Factors Affecting Construction Safety Performance in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Construction projects are large investments that require attention and protection. One of the critical risks is the loss of investment and project failure due to poor safety performance. Accordingly, the objective of this study is to identify and assess factors affecting construction safety performance among the parties involved in construction projects, namely: owners, consultants, and contractors. The methodology adopted in this study consisted of five main phases. In the first phase, a literature review was performed to identify factors affecting construction safety performance. In the second phase, several expert interviews were conducted to review the factors identified from the literature in terms of their applicability to construction safety performance, in addition to the possibility of adding further factors. The previous two phases concluded with 30 factors affecting construction safety performance that were grouped under seven categories, namely: Project Nature, Personnel, Management, Safety Enforcement Measures, Economy, Environment, and Other Factors. In the third phase, development and distribution of a questionnaire survey was conducted with a sample of 76 professional respondents in Saudi Arabia, to evaluate 30 identified factors, employing frequency index (FI) and relative importance index (RII). In the fourth and fifth phases, data was collected and analyzed, utilizing a frequency adjusted importance index (FAII). The study showed that “care for safety”, “safety behavior”, “maintaining safe work environment”, “size of project” and “availability and implementation of codes, standards and guidelines” are the top five factors affecting construction safety performance, respectively.