Companies typically only collect a fraction of incidents if they rely on workers to report near-misses. Workers may not bother because it takes time away from other duties; they may view it as an adverse event or not as a near-miss. Using technology helps capture those daily, surprisingly frequent epi- sodes with documented precision. The data helps inform safety plan- ning decision-making. The best companies invest in safety Jobsite safety should be of particular interest to civil and structural engineers. For workers to complete projects as planned, job sites must first emphasize safety. Regardless of their size or specific project focus, the most successful companies make it a point to continue investing in safety initiatives. These companies recognize it as a mandatory expense for maintaining
their position as leaders within the industry and as players for high- reward contracts. The ongoing talent shortage has no end in sight. Since safety plays a significant role in helping companies attract top employees, why wouldn’t companies protect their investments, especially considering the super-tight labor market? Safety and the technology supporting it are the foundation of a business-winning strategy. Companies should no longer view the cor- relation between an effective safety program and company success as separate; they are the same. Safety goes far beyond protecting valued employees. It marks an ad- vanced company confident in its operations.
Addressing the Labor Shortage in the Construction Industry By Luke Carothers
The need for more workers in the construction industry is present at varying levels around the globe, but, particularly within the United States, the labor shortage is standing at odds with projections of fu- ture infrastructure spending. According to King, reports estimate that more than $550 billion will be spent on infrastructure in the next ten years alone. To support this influx of spending, reports also estimate that the United States will need an additional 300,000-600,000 new workers to enter the workforce each year to support this pace of in- frastructure spending. While more and more firms are moving along the process of digitiza- tion and more money is being allocated for infrastructure spending, King believes that this is a great opportunity to use these catalysts to spur recruiting for the industry. In particular, digitization offers the construction industry an opportunity to change its image in the minds of potential young professionals. King notes that there are often mis- conceptions about the construction industry–that it is dirty, dangerous, or repetitive–that aren’t necessarily true, thanks largely to new advanc- es in safety technology and the digitization and automation of various processes. For King, this is just one of the first steps in approaching issues of labor shortage in the construction industry. Covid and its reverberating effects have also impacted the number of new workers joining the construction industry. Since the global outbreak of Covid in 2020, issues of mental and physical health have
One of the immediate hurdles the AEC industry must overcome is a labor shortage, particularly within construction. Across the globe, infrastructure spending is ramping up, but there are concerns that the rate of new people joining the workforce isn’t sufficient to support this future growth. However, a potential solution to this problem can be found in its current digital transformation. One way to overcome the labor shortage in the construction industry is to focus on not only what current jobs exist in the construction in- dustry, but what they will look like in the near future. Paul King, who is the Solution Director for Construction at Bentley Systems, believes that this focus on the future of jobs in the construction industry means understanding the industry’s digital transformation. King leads Bent- ley’s global Construction Solution Engineering team, which supports project delivery organizations with their digital transformation.
35
September 2022 csengineermag.com
Made with FlippingBook Annual report