Construction company calls for overhaul of building procurement

Construction group Leighton Holdings have called for a tougher regulatory framework that includes clients and designers to be involved in procurement in a bid to address the unacceptable level of workplace deaths in Australia.

The company has called on the federal government to improve safety regulations, particularly in the construction game, by adopting a regulatory framework that includes clients and designers involved in procurement.

It has recommended the adoption of the UK's design and management construction regulation.
Leighton Holdings chief executive David Stewart said there was a real opportunity to introduce a new framework while national occupational health and safety (OHS) approaches were being harmonised.

“There was compelling evidence safety outcomes were positively influenced by the direct involvement and commitment of clients to safe construction,” Mr Stewart said.

"When everyone involved with the construction process is responsible for safety we get less people killed and injured," he said.

The company wants to work with the government to deliver safer workplaces.

In response to draft regulations published by Safe Work Australia Leighton, has recommended a regulatory framework based on the UK's construction design and management regulations.

"This regulatory frameworkputs a specific set of obligations on clients and designers as part of the construction procurement chain," Mr Stewart said
Leighton’s Group Procurement Head, Tony White FCIPS, recently spoke at the CIPSA category management in Sydney.

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