Health and Safety

Per Anker Jensen, Theo van der Voordt

Research output: Chapter in Book/Conference proceedings/Edited volumeChapterScientific

Abstract

Buildings, facilities and services can have a substantial influence on health and safety (H&S). Ergonomic furniture may help to prevent or reduce complaints of the arm, neck and/or shoulder. Insufficient lighting, too much noise, and unhealthy indoor air may result in work fatigue, head ache, irritation of eyes, nose or throat, and increased blood pressure. Hazardous materials, harmful substances and radiation may lead to severe diseases. Slippery floors and stairs may cause fall accidents. In plants, ill-considered production processes and unthoughtful designed machines may even kill people. So H&S are relevant values by itself, but also have an impact on other values such as productivity, employee satisfaction, Corporate Social Responsibility, sustainability, profitability and risk. This chapter discusses the responsibility of FM and CREM managers and presents a state of the art of FM/CREM related research on H&S, with a focus on the indoor climate and workplace layout. It also presents the benefits and costs of various interventions to improve H&S. The chapter ends with examples of input KPIs to measure H&S characteristics of the supply side, output KPIs to measure the actual and perceived impact of facilities on health and safety of the end users, and suggestions for further research.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationFacilities Management and Corporate Real Estate Management as Value Drivers
Subtitle of host publicationHow to measure and manage adding value
EditorsPer Anker Jensen, Theo van der Voordt
Place of PublicationLondon
PublisherRoutledge - Taylor & Francis Group
Pages122-139
ISBN (Print)978-1-138-24387-3
Publication statusPublished - 2016

Keywords

  • Health
  • Safety
  • Indoor climate
  • Lighting
  • Noise
  • Spatial layout

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