Introduction

Construction is a high hazard industry that has a wide range of activities involving alteration, and/or repair. Examples include residential and commercial building construction, bridge erection, roadway paving, excavations, demolitions, and large scale painting jobs.

Construction workers engage in many activities that may expose them to serious hazards, such as falling from rooftops, unguarded machinery, being struck by heavy construction equipment, electrocutions, silica dust, and asbestos.

This course is an introduction to the Construction Safety Management System (CSMS), working with contractors, and worksite analysis.

The information, tools, and resources provided in this course are designed to help you, whether you're a worker or an employer, to identify, reduce, and eliminate construction-related hazards.

Like all construction companies, you need to tailor your CSMS to your own specific work operations and work environments.

An effective safety culture and CSMS have the following primary elements:

• leadership and accountability
• involvement and communications
• worksite analysis
• hazard identification, prevention, and control
• education and training
• evaluation and continuous improvement

The standards apply to:

• All contractors who enter into contracts which are for construction, alteration, and/or repair, including painting and decorating.
• All subcontractors who agree to perform any part of the labor or material requirements of a contract.
• All suppliers who furnish any supplies or materials, if the work involved is performed on or near a construction site, or if the supplier fabricates the goods or materials specifically for the construction project, and the work can be said to be a construction activity.

Modules and Learning Objectives

Click on the links below to access the modules. You can also click on the links at the top of the page.

Module 1 - CSMS Basics

Learning objectives in this module include:

• Define and identify components of a successful safety culture.
• Define and discuss the characteristics of safety commitment and leadership.
• Describe the four primary components of a construction safety management system (CSMS).
• List and give examples of the four categories of employers on construction sites.
• Discuss employer and supervisor responsibilities on construction sites.
• List and describe safety programs for accountability, training, and hazard controls.
• Describe how an effective CSMS benefits productivity and profitability.

Module 2 - Working with Contractors

Learning objectives in this module include:

• Describe the importance of planning before the construction project begins.
• Discuss the importance of Pre-Bid, Pre-Mobilization, and weekly safety meetings.
• Discuss important safety criteria for selecting contractors.
• Describe how DART, TCIR, and EMR data is used in selecting contractors.
• Describe the roles and responsibilities for project engineers, head contractors, and safety representatives.
• Discuss employer options when confronted with contractor non-compliance.
• Discuss important multi-employer communication and coordination criteria.

Module 3 - Worksite Analysis

Learning objectives in this module include:

• List and describe the five primary processes for construction worksite analysis.
• Discuss the importance of the comprehensive baseline survey.
• List and give examples of hazards and exposure to hazards on the construction site.
• Identify the five primary categories of hazards in construction.
• Describe the importance of the Job Hazard Analysis (JHA).
• Describe the four primary categories of worksite change analysis.
• Describe the importance of conducting safety inspections.
• Give examples of the five "Hierarchy of Controls" hazard control strategies.
• Describe Deming's PDSA cycle for continually improving hazard controls.

Please login to your student dashboard to access and download this FREE course PDF studyguide. You can save this study guide to your computer for offline studying, or print the study guide if you prefer.

Course 618 Final Exam

After studying the course material and answering the quiz questions, it is time to take the final exam. We highly recommend answering the module quiz questions to check your understanding of the course material. The final exam questions are typically developed from these quiz questions.

OSHAcademy course final exams are designed to make sure students have gained a sufficient understanding of the content covered within each course. To help demonstrate this understanding, students must achieve a passing score on course final exams. It is OSHAcademy's policy to protect the integrity of our exams: as a result, we do not provide missed questions to students.

This is an open book exam. Students are permitted to use a separate browser window to review course content while taking the exam. If you do not pass a final exam, you will see a "Retake Exam" button next to the course on your student dashboard.

If you have already paid for your certificate

If you have already paid for certificates, your exam score will be displayed on your student dashboard after successfully passing the final exam. If you chose PDF certificates, you can view and print your certificate and personal transcript from your student dashboard. If you chose original printed documents, they will be prepared and mailed to the address in your student account.

If you only want free training

OSHAcademy provides free access to all training materials, including course modules, practice quizzes, exercises, and final exams. However, exam scores, certificates, and transcripts are provided only if you purchase a certificate package to document your training. If you do not require official training documentation, we will archive your exam results should you decide to purchase official certificates later.

Take the Final Exam

Additional Resources

1. Recommended Practices in Construction - OSHA
2. Field Operation Manuel - OSHA
3. Construction E-Tool - OSHA
4. Construction Glossary - OSHA
5. OSHA Training Guidelines - OSHA
6. Injury Data and Statistics - CDC
7. SLIDERULE for Buildings
8. The ABCs of Construction Safety - OR-OSHA