UAE-based Arabian Construction Company (ACC) has announced that it has achieved 10mn LTI (lost time injury) free hours
The figure was attained at the company’s Sky View and Fountain View developments, two of its projects in Downtown Dubai.
ACC said that that reaching the benchmark figure is a laudable achievement given the extremely high levels of activity at the two sites. Not only are both locations undertaking around-the-clock work, they are also located close to busy public thoroughfares and visitor attractions.
Mohammad Bidad, group HSE manager of ACC, “Once again, ACC has shown that the health and safety of its employees and of members of the public is paramount — a commitment that is evident in our achievement of 10mn LTI-free hours at our busy Sky View and Fountain View construction sites. We are particularly proud to have reached this milestone figure as both sites are in close proximity to the Burj Khalifa Metro Station and The Dubai Mall, which attract thousands of passengers and visitors each day.”
The health and safety considerations at Sky View, a mixed-use development of two towers, are considerable. Facilitating construction for the workforce of over 3,500 are eight tower cranes and one mobile crane, leading to congested air-space when the tower cranes are operating at the same time. Crane manoeuvering abilities are also compromised by the small amount of ground space between the two towers, meaning that the provision of mechanisms to guard against potential crane collision is a major ongoing challenge faced by project management.
Fountain View faces the same challenges with cranes as Sky View. The three-tower mixed-use project in Downtown Dubai currently has 18 tower cranes and four mobile cranes operating at the site, assisting the 5,500 -strong labour force that is working 24 hours a day to deliver the project by the end of 2017.
“As well as the physical challenges we are encountering at the Sky View and Fountain View sites there is also the issue of different beliefs around safety that come from having a diverse, multi-cultural workforce. We address this by having more leaders involved in safety performance in order to positively influence our workers' safety beliefs. To this end, all personnel in the two projects are working under a unique accredited integrated management system to assure performance is consistent, reliable and in adherence with the best quality health, safety and environmental practices,” added Bidad.
In March 2014, ACC’s operations at Fountain View earned it International Merit Award from British Safety Council, a non-profit organisation dedicated to ensuring best practice in health and safety in the workplace.
