CDM Regulations 2007: The right advice for Clients
As a client if you are about to alter or extend a building or structure, thinking of putting up a new one or demolishing an existing one, then the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 place a number of specific duties on you. The aim of these Regulations is to make Health & Safety an essential and integral part of the planning and management of projects and to make sure that everyone works together to reduce the risk to the Health & Safety of those who work on the structure, who may be affected by these works, or who will use it as a place or work once it’s completed.
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The CDM regulations separate construction projects into two types – dependent on how long they take to build and how many people are involved. The two types are:
- Non-Notifiable Projects – where the project is likely to involve LESS THAN 30 days or 500 person days of construction work
- Notifiable projects – where the project is likely to involve MORE THAN 30 days or 500 person days of construction work If you are in doubt, you should assume that the project is Notifiable
The Regulations mostly require you to ensure that a number of things are done rather than actually do them yourself. On Non-Notifiable Projects you can ask a Designer or Contractor for assistance or you can appoint someone to help you. On Notifiable projects the CDM Co-ordinator is there to help you carry out those duties and will advise you throughout the project on what needs to be done.
On all projects you must
- Check competence and resources of all appointees (Designers, Contractors and other team members)
- Co operate and coordinate with others involved in the project
- Ensure there are suitable management arrangements in place throughout the project to ensure that construction work can be carried out safely
- Check any workplace design will comply with the Workplace health safety and welfare regulations.
- Allow sufficient time and resources for all stages of the project
- Provide pre-construction information to designers and contractors
- Check arrangements have been made by the contractor for suitable welfare facilities
In addition on Notifiable projects you must
- Appoint CDM co-ordinator before significant design work is carried out to advise and assist with the clients duties under the regulations.
- Provide information relating to the health and safety file to the CDM co-ordinator
- Appoint principal contractor as soon as practicable to plan and manage the construction work.
- Make sure that the construction phase does not start unless
- There are suitable welfare facilities
- A construction phase plan is in place.
- Retain the health and safety file and make it available to anyone who may need it in the future. You must also update it whenever necessary and hand it to anyone who acquires an interest in the building.
If you fail to appoint a ‘CDM Co-ordinator’ or ‘Principal Contractor’ you will be legally liable for their duties and will be deemed to be carrying them out and you could leave yourself open to potentially very expensive civil action and a criminal prosecution by the HSE.
Getting the right people to do what they are supposed to do under these regulations is important you need to be sure that those you appoint are competent and capable of carrying out their work on your particular project. Veritas Consulting Management’s CDM co-ordinators are trained and qualified in health and safety and are registered members of the Association for Project Safety. Our staff can advise and assist you in carrying out all your duties under CDM 2007.
For Further information please contact us
CDM Coordinators Midlands – The real difference is clear
Veritas Consulting , registered CDM Coordinators based in the Midlands are able to provide an in-depth understanding of the regulations governing Design and Construction projects more commonly known as the Construction Design and Management Regulations. (CDM).
The increasing demand for an experienced CDM Coordinator, who can offer the high levels of service required to administer the Construction (Design and Management) 2007 Regulations (CDM) on a wide range of projects, is one of the driving factors behind Veritas Consulting ability to deliver client needs.
This is especially true since Veritas Consulting are in a position to provide an experienced CDM Coordinator, who possess a clear understanding of the CDM regulations and a proven track record in the role of the formerly named Planning Supervisor.
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CDM Coordinators Experience.
Our CDM Coordinator has many years experience working with contractors, Architects and other designers, often carried out under most demanding circumstances on numerous construction projects, which include new build, offices, educational, and leisure with values from £50k to £90m.
Our CDM Coordinator meets the academic requirements for registered Membership of The Association for Project Safety www.aps.org.uk indicated by the suffix (RMaPS) which is ONLY available to those who can demonstrate training and experience which is necessary for the practice of a CDM Coordinator.
Veritas Consulting aim to provide “value for money” and want you to spend your money on the construction of your project rather than consultant’s fees.
Whats involved – The CDM Coordinator’s role
Firstly the client, has to provide adequate pre-construction information relevant to health and safety to the CDM Coordinator.
Including existing drawings, surveys of the site or premises; information on the location of services, etc; and designers, have to provide information about the risks which cannot be avoided and will have to be controlled by the principal contractor and other contractors. Typically this information may be provided on drawings, in written specifications or in outline method statements.
HSE Notification (A CDM Coordinators Duty)
Issue the initial F10 Notification immediately after being appointed as the CDM Coordinator and issuing the additional F10 Notification as soon as reasonbly practicable after appointment.
Client Responsibilities
Ensuring that the Client is fully briefed on current CDM Regulations and any potential changes.
Competency and Resources (CDM Coordinator to assist Client)
If the Client requests, obtain evidence from potential designers and appointed Principal contractors regarding previous experience, skill and knowledge.
Undertake a complete assessment on competence and resources related to the proposed project and report accordingly to the client.
Work with Designers, not against them
Assist with Preparing the Project Risk Register for the project along with any Residual Hazards that remain.
Co-operation between Designers on health and safety issues that they have eliminated and reduced risks which their designs generate and control risks to those involved in or affected by construction operations.
Adequate Information from Designers
Ensure so far as reasonably practicable that designers provide adequate information about the significant health and safety implications toward execution of the design.
Pre-Construction Information (CDM Coordinator to manage process)
Prepare the Pre-Construction Information, ensuring it reflects Client duties and fully satisfies health and safety legislative requirements, encompassing all project health and safety risks and understandable by all parties.
Construction Phase Plan
To be satisfied the Construction Phase Plan gives full consideration to the health and safety risks identified in the Pre-Construction Information and the project going forward.
Hold a meeting with the Principal Contractor to discuss the Construction Phase Plan ensuring appropriate revisions are made to achieve compliance status.
The Health and Safety File (CDM Coordinator to prepare)
Commence with developing the Health and Safety File, soon after being appointed as the CDM Coordinator, ensuring it reflects client requirements, following discussion agree structure and preferred layout with the client and handed to the client no later than Practical Completion.
Ok, I’m interested whats my next step?
If there is any doubt about whether the CDM Regulations apply to your project, or whether you have legal duties as a client, you should contact Veritas Consulting on 0800 1488 677 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 0800 1488 677 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or contact us
Practical steps that CDM Designers can take.
GOOD Designers can make a BIG difference designing OUT the risks
1) Health and safety should not be an afterthought. This is sometimes better understood by civil engineers than by designers of buildings because many civil engineering projects involve obvious and clearly defined risks. When designing a bridge to be built over a busy road the safety aspects of the operation have to be considered from the outset. There may be several ways of tackling the work. Building designers should learn to work in a similar way when choosing between design options.
2) There is no easy answer to deciding the importance that should be given to health and safety. Perhaps the best way to look at the relative weightings that could be given is to examine the consequences that will result from a choice or decision. In the end a professional judgement has to be made – it should be a decision that involves a proper exercise of judgement which takes account of health and safety issues.
3) The most important contribution a designer can make to improve health and safety often has to be made at the start of a project. Opportunities can be lost if health and safety is not considered at this early stage. Rather than looking on health and safety as a matter that can be postponed until other issues are out of the way, designers should deliberately bring consideration forward to ensure that the other issues are resolved in a way that eliminates risk so far as reasonably practicable.
4) The appropriate level of risk assessment will vary from project to project and from one operation to another. Where it is clear that there are serious hazards, a thorough study of the risks and a detailed method statement may be needed, eg when glazing is to be replaced over an active shopping mall or when explosives are to be used to open a channel through rock. The assessment may involve a detailed analysis but more often all that is appropriate is a simple judgement based on the seriousness of any incident that could result and the degree of exposure to the hazard. In a project that does not involve exceptionally hazardous operations, design reviews at key stages (eg before tender documents and working drawings are started) should help to identify hazards needing investigation. Sometimes it may be possible to avoid a hazard altogether but in many cases, where alternative methods of construction are possible, it will be necessary to assess the risks within each alternative so that safety measures can be considered and the health and safety aspects of alternatives can be taken into account.
5) There is a great deal of information in existence on construction health and safety. Although rarely written specifically for designers, much of it can be used by them when carrying out their duties under the CDM Regulations. Also of relevance is the health and safety legislation governing:
i) Materials (such as lead, asbestos and other hazardous substances
ii) activities (such as demolition or removal of contaminated soil);
iii) welfare requirements (including sanitary accommodation and first aid);
iv) environmental conditions (resulting from noise and dust);
In compliance with the above, Designers will need to have regard to :
i) the contractors who will be constructing the facility
ii) others who may be affected by the design requirements during its construction eg the public
iii) those who will have to maintain the facility
iv) those who may have to decommission/demolish the facility
As a consequence of the risk appraisal process the Designer should aim to eliminate risks, and lessen others. The significant residual risks, and information about these risks, need to be communicated by the designers to the CDM Coordinator.
CDM Coordinators will convey the information that affects the construction phase to the Principal Contractor via the Health and Safety Plan, and information that affects the maintenance or decommissioning phase to the Client via the Health and Safety File.
To help CDM Designers we have an excellent Design Risk Register if you would like us to send you a free copy please contact us.
Another article by Veritas Health and Safety Consultants and CDM Coordinators
Registered CDM Coordinators
Since the role of the CDM Coordinator began, the objective has been to ensure that efficiency is at the heart of the CDM Coordinator Services we provide, Quality in the way we approach design risk management, quality in the way we organise and conduct ourselves and, above all, doing our best to ensure that the client receives the best advice and guidance they pay for.”
It is vital we believe that the role of CDM Coordinator is one that warrants in-depth knowledge of the construction process, careful attention to detail, an ethos of assessment and recording of salient information and the desire to ensure that performance and quality are paramount.
All these qualities exist within Veritas Consulting in our daily work and add to our performance as CDM Coordinators.
Our attitude to the role is a practical one – we believe in ensuring paperwork is precise and concise. This helps site operatives and management react more readily. Our emphasis is very much on the practical effects of Health and Safety control, rather than paper for paper’s sake.
Veritas Consulting have been successfully carried out the role of CDM Coordinator on a wide range of major and minor construction projects. We have the knowledge, experience and resources necessary to ensure successful service delivery to our clients regardless of the size or complexity of the construction project.
Veritas Consulting are registered CDM Coordinators, but what does it mean to you? being registered CDM Coordinators means that we can demonstrate Design Risk Management skills and a deep knowledge of construction because we belong to The Association for Project Safety – the regulating body.
For a quotation please contact us or call 0121 249 1281
CDM Coordinators Fees – how much do they cost?
CDM Coordinator - a proactive integral member of the project delivery team and a key health and safety advisor to the client.
As client accepting low fees will increase your chances of risk management problems with your project. We believe our fee is probably the most competitive in the industry. Our costs reflects what’s necessary to carry out a full and proper CDMC function as required by the CDM Regulations and associated ACOP and industry guidance.
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CDM Coordinators fee typical guide - 0.1% where the build cost is between £1.5m and £5m. Fees are negotiable above £5million, whilst projects below £1.5m usually attract a fee of between £850 and £1,500.
Check out our main website for the CDM Coordinators fee sliding scale
If clients accept low fees then the following just will not happen.
What do our CDM coordinators costs allow?
- We will provide adequate resources to deliver the CDM coordinator Role.
- We will attend design team meetings,
- We will coordinate health and safety aspects of the design,
- We will liaise with principal contractors and manage pre construction information,
- We will produce health and safety files,
- We advise and assist our clients from start to finish.
It’s fair to say that the “cheapest price does not mean best value” what it means is that CDM coordinators will not be able to operate as efficiently and effectively as they should do as the key adviser to the client if the fee won’t allow them to do so.
By the way; any Designer, Architect or Engineer who recommends Veritas Consulting to their client can claim a 5% commission.
…expert CDM Coordinators Birmingham, West Midlands – learn more about the CDM C Service and make a quick online enquiry here.
Creating a Construction Phase Plan Template
Creating a Construction Phase Plan compliance with the CDM Regulations
The Construction Phase Plan must be prepared by a Principal Contractor for a notifiable project in compliance with CDM prior to works commence. A Construction Phase Plan seeks to convey information provided by the client, CDM Coordinators, designers and others and efforts must be made to produce a document which is as comprehensive as possible.
It should be noted, however, that an initial Construction Phase Plan does not seek to be exhaustive – there may be unidentified hazards, which are present on the site, in the existing structures or arise during the planned works. The focus in this stage of the Plan document is to highlight known major hazards, particularly those which may be regarded as non-standard or abnormal in some way. The absence of a reference to a specific hazard should not be taken as a warranty that such a hazard is not present or cannot and will not arise during the works.
A Construction Phase Plan addresses health and safety issues.
Using a Construction Phase Plan Template
The Construction Phase Plan is to be developed by the principal contractor throughout the life of the project and should become a specific document which sets out the arrangements for securing the health and safety of all those carrying out the work and all others who may be affected by it.
When developing the health and safety plan the principal contractor should identify the hazards and assess the risk at each of the main stages of the construction phase including but not necessarily limited to those identified in the pre construction information. The principal contractor should also identify his organisation and arrangements for managing health, safety and the environment.
The Construction Phase Health and Safety Plan needs to be kept up to date, modified and altered in the light of changing circumstances. As the construction work progresses safety method statements and information from contractors starting during the various work stages will invariably mean parts of the health and safety plan have to be amended and updated.
Regular reviews of parts of the plan need to be made if there are design changes unforeseen circumstances etc. It is vital that such changes are notified to all those working on site who may be affected, in particular the CDM Coordinator.
CDM Regulations – Liabilities for Project Managers
CDM Legal Liabilities of Project Managers
This brief overview raises the question of what the Project Manager’s criminal liabilities would be if their advice or omissions contributed to a Client failing to fulfil one of their statutory duties.
Ultimately, the project manager could be prosecuted through application of Section 36 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASWA). This states that “where the commission by any person of an offence under any of the relevant statutory provisions is due to the act or default of some other person, that other person shall be guilty of the offence, and a person may be charged with and convicted of the offence by virtue of this subsection whether or not proceedings are taken against the first-mentioned person.”
In other words, a PM could be prosecuted for causing a Client to breach CDM 2007 whether or not the Client is also prosecuted.
Here is an approach used by the HSE in a prosecution on 12/11/08.
Calderbrook Estates had appointed a Michael Stephenson as a roofing contractor. An employee of Stephenson fell four metres from the roof and broke both his heels. Stephenson was prosecuted for a breach of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 for having failed to arrange a safe system of work. Calderbrook was prosecuted for exactly the same offence, by virtue of Section 36 of HASWA, due to their default:
Specifically, Calderbrook failed to supervise and monitor the work which it had partly organised thereby contributing to the accident and the offence committed by Stephenson.
…..To avoid risk of prosecution under section 36 of HASWA, PMs should therefore ensure that the Client’s duties are complied with insofar as these matters are under the control of the PM.
…..The Client cannot delegate their legal CDM liabilities to the PM but should a Client breach a Regulation due to the failures of a PM, the PM could face prosecution for that breach, whether or not the Client is prosecuted.
The above is taken from an APS newsletter
For advice and assistance YOU should contact Veritas Health and Safety Consultants on 0121 249 1281 …the expert CDM Coordinators
