Artificial intelligence for construction safety: Mitigation of the risk of fall

Abstract

Technology is continually being implemented by construction professionals with the goal of improving construction processes and the industry’s glacial pace of change. As we look to new technologies to solve existing problems, we can consider Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a tool to make construction safer and efficient. Through this paper, we explore the ways in which AI can assist in the goal of making construction sites safe. This study proposes the development of an AI platform, which improves construction safety through hazard identification at the pre-construction stage, and suggests the applicable OSHA codes for the identified hazards, thus allowing safety standards to be implemented for compliance. Emphasis is laid on the mitigation of fall hazards, which is the leading cause of accidents in construction. Currently, project safety and risk assessment in the construction industry is carried out by professionals, who heavily rely on their own experiences and knowledge on decision making. There is a lack of a systematic approach and the ways to check the reliability of these decisions. Through the machine learning aspect of AI, we can automate the process and create an environment where potential hazards are identified before they occur with a link to the OSHA standards for recommended mitigation strategies.