Despite the use of traditional and novel approaches to improve construction safety management, safety performance in the construction industry is still considered poor, especially when compared with other US industries. Poor safety performance is responsible in part for an observed decrease in work quality and employee productivity and an increase in project costs and completion time. The architectural, construction, and engineering (ACE) industry should adopt and implement innovative safety practices with high total capacities throughout the project life cycle to improve safety performance in construction. Currently, technologies exist that when used appropriately, have capabilities of notably enhancing safety. However, these technologies are not applied broadly in the industry for safety management. Researchers and professionals believe the limited adoption of these technologies across the life cycle of construction projects is a potential contribution to the recorded poor safety performance in construction. To bridge this gap in practice and encourage the adoption of emerging technologies, the present paper summarizes practical applications of different types of technologies for safety risk mitigation and management in construction. Practical information regarding effectiveness, perceived and actual cost implications of the technologies, and the enablers and barriers of technology adoption are discussed. The discussion of the practical implications of these technologies will assist construction managers in making informed decisions regarding what technologies to adopt and implement, which will ultimately lead to improved safety performance.

Structural prejudices and unconscious biases within the construction industry have negatively impacted the construction workforce. Workforce diversity, equity, and inclusion are major concerns in the construction industry. The goal of the present study is to enable the assessment of workforce diversity, equity, and inclusion in the construction industry by identifying and determining the level of influence of applicable indicators revealing diversity, equity, and inclusion at the workforce level. A two-round survey and a panel of 16 experts were utilized to achieve the research goal. After collecting and analyzing the responses, 10 indicators were found to be influential in terms of achieving a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment and were therefore considered measures of workforce diversity, equity, and inclusion. These indicators are (1) ethnic and racial diversity at the company level; (2) gender diversity and inclusion at the workforce level; (3) a corporate policy statement on diversity and inclusion; (4) gender/ethnic diversity in leadership/management positions; (5) knowledge and skill diversity; (6) equitable pay/compensation at the industry level; (7) equality, social justice, and nondiscrimination policy statement; (8) pay structure transparency; (9) equitable pay/compensation at the company level; and (10) merit-based transparent recruitment and promotion. The present study contributes to the body of knowledge by providing a means of assessing workforce diversity, equity, and inclusion in the construction industry. It is expected that utilizing the identified indicators would help managers and human resources specialists/professionals in construction perform a thorough assessment of the level of diversity, equity, and inclusiveness of the workforce within their organizations and identify opportunities for enhancing the workforce diversity, equity, and inclusiveness.

Purpose: Existing literature suggests that construction worker safety could be optimized using emerging technologies. However, the application of safety technologies in the construction industry is limited. One reason for the constrained adoption of safety technologies is the lack of empirical information for mitigating the risk of a failed adoption. The purpose of this paper is to fill the research gap through identifying key factors that predict successful adoption of safety technologies. Design/methodology/approach: In total, 26 key technology adoption predictors were identified and classified using a combination of literature review and an expert panel. The level of influence for each identified safety technology adoption predictor was assessed and ranked using the Relative Importance Index. Analysis of variance was performed as well to assess the potential difference in perceived level of importance for the predictors when the study participants were clustered according to work experience and company size. Findings: Statistical analysis indicates that 12 out of the 26 predictors identified are highly influential regarding technology adoption decision-making in construction. Technology reliability, effectiveness and durability were ranked as the most influential predictors. The participants who work for small companies and who had less than ten years of experience rated individual- and technology-related predictors significantly lower than the experienced participants working for medium and large companies. Practical implications: The present study provides construction researchers and practitioners with valuable information regarding safety technology predictors and their magnitude, both of which are essential elements of a successful safety technology adoption process. Improved technology adoption can enhance workplace safety and minimize worker injuries, providing substantial benefits to the construction industry. Originality/value: This study contributes to technology adoption knowledge by identifying and quantifying the influential predictors of safety technologies in relation to different organizational contexts. The study informs the need to develop an integrated conceptual model for safety technology adoption.

Evaluating the safety maturity of construction contractors before awarding the contract is an effective strategy that many owners have started to implement. Given the importance of workplace safety, awarding the contract to safer contractors can enhance project performance outcomes in terms of safety, quality, cost, and schedule. Safety maturity is one quality of a construction organization encompassing interdependent factors that can be used to evaluate expected safety performance. However, there is no formal decision-making framework available in literature that owners can use to evaluate contractor safety maturity. The present study aims to bridge this gap in safety knowledge by proposing a decision-making framework that can be used to evaluate the safety maturity of construction contractors. Development of the decision-making framework included two tasks. First, an integrative literature review to identify influential safety maturity factors and their potential indicators was performed. The result of the review revealed seven factors (safety leading indicators, safety lagging indicators, safety and supervisory personnel, system maturity and resiliency, preconstruction services, technology and innovation, and safety culture) that influence the safety maturity of construction contractors. Second, the identified factors, and their indicators, were integrated into a formal multicriteria decision-making method, referred to as Choosing by Advantages, to evaluate the safety maturity of five construction contractors on a selected case study project. The proposed framework is expected to provide practical and theoretical directions on how to evaluate contractor safety maturity using relevant evaluation factors and sound decision-making methods.

Highway construction has consistently reported relatively high fatality rates largely because of the considerable exposure of workers to live traffic. To address this anomaly, traffic control planners are tasked with making decisions geared toward reducing hazardous situations caused by transiting vehicles and construction equipment. The growing application of technologies to enhance worker safety should be considered during the traffic control planning process. In certain cases, decisions such as choosing among technology options are made using experiential individual knowledge without the application of scientific and systematic decision-making methods. Use of experience-based decision making in this context is largely the result of sparse literature on scientific methods of selecting between alternatives in highway construction work zones. By applying the Choosing by Advantages (CBA) decision-making method, a process that achieves sound and effective decisions, the current study aims to fill the gap in practice by proposing a decision-making framework that could enhance the value-cost selection process of safety technologies in highway construction work zones. A situation that applied work zone intrusion alert technologies (WZIATs) was selected as a case study. Using a focus group session and case projects as an evaluation study process, the proposed framework based on the CBA decision-making process was applied to evaluate three WZIATs. Findings from the current study will benefit safety professionals and practitioners by providing a step-by-step approach to make sound decisions that can enhance the level of safety in highway construction work zones.