WITH the International Labour Organisation celebrating World Day for Occupational Safety and Health at Work (OSH) annually on 28 April, Malaysia Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) organised a two-day conference to commemorate it.

Held at the Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit (KVMRT) Training Centre, Sungai Buloh on 27 – 28 April 2017, the theme for this year’s OSH Day was ‘Optimise the Collection and Use of OSH Data.’

The theme focuses on the critical need for the workplace to improve their capacity to collect and utilise reliable safety and health (OSH) data.

This OSH Conference was organised with the aim to educate MRT Corp, the MRT Work Package Contractors, MMC Gamuda- KVMRT (PDP SSP) Sdn Bhd and individuals from various government agencies about various safety and health measures in the construction industry.

The event was launched by Department of Occupational Safety and Health Malaysia (DOSH), Deputy Director General Tuan Haji Omar Mat Piah. In his speech during the launch Omar said, “I am happy that the MRT Project is taking actions as per Act 514 OSH Act 1994”. The act is ‘An act to make further provisions for security the safety, health and welfare of persons at work, protecting others against risk to safety or health in connection with the activities of persons at work.’

A prize giving ceremony for the various competitions organised prior to the OSH Day was also held during the conference. The competitions involved MRT Corp, MMC-Gamuda KVMRT (PDP) Sdn Bhd and Work Package Contractors (WPC) involved in the MRT Project. These were organised to increase the awareness of OSH practices. Recognition of previous performance successes in the MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang (SBK) Line was also done for the WPCs.

Proceedings for the first day of the conference involved talks from distinguished individuals from the OSH community in Malaysia.

Universiti Putra Malaysia Senior Lecturer Dr Vivien How began the conference by giving a presentation about ‘Building a Safe and Healthier Nation: Are We There Yet.’ She spoke about the number of workers ever-increasing the most in the construction industry. With this, it is highly important to ensure that the safety of workers is not compromised. Amongst the advances that are currently available is that there are more ways in enhancing knowledge about it. Employees and employers have to concurrently strive to achieve it.

‘Mandatory and Enforcement on Scaffolding Requirement’ was the topic of the second session, presented by Encik Mohd Khairi Kamarulzaman from DOSH.  Khairi explained to the attendees about the various methods of scaffolding and the regulations that individuals need to abide by. Amongst it is that before a scaffolding is used, it needs to be inspected by a certified Designated Person to ensure that is safe before use. This person would usually have to inspect that the conditions of the scaffolding is in prime condition especially with weather conditions in Malaysia that might affect the condition of it.

After lunch, Ir Tan Yean Chin, a member of the Board of Engineers Malaysia gave a talk about safety in temporary works in construction. During his talk, he explained to the audience that the most dangerous works are those temporary works. Many examples of various accidents from projects around the country that was shown. Tan commended the MRT Project in that it is the only construction project that implements underground supervisors to check on work conducted underground.

To end the first day, Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) Malaysia Safety, Health, Environment and Quality Head Tuan Haji Sazali Che Amat gave a talk about the ‘CIDB Act 520 and Standards Requirement on Scaffolding.’ He explained that CIDB has the right to certify construction materials in the construction industry including the scaffolding in accordance with the standard specified as per Section 33C (1). Contractors are also advised to obtain the Certificate of Standard of Compliance that had been issued by CIDB upon receiving their goods from suppliers. With this certification, the goods will be deemed certified and deemed fit for use in the construction industry.

The second day of the conference began with MRT Corp Centralised Labour Quarters, Safety, Security, Health and Environment Head Encik Yusof Kasiron presenting an overview of the MRT Project OSH Report Card. He presented the incident statistics that MRT Corp had for the MRT SBK Line also the target for the MRT Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya (SSP) Line. Improvements have been made for the SSP Line for MRT Corp and the WPCs to learn from the SBK Line. “Mistakes are meant for learning and not to be repeated,” said Yusof.

MMC Gamuda- KVMRT (PDP SSP) Sdn Safety, Health and Environment Director Mr Steven Walton then took over the floor and talked about the balance scorecard approach in the construction industry. Here, he mentioned that MRT Corp together with MMC-Gamuda as the Project Delivery Partner play a pivotal role in setting the standards to the WPCs. Exemplary standards need to be set by the higher management of each of the organisations so that others will follow suit.

A lifting safety exercise was then conducted by IJM Construction Sdn Bhd Safety and Health Manager Encik Mohd Yusaini Mohd Yusof. Safety measures are to be taken when this exercise is in place especially when working in a limited and restricted area. A lot of planning has to be done with other organisations to ensure that this is conducted smoothly. A video of the link bridge installation for the MRT Taman Pertama Station was shown to the audience as this was conducted by IJM Construction Sdn Bhd.

MMC-Gamuda KVMRT (T) Sdn Bhd Safety, Health and Environment Head Mr Christopher Fenton gave an explanation to the audience about demolition works and safety precautionary measures that need to be observed. Construction sites for the MRT Project have covered walkways in public areas. These walkways are established for the safety of the public that might venture into the area.

Siemens Malaysia Sdn Bhd Environmental Health and Safety Manager Puan Noraini Daliman explained the safety measures that are taken upon assembling the MRT train. The train, that is assembled in the train assembly plant in Rasa, Selangor, is the first of its kind in Malaysia. Siemens works together with SMH Rail Sdn Bhd. All personnel working here would have to undergo electrical safety management training prior to commencing work.

A talk about OSH Management that had been practiced was given by Mr Kumaran Jeyacelan from RD Resources Sdn Bhd. The company’s involvement in the MRT Project was that it was awarded the contract for construction of the multi-storey car park at the Bandar Tun Hussein Onn Station. He explained that when construction works are ongoing, his company has to report to MMC-Gamuda about the status updates on any safety issues that might arise. With this, safety is always at the forefront and that additional external training is being done for his employees.

The second last speaker for the conference was Mr Alan Beaty from MMC-Gamuda KVMRT (PDP) Sdn Bhd. He spoke about ‘Safety Aspect in Launching Girder Operation.’ The topic was interesting to the audience as his team constantly work closely with the traffic management team of the project. Traffic management plans need to be in place and constantly be updated from time to time as the heavy machinery used needs to bypass busy roads and thus a solid plan needs to be in place.

The final speaker for the conference was Mr Alan Beaty who is an international Site Manager Safety Training Scheme Trainer. Beaty, who was visiting Malaysia for a couple of days, showcased to the audience the various limitations of roads in the Klang Valley for pedestrians. Behavioural problems by drivers in addition to unfriendly nature of the landscape of areas are seen to be a problem in the country. He highlighted that although the MRT Station is prominent and is of close proximity to where he was, it was hard to gain access to it via foot.

This conference two-day conference was seen as a success and all the attendees were then presented with participation certificates. Conferences like these help MRT Corp and its partners to showcase the importance of safety in the project.