Picking Up Where We Left Off: A 'Temporary' Safety Culture

Construction of temporary structures e.g. events sector can be argued to present unconventional or extraordinary challenges than those encountered in traditional construction projects. Conventional construction projects generally have longer service life and construction timeline. The confined duration of construction projects in this sector, however, may result in little time for the steady establishment and development of a strong safety culture. This is partly because of the seasonal nature of the industry but also the relatively short duration on a particular site. The aim of this paper is to critically examine the views of construction professionals who work within the events industry to help better understand the nature of their safety cultures. In-depth interviews were conducted with experts engaged in construction, and health and safety in the events industry. Key findings indicate that core teams are maintained to ensure continuity of positive safety cultures. Similar to conventional construction projects, communication is vital to site safety. Furthermore, derigging or disassembly in this sector is one aspect that presents many safety concerns on site which are less noticed and less researched.