INTRODUCTION

A mason is a building construction worker engaged in the construction and maintenance of

buildings, including foundations, floors, beams, columns, etc., made of stone, blocks, bricks, etc.;
may be engaged in performing a variety of tasks in private and public buildings under the
supervision of a foreman, a technician or a building engineer.

What is dangerous about this job?

 Falls from elevated surfaces, and/or slips, trips and falls on the level
 Injuries resulting from a collapse/cave in of an excavation or a wall of an auxiliary structure
or equipment; collapse of a component of the structure that is being built; collapse of a
sand pile, etc.
 Hazard of being hit by falling objects
 Stepping on sharp objects; colliding/striking sharp or protruding objects; etc.
 Hazard of being hit by motorized heavy mechanical engineering equipment at the work site
 Hernia or rupture of a disk vertebra, as a result of excessive stress or of a sudden physical
manoeuvre
 Eye injury caused by stone and metal particles/ricochets which are produced throughout
drilling, cutting and demolishing operations
 Dermatitis and development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, resulting from
inhalation/contact with cement and building dust
 Injury of the musculoskeletal system and back pain as a result of posture problems in the
course of work, and due to the lifting of heavy loads, repetitive effort and too much pressure
applied to joints
SAFETY HAZARDS

I. Accident hazards
 Falls from an elevated surface/level (high floor, scaffolds, veranda/surface without
guard-rail, roof, ladders...); falls into a cellar, pit, shaft, trench, or open ditch
 Slips, trips and falls on the level, in particular during the transporting/carrying of
building materials
 Injuries resulting from a collapse/cave-in of an excavation or of a wall of an
auxiliary structure or equipment; collapse of a component of the structure that is
being built; collapse of a pile of materials or of stored construction equipment; etc.
 Injuries caused by falling heavy objects (bricks, hammers, work tools, wooden
boards, etc.), in the course of construction or demolition of structures
 Stepping on sharp objects (such as a plank with nails in it, building tools, wire
netting, chisels, etc.); being injured by sharp or protruding objects; etc.

II. Physical hazards

 Over-exposure to solar radiation while engaged in construction work outdoors,
without wearing appropriate work clothes
 Danger of catching a cold, because of exposure to raining and/or windy weather
 Injury of joints and skeleton as a result of prolonged work with pneumatic
hammers, saws, drills, etc., and because of the vibrations are produced during this
work (mostly in the palms and hands) when drilling, sawing or demolition work
III. Chemical hazards
 Skin inflammation (dermatitis and eczema) and allergic reactions resulting from
direct contact with cement or cement dust (there are proven cases of sensitization
to chromium, cobalt, nickel, calcium chloride and other additives contained in
cement)
 Development of chronic-obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) due to the
inhalation of the cement dust; as well as development of chronic bronchitis,
excessive coughing, sputum and other respiratory diseases

IV. Biological hazards

 Exposure to parasites, such as insects and spiders, which may lead to allergic or
anaphylactic phenomena
 Exposure to poisonous or allergenic plants (esp. at sites where the land has not been
properly cleared of vegetation)

V. Ergonomic, psychosocial and organizational factors

 Injury of the musculoskeletal system and development of back pains as a result of
posture problems in the course of work; of moving, lifting or carrying heavy or
bulky loads; of repetitive efforts; of prolonged excessive pressure on body joints;
etc.
 Psychological/social factors due to interpersonal problems, shift-work and similar
problems.
THE CONTROL MEASURES TO REDUCE THE RISK BASED ON THE HIERARCHY
OF CONTROL

I. Elimination

 Completely get rid of chemicals, materials, processes, and equipment that are
unnecessary to your specific experiment.

- Check if your equipment is well-worn, check dates, and refer to manufacturer's

recommendations.

II. Substitution

 Substitute with material that safer chemical

If a particular dangerous chemical or work process cannot be completely eliminated, then
try to replace it with a safer substitute.

- Risk addressed:
The chemical mixture that available in cement reduce the chance of inhaling because of
the dust. Not all substitute materials are really safe, they may be better than the original
hazard but can still be dangerous.
 - How risks are reduced:
Many dry, dusty powders are also available in brick, pellet, paste, flakes, oil damped
powders, and other forms that create less dust when handled, and reduce the chance of
inhaling the dust. Many plastics and rubber industry chemicals can also be supplied in dust-
suppressed forms. The figures demonstrate the dust/fume of a hazardous chemical, this
chemical has been substituted by a chemical which do not have dust/fumes.

III. Engineering

 Sand Metering and Delivery Equipment

- Risks addressed:
Stressful hand and wrist activity can cause musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) such as
muscle strains; tendonitis, which is inflammation of elbow and wrist tendons; or carpal
tunnel syndrome, which is compression of a wrist nerve, resulting in finger numbness and
loss of hand strength.
 - How risks are reduced:
With an adjustable sand hopper, sand does not need to be shoveled into the mixer by a
worker. The material in the adjustable sand hopper is dumped into the mixer by a skid steer.
Sand shoveling is eliminated from the mixing process. Therefore, a mason will avoid
awkward postures of the back, and upper extremities, and reduce lifting.
Also eliminated will be repetitive and stressful hand and wrist activities required to
manually shovel sand into the mixer.

 Air Manipulator Hoist

An air manipulator hoist is a portable and lightweight device that uses compressed air to
lift material up to 500 pounds.

- Risks addressed:
Heavy lifting can cause low back disorders, such as muscle strain or a disc herniation
(“slipped disc”), which is bulging of disc material possibly pressing on the spinal cord or
nerves that go into the leg. Overworking the back muscles can result in strains.

- How risks are reduced:

Excessive loads are placed upon the back when one or more laborers lift heavy loads. An
air manipulator hoist can lift heavy loads with minimal effort from the laborer.

IV. Administrative

 Half-weight cement bags

- Risks addressed:
Heavy lifting and carrying and stooped postures can cause low back disorders, such as
muscle strain or a disc herniation (“slipped disc”), which is bulging of disc material
possibly pressing on the spinal cord or nerves that go into the leg. The half-weight cement
bag can help reduce heavy lifting and carrying by reducing the amount of material that has
to be lifted and carried at one time.
 - How risks are reduced:
Half-weight cement bags (less than 51 pounds) reduce the amount lifted by mason tenders
in each lift.

 Safe Worksite Layout

A safe worksite layout can help improve safety conditions as well as reduce
musculoskeletal disorders manual material handling.

- Risks addressed:
Traffic safety, material handling, electrical safety, fire safety, struck by and caught in
hazards that occur in construction work.

- How risks are reduced:

Many accidents result from the unplanned interaction of people, machines, and materials.
Careful location planning allows these interactions to be controlled and highlights any
potential problem areas.

 Participatory Ergonomics Program

A participatory ergonomics program identifies and analyzes musculoskeletal injuries as
well as implement and evaluate effective control options.

- Risks addressed:
Physical hazards in the workplace such as heavy lifting and frequent manual material
handling.

Injury risk is reduced by increasing management and worker awareness that hazards exist,
identifying specific hazards, and creating worker and management commitment to finding
 and implementing solutions. Programs address physical hazards in the workplace such as
heavy lifting and frequent manual material handling.

- How risks are reduced:

Injury risk is reduced by increasing management and worker awareness that hazards exist,
identifying specific hazards, and creating worker and management commitment to finding
and implementing solutions.

 Building Information Modeling (BIM) for Safety Planning

BIM is a concept that offers software application to integrate building information for
hazard identification and safety planning.

- Risks addressed:
Human error such as limited expertise or oversight of engineers or safety personnel during
the safety planning, inspection, and monitoring can increase the risk of multiple hazards
during different phases of construction projects. These hazards include: (but are not limited
to) falls, musculoskeletal injuries and illnesses, welding hazards, and struck-by injuries.

- How risks are reduced:

By constantly tracking and monitoring new variables introduced in dynamic working
environments such as construction, BIM can improve health and safety through
preliminary hazard identification and instilling prevention through design (ptd)
components, such as prefabrication, to reduce the number of high-risk tasks.
V. PPE

 Eye and Face Protection

- Safety glasses or face shields are worn any time work operations can cause foreign objects
to get in the eye. For example, during welding, cutting, grinding, nailing (or when working
with concrete and/or harmful chemicals or when exposed to flying particles).

 Foot Protection
- Construction workers should wear work shoes or boots with slip-resistant and puncture-
resistant soles.
- Safety-toed footwear is worn to prevent crushed toes when working around heavy
equipment or falling objects.

 Hand Protection
- Gloves should fit snugly.
- Workers should wear the right gloves for the job (examples: heavy-duty rubber gloves for
concrete work)

 Head Protection
- Wear hard hats where there is a potential for objects falling from above, bumps to the
head from fixed objects.

 Hearing Protection
- Use earplugs/earmuffs in high noise work areas where chainsaws or heavy equipment are
used; clean or replace earplugs regularly.