Since 2005, Construction Innovation has led safety-based research projects in an effort to address the alarming safety statistics generated by the construction industry.

Following the launch of the Construction Safety Competency Framework back in 2007, the CRC Construcion Innovation’s reputation in the field of applied safety research has continued to grow as has its commitment to disseminate its findings and supply skill development to the industry.

The competency framework presents a clear way forward for the construction industry by promoting a consistent national standard to improve OH&S competency for key safety positions.

It directly addresses the industry’s safety culture and provides a process for significant cultural change and reduction of injury and incident rates.

To make the principles more accessible to small to medium businesses, the CRC developed a supporting industry kit called A Practical Guide to Safety Leadership.

It builds upon the framework and provides a tool to help industry apply the principles of safety culture within their organisations.

The kit also covers all stages of a project: planning, design, construction and post-construction, and is designed to integrate OHS into strategic and operational decision making.

The CRC’s safety publications were featured in the Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner (OFSC) 2007–08 Progress Report which focuses specifically on building and construction’s industry’s occupational health and safety performance.

In mid 2009 the latest outcome, the Safety Effectiveness Indicators kit will be available. This research for this project builds on the findings published in Construction Industry Safety Competency Framework and through consultation and case studies will identify and measure the safety indicators available to industry for determining the effectiveness of critical safety activities outlined in the competency framework.