Prevention through design

For broader coverage of this topic, see Hierarchy of hazard controls.
Occupational hazards
Hierarchy of hazard controls
Occupational hygiene
Study
Connected topics

Prevention through design (PtD), also called safety by design usually in Europe, is the concept of applying methods to minimize occupational hazards early in the design process, with an emphasis on optimizing employee health and safety throughout the life cycle of materials and processes.[1] It is a concept and movement that encourages construction or product designers to "design out" health and safety risks during design development. The process also encourages the various stakeholders within a construction project to be collaborative and share the responsibilities of workers' safety evenly. The concept supports the view that along with quality, programme and cost; safety is determined during the design stage.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][excessive citations] It increases the cost-effectiveness of enhancements to occupational safety and health.[1]

Compared to traditional forms of hazard control, PtD possesses a proactive nature whereas other safety measures are reactive to incidences that occur within construction projects. This method for reducing workplace safety risks lessens workers' reliance on personal protective equipment, which is the least effective of the hierarchy of hazard control.[9]

In the domain of process safety, safety by design is usually referred to as inherent safety or inherently safer design (ISD).

  1. ^ a b "General Safe Practices for Working with Engineered Nanomaterials in Research Laboratories". U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. May 2012. doi:10.26616/NIOSHPUB2012147. Retrieved 2017-03-05.
  2. ^ Behm M, 2005, Linking Construction Fatalities to the Design for Construction Safety Concept, Safety Science, Number 43, Pages 589-611
  3. ^ Churcher D W, Alwani-Starr G M,Incorporating construction health and safety into the design process”, Implementation of Health and Safety in Construction Sites, Alvels, Dias & Coble (eds), ISBN 90-5410-847-9, 1996
  4. ^ ECI 2000 Designing for Safety and Health, Proceedings of the ECI/CIB/HSE international Conference, London, European Construction Institute, Loughborough, ed A G F Gibb, June 245pp ECI, Publications
  5. ^ Gambatese JA, Hinze J and Haas C, Tool to Design for Construction Worker Safety, Journal of Architectural Engineering, Volume 3, Part 1, Pages 32-42, 1997
  6. ^ Gambatese JA, 2003, Safety in design: A Proactive Approach to Construction Worker Safety and Health, Applied Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, Vol 18 (5): pp 339-342
  7. ^ Gambatese JA, Hinze J, Addressing Construction Worker Safety in the Design Phase – Designing for worker Safety, Automation in Construction, Volume 8, Issue 6, Pages 643-649, August 1999
  8. ^ Hecker S, Gambatese J, Weinstein M, Designing for Worker Safety- Moving the Construction Safety Process Upstream, Professional Safety, Pages 32-44, September 2005
  9. ^ National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Prevention through Design. Accessed 9/24/08.