SAFETYthe evolution of safety in the construction industry

MAY 2013

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WHAT YOU CAN FIND IN THIS ISSUEA Note From Our Leaders PAGE 1Co-Founders, Brad Bastian and Jeff Nielsen share how safety is a core value at BNBuilders.

The Evolution of Safety PAGE 2Safety has evolved over the past few decades. Explore how BNBuilders is adapting and anticipating change while maintaining the safest jobsites.

Q&A PAGE 6BNBuilders chats with Mandi Kime, Director of Safety at The Associated General Contractors of Washington (AGC).

What’s Happening PAGE 7BNBuilders has been busy across the West Coast. Take a glance at what our people and our projects have been up to over the past few months.

Credits PAGE 9Acknowledgements and thanks to everyone who contributed to this edition.

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A NOTE FROM OUR LEADERSJeff Nielsen and Brad Bastian, Co-Founders

When we visit a BNBuilders jobsite, we get to see all the talented people involved in building our projects – employees, suppliers, subcontractors, and laborers. A busy jobsite is a real reminder of the most important work we do, creating a healthy and safe environment supported by a culture of safety.

To us, safety means a commitment to our Freedom from Danger program, so our people get home to their families every night. 2013 marked a significant accomplishment for our firm – we received First Place for the AGC National Construction Safety Excellence Award. The purpose of the award is to recognize those construction companies who excel at safety performance. As we reflect on this national award and its importance to our core values, we are incredibly proud of our employees and their exceptional efforts. It is because of their hard work and forward thinking, that our projects are built safe.

As a progressive builder we create a culture always looking for improvement. Our successful safety program and record is the outcome of new ideas, pioneering technology, diverse tools and better solutions to hazards and concerns. These innovations and a genuine enthusiasm for what we do, make BNBuilders’ safety program one of the best in the nation.

In this issue we will share how safety has evolved in our industry and our approach to developing safety systems and controls that have earned BNBuilders a reputation for quality and safety, locally and nationally. For over a decade, the desire of our people to make a difference as a construction company, as individual people and as a community has been inspired by core initiatives – safety, community, innovation, sustainability and knowledge. Safety is always first, it’s what matters most.

Many congratulations to everyone at BNBuilders for our First Place award, and mostly for your everyday commitment to a safer workplace.

Warmest Regards,

Jeff Nielsen Brad Bastian

The Great Wall. The Panama Canal. The Hoover Dam. The Empire State Building. The Golden Gate Bridge. These are extraordinary construction feats that fascinate us all. While these projects are remarkably built, the construction process impacted so many lives and reveals the history and evolution of safety. The Great Wall took the lives of nearly one million workers, while thousands of years later the massive suspension bridge connecting San Francisco and Marin claimed the lives of ten construction workers. A lot has changed, but improvement is never ending. Our industry has seen safety regulations change exponentially over the past few decades, but safety excellence is less about compliance and more about culture.

BNBuilders stays at the forefront of best practices by focusing on eight key safety concepts. Below is an analysis of how safety programs have evolved in our industry and at BNBuilders:

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the evolution of

SAFETY

then nowBasic Compliance

Reactive Response

Lagging Indicators

Commitment from the field

Conventional Standards

Incentive Programs

Outdated Practices

Tracking Zero Accidents

Core Value

Proactive Approach

Leading Indicators

Commitment from the top

Open Dialogue

Empowered Employees

Advanced Technology

Tracking Near Misses

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“Safety is a team effort from our owners to field staff. It is

everyone’s job to know theplan. Safety is always first.”

Jeff FaulknerGeneral Superintendent

at BNBuilders’ Annual Safety Summit

TWO MILLION man-hours company-wide with

no lost-time injuriesand

ZERO RECORDABLE INJURIES

in 2012 in the Bay Area

InnovationSafe practices are constantly evolving to keep in alignment with the advancement in technology. Being nimble and adaptive is essential in having a successful safety program. BNBuilders developed a mobile safety cart that could be stationed on site, in a critical space. Instead of a standard safety board, the cart enabled the team to review Job Hazard Analysis on the spot and with a high degree of detail. With this advanced tool the safety performance of the entire team and subcontractors improved.

KnowledgeWhen it comes to construction safety, increasing knowledge is of paramount importance. In addition to weekly and monthly safety meetings, BNBuilders holds annual safety summits to inspire new ideas among all employees and to explore pioneering technology for safer projects. Everyone is empowered to give input in an open forum on best practices and offer new solutions to hazards and concerns. The summits generate diverse tools and resources that support a culture always looking for improvement.

TechnologyIntroducing new technology through productivity tools, like hook cameras on cranes and camera systems to monitor jobsites, also lead to improved safety practices in the field. Mobile tools including safety audits on iPads have led to enhanced communication and effectiveness. Additionally, 4D modeling allows better workflow on-site, less congested work areas, and consequently a safer site. Technology also allows more prefabrication creating the ideal safe work environment.

Pre-Planning A successful safety program starts with pre-planning. A significant amount of pre-planning and coordination through site logistics and jobsite hazardous analysis plans ensure everyone thoroughly understands the safety plan. BNBuilders’ commitment to proactive safety is further recognized in mandatory OSHA training, resulting in a perfect record of over two million man-hours company-wide with zero lost time injuries.

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BNBuilders’ Success Factors

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How has safety evolved over the past decade? Employers have gone from reactionary safety changes, to proactive preventative measures. It is less common to hear contractors talking about a hard hat or eye glasses policy, now the cutting edge of safety is “prevention through design” where employers focus on engineering controls that eliminate the hazard before there is any exposure. An example of prevention through design is the installation of permanent fall protection anchors on a structure during the construction that remains after the construction has finished, allowing protections for future maintenance and construction activities. Another example would be to change the parapet height on a structure to serve as guardrails on a roof during the design phase, rather than having to install a temporary guardrail on a roof.

What trends have affected safety? The desire to completely eliminate hazards during the design phase is very common. There is also a lot more effort placed on properly planning work sequences through Job Hazard Analysis, team meetings, and site specific safety plans / efforts. There is also growing momentum for technological advances in safety. Using technology to our advantage for audits, communication, and tracking purposes, there is more information readily available to safety professionals than ever before. Another trend currently seen in safety is to use predictive equations when looking at your companies statistics to anticipate where injuries and accidents might occur. For example, using Near Miss Reports, property damage reports, safety observations from site visits, as well as accident / injury reports to evaluate where the company’s highest risks are, and then working collaboratively to address the recurring issues.

How much does innovation and technology play into the success factors? Innovation and technology are HUGE in the safety profession. As with all industries, technology has infiltrated every aspect of our lives. Use of these technologies assists a company in their safety and production efficiencies, better communication, better responses to incidents, and quicker access to information and assistance than ever before.

What are the main criteria used to evaluate winners of safety excellence awards?Many different factors can be used. Primarily a review of safety statistics, including Experience Modification Rating, OSHA Recordable Rates, OSHA Lost Time Rates / Severity Rates, as well as worker’s compensation costs per worker hour. That only tells part of the story though, to truly evaluate a company for a safety award, without having the luxury of doing a site visit, you must also consider the other programs, services, and innovations they use. It also helps to hear from all levels of the organization to share how they are impacted by the safety programs and safety culture of the organization.

Being a winner of AGC safety awards consecutively for the past seven years, what factors have made BNBuilders’ safety program award winning? First and foremost, BNBuilders has never shied away from innovations. The team consistently evaluates their practices and works to provide new ideas to help create a better work environment. Using technology to their advantage, BNBuilders has developed innovations such as the Safety Cart, utilizing employee feedback to develop safety solutions, and as always, consistently holding people accountable to safety expectations. In addition, they empower their employees to be safety champions. BNBuilders is doing some great things. It is no wonder why the company has received the Grand Safety Award in the past in addition to being a category winner for seven years in a row. There is a distinct enthusiasm amongst the team at BNBuilders when it comes to safety.

Q&A...WITH MANDI KIME AT THE ASSOCIATED GENERAL CONTRACTORS OF WASHINGTON (AGC)

Mandi Kime is the Director of Safety at the AGC of Washington.

She works to enhance safety cultures and compliance within

organizations.

“I have seen so much greatness

come from our industry.

Contractors are problem solvers and they create our world as we

know it! It is also so exhilarating to see

the construction process unfold.”

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WHAT’S HAPPENINGaround BNBuilders

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1 - 2. Plymouth Housing Group’s Williams Apartment in downtown Seattle reaches substantial completion. 3 - 4. San Diego hosts a BBQ to celebrate the company’s AGC National Safety Award. 5. Seattle’s Fairfax Hospital for Universal Health System breaks ground. 6. Before and After: Bay Area’s Community Involvement Team volunteered for Rebuilding Together. 7. El Camino Hospital’s Annual Sapphire Soiree Fund-raiser 8. 275 Brannan’s Historic Renovation is underway in the heart of downtown San Francisco. 9. Arensica’s San Diego facility achieved LEED Gold Certification!

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WHAT’S HAPPENINGaround BNBuilders

1. San Diego’s Community Involvement Team volunteered at the La Jolla YMCA’s Healthy Kid’s Day. 2. Seattle’s Sixth Annual Cinco De Mayo Fiesta. 3. BNBuilders brings in the fences at the Seattle Mariner’s Safeco Field 4. Onyx Pharmaceutical’s Headquarter Expansion in South San Francisco. 5. Legacy Partner’s Tenant Improvement in San Diego. 6. Bay Area’s Preconstruction Team Building Day, 7. Seattle’s Community Involvement Team volunteered at the Boys and Girls Club in Bellevue 8. Bay Area’s Tres De Mayo Fiesta to celebrate the company’s AGC National Safety Award 9. Celgene’s San Diego facility is pursuing LEED Gold Certification.

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CONTRIBUTORSBrad BastianJeff NielsenRick Philipovich

Special Thanks to Mandi Kime at AGC of Washington.Cover Photos courtesy of Bernard Andre Photography.

EDITORTiffany Avila

CREATIVE DIRECTOR / DESIGNERAndrea Beard

The Quarterly is written and designed by BNBuilders. We are committed to the construction, architecture, and engineering communities and want to share our knowledge and passion with our industry peers.

To comment or request copies of The Quarterly, please contact thequarterly@bnbuilders.com

BNBuilders is a West Coast general contractor that specializes in highly technical commercial construction projects.

BNBuilders has the experience and strength of a large contractor, but provides the personal service and economy of a local builder. We deliver complex projects for world-class leaders in the life sciences, biotech, data center, healthcare, education and technology sectors. Our diverse portfolio also includes retail, hospitality, and commercial projects for Fortune 500 clients. BNBuilders’ projects add value in our communities through innovation, quality and sustainability.

BNBuilders is consistently at the forefront of new construction methodologies and best practices. We have key specialists in all areas of construction, including preconstruction, design-build, Integrated Project Delivery, LEAN, Building Information Modeling, and sustainability. Our firm is comprised of industry veterans with decades of experience, and diverse visionaries who push the limits to discover better solutions.

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