Impact of the South African construction regulations as perceived by project managers

Abstract

International research indicates that construction clients and built environ-ment consultants such as project managers, designers, and quantity surveyors influence and can contribute to construction health and safety (H&S). This article focuses on the influence and contribution of project managers only. Although they are not required to undertake any specific interventions in terms of the South African Construction Regulations (SACR) promulgated in July 2003, project managers by virtue of their unique contributions in the form of managing design delivery, the integration of design and construction, and their monitoring of construction, need to ensure that many of the requirements of the SACR are met. A perception-based survey conducted among member practices of the Association of Construction Project Managers (ACPM) determined the following: the traditional project parameters in the form of time, cost, and, quality are still perceived to be substantially more important than H&S; the manifestations of the impact of the SACR are wide spread, namely in the form of increased consideration for / reference to H&S by project managers and general contractors, increased H&S awareness, and impact of H&S on various project parameters.