This year’s competition attracted 40 entrants from all over the Western Cape. These sites have been undergoing audits since April by MBAWC occupational health and safety manager Deon Bester, who is also an accredited Master Builders South Africa (MBSA) lead auditor.
The entered sites were audited using the MBSA auditing system which measures both legal and physical on-site compliance. The audit comprises two components, with the first being a full audit of all of the documentation required in terms of the law and the second entailing a site walk-through to observe the behaviour and conditions on site.
Of this year’s competition, Bester says, “Generally, the sites scored well with most achieving an MBSA five-star rating, meaning that they scored more than 90%.”
He adds that although there were some accidents reported, no serious ones have occurred on the audited sites. “Last year saw more injuries reported, but fortunately these were not of a serious nature. The reduced number of injuries reported this year suggests that there has been an improvement, however one must bear in mind that the sites competing in the competition are leading in the health and safety sector.”
These sites have been entered in the National Safety Competition and will compete against the country’s five other Master Builder regions, with an MBSA representative visiting each to perform further audits and establish the winners in each category. The prize-giving ceremony will coincide with the annual MBSA Congress, which is taking place in Port Elizabeth this year, 9-11 September.
