Workers and people around safety should be the main priority in construction sites, right? All parties involved in the project must have a sense of security and avoid the risk of injury. To address this concern, the UK government introduced CDM Regulations to ensure the safety of employees during the construction project.
CDM Regulations is short for Construction, Design and Management which regulates all types of construction to follow its rules. These regulations are established for reasons, one of which is to prevent unwanted risks in a project. For example, there were 45 serious injuries to workers in the construction industry. That's far more than the previous year's 29 incidents.
So, CDM regulations are expected to reduce or even eliminate these incidents and ensure the workers’ safety. This article will explore this regulation and everything you need to know about it. Have a read!
What are the CDM Regulations?
CDM Regulations, known as CDM 2015, are legislation that specifically covers health and safety that applies to every construction project in the UK. Complying with CDM is non-negotiable as the impact can be harmful to various parties, such as employees, clients, and people surrounding them. Hence, the penalties for violating them are quite severe, ranging from fines to criminal charges.
Actually, CDM 2015 is the latest version of the CDM Regulations which has gone through a series of revisions from the previous versions, CDM 1994 & 2007. CDM 2007 was considered too burdensome and needed to be revised and simplified. Finally, the latest CDM was officially introduced on 6 April 2015 which places more emphasis on improving health and safety in the construction industry.
The main roles and responsibilities in CDM Regulations
In this latest version, the CDM Regulations has several key duty holders, each with specific responsibilities. Some of these duty holders or roles are the client, designers, contractors, principal designer, and principal contractor. The CDM 2015 version replaced the role of ‘coordinator’ from CDM 2007 with ‘principal designer’.
Client
The client can be considered as a person or an organisation that has the authority to work on construction projects. Although they may not be directly involved in the process, they can contribute to determining how the project should be done. Choosing a professional constructor, ensuring the safety of the construction site, and providing pre construction information are a few examples of their duties.
Designers
The designer focuses on crafting the design in a construction project. As important to note, this role may not only be filled by one person, but by several people. Some of their tasks include creating designs based on data obtained, analysing and minimising risks that can affect work safety, and providing valuable information to clients or contractors.
Contractors
Similar to designers, contractors can also have more than one person involved in a project. They must also ensure that they adhere to CDM regulations during the project. There are actually many duties for them, from selecting competent professionals, providing supervision or instruction, informing certain procedures, and ensuring all necessary facilities are available.
Principal designer
The principal designer is someone who has full control of the design scope in the pre construction phase. However, their responsibility goes beyond that, they must also ensure all designers comply with health and safety standards. The client can appoint this role directly to coordinate all parties involved.
Principal contractor
The client also appoints the principal contractor directly, just like the principal designer. The difference is that this role focuses more on the construction phase rather than pre-construction. The principal contractor must be involved in both planning and supervision during this phase. Plus, they must ensure that the construction site is safe and free from risk of injury.
As mentioned earlier, all of these roles have their own duties and responsibilities. These tasks must be carried out properly to ensure the health and safety of all parties involved. Remember, breaking these regulations also leads to certain penalties.
Key stages of CDM Regulations
By this point you have learnt more about CDM Regulations, starting from what exactly they are and the main roles along with responsibilities. Now you also should know key stages of CDM, which categorise in three: pre-construction, construction, and post-construction. Take a look at the details of each below, scroll down!
- Pre construction phase
As its name implies, this phase refers to before the construction project begins. It’s safe to say that this is the moment to plan everything in detail to ensure the project runs smoothly. For example, the date of the work, providing information related to health and safety hazards on site, or other risks that must be known. This phase is very important because it ensures that all parties involved understand the health measures have been properly implemented.
- Construction phase
The construction stage begins when the project starts and continues until completion. Workers must still follow health and safety measures throughout the process. At this stage, the principal contractor plays a vital role by ensuring the team carries out all pre-construction planning effectively.
- Post construction phase
Actually, CDM Regulations 2015 does not specifically mention this post-construction phase. However, this phase is still important as a moment to evaluate during the construction project. Through this stage, several changes that need to be made can be seen. Plus, the principal contractor needs to submit health and safety files to the client at the end of the project as part of ongoing maintenance.
The key stages above show how health and safety must remain a priority. Whether it's in the pre-construction phase, construction, or even post-construction- it does not become less important. Understanding all of this is no longer optional, especially if you are acting as a contractor or client.
Final Thoughts
At last, CDM Regulations are needed in every construction project, especially in the UK area. This is none other than to ensure the safety and security of workers and all parties involved. CDM 2015 is the latest version which is considered the most updated from the previous versions, 1994 and 2007.
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