On the Safety Management System of Construction Machinery Operations

1. The raising of the question

Construction machinery goes through a life cycle from planning, design, manufacturing, sales to purchase, installation, commissioning, use, maintenance, and even renewal, scrapping and remanufacturing. Safety management runs through the entire life cycle. In the previous stage of the life cycle, namely the planning, design, manufacturing and sales stage, which is the stage when production enterprises manufacture machinery, the safety management in this stage is called mechanical safety certification. It is a type of product quality certification, which is a certification of the conformity of the physical level of construction machinery with relevant standards. The last stage of the life cycle of construction machinery, namely the stage of purchase, installation, commissioning, use, maintenance, renewal, scrapping and remanufacturing, is the stage when construction enterprises use machinery. The safety management in this stage is called operation safety management, which is the safety management at the operation site referred to in this article. Its scope includes operation personnel, operation machinery and operation environment, etc.

Obviously, mechanical safety certification and mechanical operation safety management are different stages of the entire life cycle safety management of construction machinery. They are both distinct and interrelated. Without safe machinery, the goal of operation safety management cannot be achieved. The information feedback of operation safety management, in turn, helps to improve and enhance the safety design of machinery.

In the process of teaching safety management and promoting the "Work Safety Law" in recent years, the author has deeply felt that the basis for construction enterprises to implement safety management is the "Work Safety Law", and its management model should be the concretization of the "Occupational Safety and Health Management System" (OSHMS). For this reason, this article specially proposes the concept of a safety management system for construction machinery operations.

The Occupational Safety and Health Management System (OSHMS), along with the Quality Management System (ISO9000) and the Environmental Management System (ISO14000), has become a globally respected process management approach in the post-industrial era. The management model commonly adopted by these three management systems is the PDCA management cycle proposed by Dr. Deming, an American management expert. PDCA is the first letter of Plan Do Check Action. P - Plan, D - Implement, C - Check, A - Improve, as shown in Figure 1.

The safety management system for construction machinery operations is not aimed at the intrinsic safety of construction machinery products, but at the operation site. In modern construction, mechanized operations have become an inevitable trend. Ensuring the safety of the operation process is the goal of the safety management system for construction machinery operations. It is a dynamic, self-adjusting and improving management system. It emphasizes ensuring the realization of the operation safety management system's goals during the operation process by establishing organizational structures, plans, activities, responsibilities, systems, procedures and resources related to this system.

The full-process safety management of the life cycle of construction machinery started relatively late in China. In November 1997, with the approval and authorization of the former State Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision, the China Machinery Safety Certification Center (CCMS) was established in accordance with international common standards, and the first batch of safety certification and inspection laboratories for construction machinery were announced. Including the National Quality Inspection Center for Construction Machinery (Yanqing, Beijing) and the Changsha Construction Machinery Research Institute.

In 1998, the China Society of Labor Protection Science and Technology proposed the "Occupational Safety Production Management System Specifications and Guidelines for Use". In 1999, China began to conduct research on the occupational safety and health management system. In October 1999, the State Economic and Trade Commission promulgated the "Trial Standard for Occupational Safety and Health Management System" and issued a notice to start pilot work in China at the same time. In July 2000, the State Economic and Trade Commission officially established the National Occupational Safety and Health Management System Certification Guidance Committee, the National Occupational Safety and Health Management System Certification Body Accreditation Committee and the National Occupational Safety and Health Management System Auditor Registration Committee. It formulated a series of technical foundational documents such as occupational safety and health management system norms, guidelines and procedures for registration. To make the certification work of occupational safety and health management systems in our country more standardized and easier to align with international standards.

The characteristics of the safety management system for construction machinery operations

The operation safety management system of construction machinery, in reference to the occupational safety and health management system, should consist of 5 aspects and 15 basic elements. Its operation mode is shown in Figure 2. The basic idea of this operation mode is to achieve continuous improvement of the system. By repeatedly carrying out the activities of "planning, implementing, inspecting and improving", it is constantly revised, perfected and strengthened, thereby preventing and controlling work-related injuries and achieving the goal of the operation safety management system.

The safety management of construction machinery operations is the concretization and specialization of the occupational safety and health management system in the construction industry. For specific construction machinery operation sites, it has the following characteristics:

(1) Emphasize structured, procedural and documented management methods

(a) It requires construction enterprises not only to have an operation system from operators, maintenance workers to project managers and even general managers, but also to have a monitoring system. Construction enterprises ensure the effective operation of the operation safety management system through these two systems.

(b) It is required that construction enterprises implement procedural management, thereby avoiding the arbitrariness of management behaviors and also preventing management conflicts among departments and positions.

(c) It is required that the construction unit not only formulate and implement the objectives and policies of the operation safety management system, but also have a series of management procedures to ensure that the policies are implemented in management activities, guaranteeing that management, operation and maintenance are carried out in accordance with the established manuals, procedures and operation documents, thereby complying with mandatory regulations and rules. These policies, manuals, procedures, operation documents and their records constitute a file system.

(2) It should be advanced. Establishing a safety management system for construction machinery operations in accordance with the standards of the occupational safety and health management system is an advanced and effective management approach for the operation safety management of construction enterprises. The advanced nature is reflected in treating the safety issues during the operation process as a systematic project, studying and determining the elements that affect operation safety, and establishing the management process and control measures on the basis of scientific hazard identification and risk assessment. Specify specific requirements for each element and establish and maintain a set of procedures supported by documents. As long as the principle of "what is written must be done" is adhered to, the effectiveness of this system can be guaranteed.

(3) The safety management system for construction machinery operations is not an isolated management system; it is a component of the comprehensive management system of construction enterprises, as shown in Figure 3.

(4) Adhere to the policy of continuous improvement and prevention first. Hazard identification, risk assessment and control are at its core, fully embodying the principle of "prevention first". Effective risk identification, assessment and control can achieve full-process control of accident prevention and operation safety. Each process of the operation can be evaluated, and on this basis, systematic planning can be carried out to form operation documents. All kinds of predicted risk factors can be controlled in advance to implement the principle of prevention first, and emergency procedures for various potential accidents can be formulated to minimize losses.

3. Conclusion

After going through manual and mechanical construction and mechanized construction, the construction mode of engineering is now developing towards intelligent construction. The establishment and implementation of a safety management system for construction machinery operations by construction enterprises have long-term and positive effects. At the same time, it also helps construction enterprises improve and enhance their overall management level.