Fatigue Management

By Lisa Kopochinski

Long hours and hard, physical work are the norm for many working on Canada’s deep foundation construction projects. However, if not properly managed, these conditions can lead to worker fatigue, resulting in unsafe working conditions. This is why companies need to take stronger measures to prevent fatigue.

So, what is fatigue management and why is it needed?

“Basically, it recognizes that fatigue compromises a person’s ability to function both physically and mentally, and even affects our emotional state,” said Mike Harnett, owner and president of Solaris Fatigue Management, a British Columbia-based firm that supplies innovative and effective fatigue risk management strategies.

“The consequences of that are that we cannot continue to function at a level that we need to function at to do the job safely,” she said. “This means more injuries, more incidents, more errors and even more mental health issues.”

While many jobs have hazards attached to them, it is important for companies to take a closer look at how much riskier construction jobs are if the worker is tired.

“The earlier they can become involved, the better,” Harnett said. “At the beginning of the project life cycle, we need to start looking at wherever there is a human interaction, and we need to examine that interaction for hazards. So, if they are looking at where workers are doing the pile driving activities, what are the performance requirements that have to be done?”

Fatigue is normal

What happens if a tired person is placed in line with the hazards of their job? How much riskier do those projects become?

“We need to start looking at our jobs through a fatigue lens,” Harnett said. “Fatigue is part of the normal human condition and it’s not something we are going to eliminate from the worksite. We’re not going to stop people from showing up tired for a variety of reasons, but we can manage it. We have to look at how we design work and manage the risks in order to get them down as low as possible.”

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http://www.pilingcanada.ca/tagged/issue-2-2022/fatigue-management-for-deep-foundations-professionals