Effectiveness of safety elements in bill of quantities for Malaysian construction projects

The construction industry in Malaysia has been known for its complex and risky environment, which requires the implementation of safety regulations. It is essential to incorporate safety elements in BQ, an important document that outlines the materials, plant equipment, and costs associated with a project. This is crucial for minimizing hazards and offering safety to workers. This study can resolve issues such as inadequate safety elements in BQ, insufficient information about safety requirements and responsibilities, and inadequate safety provisions. Hence, this research aimed to determine the contractor’s perspective on the effectiveness of safety elements in the BQ for Malaysian construction projects. The objectives of this research study are to identify the safety elements in the BQ, review the effectiveness of safety elements in the BQ, and analyze the barriers to compliance with safety elements in the BQ for Malaysian construction projects. The research methodology for this study involves a quantitative method, the questionnaire form. The questionnaires were distributed online to 178 Grade 7 contractors in Timur Laut, Pulau Pinang. The raw data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) Version 29 software and Microsoft Excel. The results obtained from the data analysis were stated by ranking, in which most respondents strongly agreed that traffic management is the most critical part of safety elements in BQ and reducing accidents and injuries is the most contributing factor for the effectiveness of safety elements in BQ. However, the respondents agreed upon a few barriers to compliance with safety elements in BQ, such as inadequate training on safety procedures, resource limitations, and lack of safety awareness. To sum up, future research is recommended to focus on various construction projects in Malaysia, evaluate the impact of safety features on the outcome, and develop a standardized framework for incorporating safety elements in the Bill of Quantities.