A common problem

Construction is among the most hazardous industries, with 81,000 UK workers experiencing job-related injuries or illnesses in 2020. The industry addresses its risks from the design phase through to operations, with the latter being the most costly and challenging stage to manage. This has led to the concept of “designing risks out,” where potential risks are eliminated or reduced during the design stage.

Unfortunately, the insights gained from this approach are not widely disseminated across the industry and typically remain confined to individual programmes. The Construction Risk Library aims to change this.

A common standard

The Construction Risk Library (CRL) seeks to address the absence of a common data schema, demonstrate the benefits of using an advanced schema, and facilitate information sharing. The CRL comprises a database of 80 common risk scenarios, organized according to a standard schema, along with around 2,000 specific treatment prompts. Each scenario is linked to a series of risk treatments.

The Library’s objective is to offer a template for design and planning organisations to develop their own methods for anticipating and managing risks, whether through elimination, reduction, control by subsequent design, or by providing information.