Key laboratory of Eco-environment in Three Gorges Reservoir Region under Ministry of Education, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China; Department of Real Estate and Construction, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
Department of Real Estate and Construction, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
Accid Anal Prev. 2014 May;66:187-98. doi: 10.1016/j.aap.2013.08.011. Epub 2013 Sep 8.
Climatic heat stress leads to accidents on construction sites brought about by a range of human factors emanating from heat induced illness, and fatigue leading to impaired capability, physical and mental. It is an occupational characteristic of construction work in many climates and the authors take the approach of re-engineering the whole safety management system rather than focusing on incremental improvement, which is current management practice in the construction industry. From a scientific viewpoint, climatic heat stress is determined by six key factors: (1) air temperature, (2) humidity, (3) radiant heat, and (4) wind speed indicating the environment, (5) metabolic heat generated by physical activities, and (6) "clothing effect" that moderates the heat exchange between the body and the environment. By making use of existing heat stress indices and heat stress management processes, heat stress risk on construction sites can be managed in three ways: (1) control of environmental heat stress exposure through use of an action-triggering threshold system, (2) control of continuous work time (CWT, referred by maximum allowable exposure duration) with mandatory work-rest regimens, and (3) enabling self-paced working through empowerment of employees. Existing heat stress practices and methodologies are critically reviewed and the authors propose a three-level methodology for an action-triggering, localized, simplified threshold system to facilitate effective decisions by frontline supervisors. The authors point out the need for "regional based" heat stress management practices that reflect unique climatic conditions, working practices and acclimatization propensity by local workers indifferent geographic regions. The authors set out the case for regional, rather than international, standards that account for this uniqueness and which are derived from site-based rather than laboratory-based research.
气候热应激导致建筑工地事故，这些事故是由一系列人为因素引起的，包括因热引起的疾病和疲劳导致的能力下降、身体和精神上的疲劳。这是许多气候条件下建筑工作的职业特征，作者采取的方法是对整个安全管理系统进行重新设计，而不是像建筑行业目前的管理实践那样，只关注增量改进。从科学的角度来看，气候热应激由六个关键因素决定：（1）空气温度，（2）湿度，（3）辐射热，（4）风速，（5）体力活动产生的代谢热，（6）“服装效应”，它调节身体和环境之间的热交换。利用现有的热应激指数和热应激管理流程，可以通过以下三种方式管理建筑工地的热应激风险：（1）通过使用触发行动的阈值系统来控制环境热应激暴露，（2）通过强制工作-休息制度来控制连续工作时间（CWT，即最大允许暴露时间），（3）通过赋予员工权力来实现自主工作。作者对现有的热应激实践和方法进行了批判性审查，并提出了一种三级行动触发、本地化、简化阈值系统的方法，以方便一线主管做出有效决策。作者指出，需要采用“基于区域”的热应激管理实践，反映不同地理区域独特的气候条件、工作实践和当地工人的适应性。作者主张制定基于区域而非国际的标准，这些标准考虑到这种独特性，并基于现场而非实验室研究得出。
