English version of safety manual delayed
The English version of the new safety manual for construction works from the Dubai Municipality's Building Department will be available only next month, said a senior official.
"The Arabic version is already available at the main DM building," said Ahmed Khalil, senior safety engineer at the DM's Building Department. "The English version has been delayed due to translation."
On July 29, DM had announced that the safety manual would be available in English and Arabic, featuring 23 chapters covering all issues of safety in construction site. The manual is a revision of the earlier one, which was written 13 years ago.
The issuance of the manual stemmed from the concern placed by the municipality for safety issues and the need to introduce future standards for the same.
It outlines general and specific safety procedures for all types of construction and demolition works and associated jobs.
"We have also faced numerous queries from contractors who would like additional details on the fire-fighting requirements and the required number of safety officers on their construction sites," said Khalil. "We are also trying to give them adequate response to their doubts. The implementation schedules for these procedures are also under review and have not been yet finalised."
Free zones could implement the manual over and above their existing guidelines, he said.
"But we would advise the construction industry in Dubai to go through the manual and comply with the safety standards," said Khalil. "We have an open door policy and are willing to answer any questions or doubts faced by the industry."
The manual is priced at Dhs 100. It forms part of the set of legislation currently being undertaken by Dubai Municipality with the objective of introducing a complete legal framework in line with the municipality's Strategic Plan 2007-2011. This will result in producing a set of legislation documents for the emirate.
The manual was prepared by Mirdif Consultants along with a team from DM.
"It can be used as a reference for regulating the working conditions in construction projects for all employees who work with contractors or sub-contractors," said said Essa Al Maidour, Assistant Director General of Dubai Municipality for Planning and Building Affairs last month. "Mirdif has drawn from international best practices and hopefully, we have covered most of the issues. We used our existing standards and also drew from American National Standards, National Fire Protection, Construction Safety Association of Canada and others."
Meanwhile, DM will issue its technical guidelines to the 4,000 contractors in Dubai on a free basis and also on the website. Mirdif will train DM inspectors and at the same time, make revisions in the future in the manuals based on the actual experiences on sites here.