SMART technologies that influence construction health and safety factors risk reduction in the current digital era Open Access

The construction industry significantly contributes to UN sustainability Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation. The construction industry, a key player in economic growth, aids in growing any country’s economy (Nawi et al., 2016), investing nearly $10 trillion annually in goods and services related to construction (Awolusi et al., 2018). Despite being crucial to economic expansion, the construction industry is precarious due to its hazards and unpredictability (Ghodrati et al., 2018), with a high rate of injury and mortality worldwide (Ghodrati et al., 2018). It is concerning that the industry has yet to address health and safety (H&S) effectively. Even the UN sustainability programme, a crucial global initiative does not address Industrial H&S concerns. The closest it comes is target 3.9, which states, “By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water, and soil pollution and contamination”. The target 3.6 States, “By 2020, halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents”. However, it has not yet addressed Industrial accidents.

The New Zealand (NZ) WORKSAFE department report highlights that between September 2020 and August 2021, 561 Construction-related injuries, illnesses and severe harm cases were recorded, making the construction industry the most dangerous in NZ (WorkSafe New Zealand, 2021). Construction employees actively participating in the construction process were at a greater mortality risk than individuals working in other fields (Abas et al., 2016). The nature of the construction industry has led to significant inefficiencies in project performance, with construction-related injuries causing project completion delays, increased project costs, decreased productivity and the development of passive organizational perceptions. These statistics underscore the urgent need for safety improvements in the construction industry. Figure 1 shows NZ’s industries with the highest injuries, illnesses and severe harm (WorkSafe New Zealand, 2021).

BigRentz (2022) states that 1,061 people lost their lives while doing their jobs in 2019 alone, and there were more than 195,600 incidents of on-the-job injuries. Construction sites account for one-fifth of worker fatalities in the USA, making it the fourth most fatality-prone sector (B.L.S., 2022). Also, Ali et al. (2017) report for the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) in Malaysia states that the construction industry in 2017 had the most workplace accidents by sector, with 15 deaths of 70. The frequency of occurrences affecting workplace safety and health that ended in harm or death over the last five years ending 2014 has substantially increased (Chong and Low, 2014). Large construction projects in New York have exposed workers to hazardous conditions, increasing the risk of accidents and degrading the safety performance of the projects (Chong and Low, 2014). Nadhim et al. (2016) reported that falls are the leading cause of serious injuries (48%) and fatalities (30%) of all construction accidents. Fall from heights (FFH) represent over one-third of construction injuries, leading causes of multi-serious injuries and fatalities. In 2013, FFH accounted for 36.9% of occupational fatalities in the USA, 31% in the UK and 12% in Australia. In 2019, 50.1% of deaths across all industrial sectors were caused by FFH, being struck by an object, and collisions occurred on construction sites in Korea (Kim et al., 2020). 41.2% of these fatalities were found to be head injuries. Even though most workers on construction sites know how necessary the safety helmet is, approximately 60% of them do not wear it correctly or refuse to wear it because of discomfort, leading to injuries and fatalities (Kim et al., 2020).

The construction industry is a significant source of employment in New Zealand and contributes more than 6% to the country’s GDP Hall et al. (2023). However, due to its large size, it also has a significant share of work-related accidents and illnesses. In 2020, Stats NZ reported 34,404 claims within the sector, highlighting the importance of H&S in construction (Stats NZ, 2021). According to Kim et al. (2020), FFH resulted in 300,000 injuries and 818 fatalities in the USA in 2014, making it the second-highest cause of occupational accidents. Smith (2024) reports that FFH accounts for one-third of all construction-related accidents in the USA. From 2011 to 2016, fatalities caused by FFH increased by 26%. In Great Britain, FFH was responsible for 40 of 147 construction site fatalities between 2018 and 2019, making it the highest fatality rate in construction sites. Similarly, New Zealand also experiences a significant number of falls from height. Figure 2 shows the FFH incidents in New Zealand between Jul 2022 and Jun 2023.

Furthermore, according to WorkSafe New Zealand (2021), asbestos-related diseases claim more than 200 NZers’ lives yearly, a significant concern that needs to be addressed (Lessing et al., 2017). H&S is the responsibility of employers and employees, and organizations exist to ensure the safety and health of employees (Edgar et al., 2017; Peace, 2017). Construction accident causes are influenced by the industry’s unique working processes, human behaviour, unsafe work practices, equipment and procedures. These factors contribute to poor safety management (Charehzehi and Ahankoob, 2012); employers must equip their employees with the necessary skills and knowledge, continually increasing safety standards in building projects to mitigate potential dangers. There are many human factors, such as negligence, failure to obey work procedures, failure to use personal protective equipment (PPE) (Nawi et al., 2016) and physical factors, such as equipment without safety devices, poor site management, harsh work operation (Shamsuddin et al., 2015) that leads H&S hazards. These factors could lead to accidents, further delaying work and reducing productivity (Mohammadi et al., 2018b). Therefore, every business must provide rigorous training and safety procedures (Charehzehi and Ahankoob, 2012) that may continually increase safety standards in building projects to mitigate potential dangers. Hence, workplace safety and health must be addressed to avoid accidents (Abas et al., 2020), probably correlating to the latest technologies. It is crucial to evaluate the level of safety among all people who work at the site, which is constantly impacted by many circumstances (Brauer, 2022).

Various governments across the globe have legislations that aim to protect workers’ H&S. For example, according to BRANZ, the H&S at Work Act (HSWA) of NZ requires that: “All businesses, regardless of size, engage their staff in safety issues. The Act focuses on managing critical risks and taking actions that reduce workplace harm” (HSWA, 2015). Before they escalate, this proactive approach to managing risks should reassure the audience. If improvements are to be made, the safety of the building industry in NZ must be given substantial consideration. Therefore, the importance of H&S can be summed up as a government initiative to enforce the awareness of the risks associated with the construction and implement the appropriate precautions to prevent deaths and decrease injuries. The NZ government has imposed legislation, such as the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health regulations, agencies and regulatory authorities, such as MBIE and Work Safe, to ensure that H&S measures are monitored and carried out in the workplace. This is because this industry is particularly prone to accidents and injuries. All H&S regulations and guidelines in NZ are based on the H&S at Work Act (HSWA) 2015; this act is intended to provide a balanced framework for safeguarding the H&S of workers and workplaces (Dabee, 2020). According to WorkSafe NZ, the H&S at Work Act 2015 sets out the purpose of HSWA (WorkSafe NZ, 2021). The introduction of the HSWA was a statutory requirement for designers to bring stakeholders into the equation through the mitigation of H&S risks from the cradle to the grave, known as Safety in Design (Guo and Li, 2021).

A proper H&S system has numerous advantages, such as fewer accidents, less damage to property, less downtime, better morale, better interactions amongst workers, more productivity, cheaper costs and better quality (Vincoli, 2024). Other benefits include lower insurance costs, fewer hidden expenditures, excellent supervisor morale, productivity and improved marketability (Cooney, 2016). Kuta et al. (2021) reported that research by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions in Dublin found that the social costs associated with fewer employee musculoskeletal disorders equal around 15% of the costs associated with workplace accidents. It should be emphasized that around 33% of manual workers in the European Union experience back and spinal pain, nearly 23% of respondents report feeling generally tired and roughly 13% experience hand overload (Kuta et al., 2021). In contrast to other professions, the pressure on the musculoskeletal system may be 16% higher in construction environments (Kuta et al., 2021).

The International Labour Organization (2005) estimated that at least 60,000 fatal accidents occur on construction sites yearly. However, numerous studies and reports prove that safety management effectively reduces construction death and injury rates and substantially benefits society and enterprises. The casualties from these accidents result in significant economic losses to the community. For instance, the International Labour Organization (2005) reported that construction accidents account for 4% of the global Gross Domestic Product. These accidents also impact the economies of countries that use advanced safety management. However, enterprises can be particularly interested in the fact that they can effectively enhance their economic benefits by adopting reasonable safety management methods. They reported that almost half of the companies showed that improving safety management decreased the project schedule by at least one week; approximately 73% of the companies successfully reduced their total investment by 1%–5% (Harvey, 2013). However, despite efforts, the situation has remained mostly the same since 2005. The Office of National Statistics (2020) of the UK published that the cost of injury only reached 16.2 billion pounds in 2018, accounting for 1% of the GDP in the UK. Despite the ongoing challenges, the economic benefits of safety management are clear.

When accidents occur at construction sites, developers and construction parties often suffer varying losses (Yoon et al., 2013). These losses typically fall into direct and indirect costs (Haupt and Pillay, 2016). It is important to remember that the effects of these accidents can be long-lasting, and understanding the costs involved is crucial for our industry. Haupt and Pillay (2016) stated that direct costs refer to the expenses incurred from treating injuries and indirect costs are hidden. Most of the time, the insurable costs associated with injuries are the ones the general public knows. Medical bills, premiums for compensation benefits, liabilities and property damage are examples of direct cost expenditures (Vincoli, 2024). Direct costs are usually calculable with reasonable accuracy (Vincoli, 2024). Understanding the importance of indirect costs resulting from accidents is crucial. They are more difficult to calculate than direct costs, consisting of all non-insurable expenditures incurred by accident (Haupt and Pillay, 2016). Often referred to as “hidden costs”, these expenses are not readily apparent and do not have a good history.

Further, the increased risk of injury at work compromises employees’ integrity and concerns their families at home. Construction-related fatalities and injuries have had a negative social impact, disrupted work and negatively impacted employee morale, performance and output Kang et al. (2017b). There is also the lengthy process of psychological and emotional support required afterwards. By formalizing safety processes and regulations, workers must be protected against dangers of falling, such as those caused by gaps in the structure that are present either permanently or temporarily or by using unstable materials that do not provide adequate support (Choi et al., 2019a, b). The role of policymakers becomes crucial as they enact and enforce regulations that ensure the safety of workers. Mechanisms for preventing falls have been built into the structure since the 1990s. For example, railing supports and connectors for security wires are created in Australia as a structural system component (Lingard et al., 2013a). Workers would be more likely to install scaffolds and link safety wires if such facilities existed. However, the accidents and incidents have not fallen to a reasonable level.

Post 2010, various researchers have identified technologies that could assist H&S in the construction industry in the new digital era. Multiple studies have aimed to develop cutting-edge technologies and innovative autonomous construction safety surveillance methodologies. Any definition of “SMART building technology” relates to adopting innovations, i.e. healthy, affordable, safe and comfortable human habitation at all life cycle stages of construction projects (Khlaponin et al., 2020). “Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology” is abbreviated as “SMART”. In the real world, this technology combines the Internet of Things with artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data to give real-world devices cognitive awareness (Liu et al., 2017). The development of SMART technology as a wearable provides a channel for results-oriented data collection and analysis (Adjiski et al., 2019). ST has been utilized recently on construction sites to reduce the number of fatalities and injuries brought on by accidents and keep track of unreported incidents (Forat et al., 2021). SMART technology is increasingly being recognized for raising safety standards in the building industry.

Any item can be connected and used as a hub for gathering or transmitting information to a more extensive network under the IoT paradigm, centring on the interconnection of devices or “things” (Miller, 2015; Svertoka et al., 2021). However, some SMART devices can function well without user contact (Svertoka et al., 2021). For SMART gadgets to operate, network connectivity is necessary as the gadget may occasionally join a network and share data with other devices. Silverio-Fernandez et al. (2019) state that a SMART device can be considered a context-aware electronic device capable of autonomous computation and connecting to other devices wired or wirelessly for data exchange. The world is rapidly evolving and increasingly using ST due to exponential innovation in computing hardware, communication software and technical applications (Edirisinghe, 2019). This paradigm shift has occurred from mobile computing to pervasive computing to ST with embedded intelligence (Edirisinghe, 2019). This review aims to identify and examine the critical variables affecting H&S in the construction sector and mitigate the risks using innovative technologies. The review worked on the Research question:

• How does the ST influence H&S factors’ risk reduction in the current digital era in the construction industry?

SLR is adopted to answer the research question. An SLR methodology has positives and limitations. Based on pre-specified eligibility criteria, SLR helps identify, evaluate and answer a specific research question by amalgamating all the empirical evidence (Creswell and Creswell (2023). SLR is not location-dependent and primarily uses online resources. Secondly, online SLR helps researchers refine the search as much as required. The process used was similar to Pedrini and Laura (2019). The SLR had inclusion and exclusion criteria, as listed in Table 1.

PRISMA checklist-based SLR has been carried out for this research. Relevant past literature has been gathered from five domains that included databases of Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Scopus and publisher Emerald Insight using two keyword combinations to identify the factors affecting H&S in the construction industry and the ST to mitigate the identified H&S risks. The three databases are chosen due to their credibility and popularity. Emerald Insight publication was added to the search due to its diversity and credibility in publications. Significant time was spent reading and analysing articles, reviewing, structuring and writing, and published articles were updated periodically. The SLR aims for sufficient coverage of specified topics and concepts; the researchers regularly discuss the topics and contents to be included and excluded with their colleagues from Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Projects and incorporate their suggestions. Organization-linked Google Scholar, Emerald, Science Direct and Scopus search gave access to many articles globally and helped follow the newest publications in construction H&S and ST. The occurrence of keywords showed that many connections could be derived from reading the articles and understanding the factors. Though no protocol was prepared for the review, keywords were used for the search. The keywords used and search results are shown in Table 2.

After the critical steps of literature identification, screening and eligibility, 147 papers were selected for the factors affecting the H&S in the construction and 87 papers for the ST. Figure 3 shows the method of literature selection for the factors affecting H&S in the construction industry. Review articles have been excluded to maintain originality.

Articles published from 2012 to 2021 were searched using four popular databases; each was last searched on December 17, 2022. Though the investigation was from 2012, a few articles of prominence pre-2016 appeared on the list. Subsequent searches for years 2022, 2023 and 2024 during August 2024 yielded six more articles of relevance. Figure 4 shows the number of articles per year, and Figure 5 shows the visualization of H&S articles published based on the countries.

Figure 6 shows the method of literature selection for ST in the construction industry. Though the ST search was restricted to Post-2016 to incorporate only the latest digital technology developments, four articles from pre-2016 appeared on the list. The authors chose to keep them on the list due to their relevance and to show the historical perspective. Further search during August 2024 for ST-related papers from 2022 to 2024 did not indicate any new technologies or solutions for H&S in construction. This meant a temporary saturation. Review articles have been excluded to maintain originality. The year spread is shown in Figure 7. Visualization of SMART technology articles published based on the countries is shown in Figure 8.

The critical journal articles were systematically reviewed using both bibliometric and qualitative methods for analysis. A journal was maintained systematically to detail critical factors and store information from the articles. VOS viewer software, MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint were used for analysis and results presentation. VOS viewer visualized keyword occurrence and articles published based on the countries. Each of the H&S and ST factors was further studied to identify their interlinks. The articles were read at least twice to understand the factors and their interlinks and recorded in an Excel table format in a journal. The H&S factors, ST, all the keywords, connectivity and polarity were noted in the Excel table. The excel format was then analysed to plot the connectivity between H&S and ST factors using Vensim software. The result of this analysis is presented in a Causal loop diagram.

The Causal loop diagram illustrates the interactions between ST and H&S factors in construction, emphasizing the importance of understanding these interactions. It is crucial to note that ST, when used in isolation, cannot fully mitigate all H&S factors. However, when ST is applied in conjunction, it can significantly mitigate most of the factors that affect H&S. Therefore, understanding these interactions is beneficial and vital for the construction environment. This understanding is essential for identifying gaps in ST concerning the mitigation of H&S factors, thereby enhancing awareness of the need for integrated approaches to safety in construction.

This review aimed to gather and analyse the past literature on the factors affecting H&S and ST in the construction industry. Table 3: Factors affecting H&S in the construction industry. A total of 145 articles revealed the 20 factors affecting H&S in construction.