Prevention through design (PtD), also called safety by design usually in Europe, is the concept of applying methods to minimize
occupational hazards
Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any oth ...
early in the design process, with an emphasis on optimizing employee health and safety throughout the
life cycle
Life cycle, life-cycle, or lifecycle may refer to:
Science and academia
*Biological life cycle, the sequence of life stages that an organism undergoes from birth to reproduction ending with the production of the offspring
*Life-cycle hypothesis, ...
of materials and processes.
It is a concept and movement that encourages
construction or
product design
Product design as a verb is to create a new product to be sold by a business to its customers. A very broad coefficient and effective generation and development of ideas through a process that leads to new products. Thus, it is a major aspect of n ...
ers to "design out" health and safety risks during design development. The concept supports the view that along with quality, programme and cost; safety is determined during the design stage. It increases the cost-effectiveness of enhancements to occupational safety and health.
This method for reducing workplace safety risks lessens workers' reliance on
personal protective equipment
Personal protective equipment (PPE) is protective clothing, helmets, goggles, or other garments or equipment designed to protect the wearer's body from injury or infection. The hazards addressed by protective equipment include physical, ele ...
, which is the least effective of the
.
[National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health]
Prevention through Design
Accessed 9/24/08.
Background
Each year in the U.S., 55,000 people die from work-related injuries and diseases, 294,000 are made sick, and 3.8 million are injured. The annual direct and indirect costs have been estimated to range from $128 billion to $155 billion. Recent studies in
Australia indicate that design is a significant contributor to 37% of work-related fatalities; therefore, the successful implementation of prevention through design concepts can have substantial impacts on worker health and safety.
A safer workplace can be created by removing hazards and reducing worker risks to an appropriate level "at the source," or as early in the life cycle of products or workplaces as possible.
Designing, redesigning and retrofitting new and current work environments, systems, tools, facilities, equipment, machinery, goods, chemicals, work processes, and work organization. Improving the working climate by incorporating preventive approaches into all designs that have an effect on employees and those on the premises.
The strategic plan lays out the objectives for implementing the PtD Plan for the National Initiative successfully.
The
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH, ) is the United States federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. NIOSH is part of the C ...
(NIOSH) in the United States is a major contributor and promoter of PtD policy and guidelines. NIOSH considers PtD to be "the most effective and reliable type" of prevention of
occupational injuries. A core tenet of PtD philosophy the concept of addressing workplace hazards using methods at the top of the
Hierarchy of Controls, namely elimination and substitution.
Within Europe, construction designers are legally bound to design out risks during design development to reduce
hazards
A hazard is a potential source of harm. Substances, events, or circumstances can constitute hazards when their nature would allow them, even just theoretically, to cause damage to health, life, property, or any other interest of value. The probabi ...
in the construction and end use phases via the Mobile Worksite Directive (also known as CDM regulations in the UK). The concept supports this legal requirement. Some
Notified Bodies provide testing and design verification services to ensure
compliance with the safety standards defined in
regulation codes such as the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via " continuin ...
. Many
non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
s have been established to support this aim, principally in the UK, Australia and the United States.
History
While engineering, as a rule, factors human safety into the design process, a modern appraisal of specific links to design and workers' safety can be seen in efforts beginning in the 1800s. Trends included the widespread implementation of guards for machinery, controls for
elevator
An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They are ...
s, and
boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, central h ...
safety practices. This was followed by enhanced design for
ventilation
Ventilation may refer to:
* Ventilation (physiology), the movement of air between the environment and the lungs via inhalation and exhalation
** Mechanical ventilation, in medicine, using artificial methods to assist breathing
*** Ventilator, a ma ...
, enclosures, system monitors,
lockout/tagout controls, and hearing protectors. More recently, there has been the development of chemical
process safety,
ergonomically engineered tools, chairs, and work stations, lifting devices, retractable needles, latex-free gloves, and a parade of other safety devices and processes.
[Schulte, Paul A., Richard Rinehart, Andrea Okun, Charles L. Geraci, Donna S. Heidel]
''National Prevention through Design (PtD) Initiative''
''Journal of Safety Research'', Volume 39, Issue 2. Prevention through Design, 2008, Pages 115-121.
In 2007, the US
National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety began its National Initiative on Prevention through Design with the goal of promoting prevention through design philosophy, practice, and policy.
Goal
The PtD National Initiative's goal is to avoid or mitigate occupational accidents, diseases, deaths, and exposures by incorporating prevention factors into all designs that impact people in the workplace. This is accomplished by eliminating hazards and reducing worker risks to an acceptable level "at the source," or as early in the life cycle of items or workplaces as possible.
Designing, redesigning, and retrofitting new and existing work premises, structures, tools, facilities, equipment, machinery, products, substances, work processes, and work organization.
Integration
Prevention through design represents a shift in approach for on-the-job safety. It involves evaluating potential risks associated with processes, structures, equipment, and tools. It takes into consideration the construction, maintenance, decommissioning, and disposal or recycling of waste material.
The idea of redesigning job tasks and work environments has begun to gain momentum in business and government as a cost-effective means to enhance occupational safety and health. Many U.S. companies openly support PtD concepts and have developed management practices to implement them. Other countries are actively promoting PtD concepts as well. The
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and Nor ...
began requiring construction companies, project owners, and architects to address safety and health during the design phase of projects in 1994. Australia developed the Australian National OHS Strategy 2002–2012, which set "eliminating hazards at the design stage" as one of five national priorities. As a result, the Australian Safety and Compensation Council (ASCC) developed the Safe Design National Strategy and Action Plans for Australia encompassing a wide range of design areas.
In the US
Government
The
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH, ) is the United States federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. NIOSH is part of the C ...
(NIOSH) is a large contributor to prevention through design efforts in the United States. Several NIOSH initiatives and guidelines directly or indirectly advocate for PtD practices. Through NIOSH efforts, the
U.S. Green Building Council posted new PtD credits available for
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for construction. Additionally, they provide a wide variety of educational and guidance materials on the topic of PtD The NIOSH "
Buy Quiet
Buy Quiet is an American health and safety initiative to select and purchase the lowest noise emitting power tools and machinery in order to reduce occupational and community noise exposure. Buy Quiet Programs are examples of noise control strategi ...
" initiative uses elements of prevention through design to encourage companies to buy quieter machinery, thereby reducing occupational hearing loss for their workers.
The Prevention through Design (PtD) Initiative of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health collaborates with business, labor, trade unions, professional organizations, and academia. The curriculum focuses on “designing out” workplace hazards and threats in order to avoid sickness, injury, and death. Encourage technical accreditation bodies to include PtD in their evaluations to educate and encourage others to use PtD goals and processes in collaborative design and renovation of facilities, work processes, equipment, and resources.
Priorities of this initiative include:
* attempting to make business executives aware of the cost-cutting potential of PtD,
* produce succinct, actionable PtD guides and checklists for small companies, their insurers, and the publishers of local government codebooks,
* increase PtD practice by disseminating case studies of real-world PtD solutions and empowering stakeholders to implement and share them, and * encourage businesses, trade unions, governments, academic institutions, and consensus standards organizations to use PtD in policy revisions.
References
Sources
*
*
See also
*
*
External links
Prevention through DesignThe National Institute for Occupational Safety and HealthSociety of Manufacturing EngineersAustralian Safety and Compensation CouncilSafety and Health Awareness for Preventive Engineering (SHAPE) programWhole Building Design approachProject Minerva and Minerva CanadaDesign for Construction Safety
Further reading
* MacCollum, David V. Construction Safety Engineering Principles Designing and Managing Safer Job Sites (1st ed.). McGraw-Hill Professional. .
* Brauer, Roger L. Safety and Health for Engineers (2nd ed.). Wiley-Interscience. .
{{Occupational safety and health
Occupational safety and health
Safety engineering
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Occupational health psychology