LRD guides and handbook July 2015

Health and safety law 2015

Chapter 5

Construction

[ch 5: pages 86-87]

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM 2015) came into force on 6 April 2015, replacing the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 (CDM 2007). There are transitional provisions for construction projects that started before the new regulations came into force until 6 October 2015.

CDM 2015 covers the management of health, safety and welfare when carrying out construction projects. The regulations set out a range of duty holders: clients, domestic clients, designers, principal designers, principle contractors, contractors and workers.

The key changes from CDM 2007 include the following:

• there is a greater emphasis on the role of clients and the replacement of the CDM co-ordinator role with a principal designer role within the project team. The principal designer is responsible for the planning, management, monitoring and coordination of the “pre-construction phase”;

• the Regulations introduce a duty of information, instruction, training and supervision to replace the previous duty to assess competence;

• domestic clients are no longer exempt from the Regulations, although their limited duties are transferred to the contractor/designer; and

• in addition to a “30-day” requirement, the project must also involve more than 20 workers simultaneously before notification is required.

Under CDM 2015, duty holders are required to:

• manage the risks by applying the general principles of prevention;

• appoint the right people and organisations at the right time;

• make sure everyone has the information, instruction, training and supervision they need to carry out their jobs in a way that secures health and safety;

• cooperate and communicate with each other and coordinate their work; and

• consult workers and engaging with them to promote and develop effective measures to secure health, safety and welfare.

In addition, the regulations set out:

General requirements for all construction sites in relation to:

• safe access and egress;

• good order and security;

• stability of structures;

• demolition and dismantling;

• explosives;

• excavations;

• cofferdams and caissons;

• inspection reports;

• energy distribution installations;

• prevention of drowning;

• traffic routes;

• vehicles ;

• prevention of risk from fire, flooding or asphyxiation;

• emergency procedures;

• emergency routes and exits;

• fire detection and fire-fighting;

• fresh air;

• temperature and weather protection; and

• lighting.

Minimum welfare facilities for construction sites with regard to:

• sanitary conveniences;

• washing facilities;

• drinking water;

• changing rooms and lockers; and

• facilities for rest.

Work involving particular risks:

• burial, engulfment or falling from height;

• exposure to chemical or biological substances;

• work with ionising radiation;

• work near high voltage power lines;

• work exposing workers to the risk of drowning;

• work on wells, underground earthworks and tunnels;

• work carried out by divers with an air supply system;

• work carried out in caissons with a compressed air atmosphere;

• work with explosives; and

• work involving the assembly or dismantling of heavy prefabricated components.

HSE guidance on the new regulations, Managing health and safety in construction. Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, is available on the HSE website at: www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/l153.pdf