instrument to encourage contractors to promote project safety.
Jobsite Security: Jobsites can be planned so that the potential for loss due to theft and vandalism can be kept to a minimum. Part of this lies in the actual layout of the jobsite itself. Other practices include a variety of approaches to thwart the efforts of thieves and vandals. Some of the approaches are lighting, security guards, cameras, and a host of other methods. The research will focus on the experiences that contractors have had with theft and vandalism. Conducted through a survey, the research will also determine the methods that contractors have implemented to minimize losses.
Contact Information
Address: 340 Rinker Hall,
Phone:
(352) 273-1167 Fax: (352) 392-4537
Email: hinze@ufl.edu Website:
www.dcp.ufl.edu/hinze.htm