Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Automation in Construction
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/autcon

Identification of accident scenarios involving scaffolding

Mariusz Szóstak a, *, Bożena Hoła a, Paweł Bogusławski b
a
Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Department of Building Engineering, 27 Wybrzeże Wyspiańskiego st., 50-370 Wrocław,
Poland
b
Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Institute of Geodesy and Geoinformatics, Grunwaldzka 53, 50-357 Wrocław, Poland

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: The aim of the undertaken research was to identify the most frequently repeated accident scenarios in relation to
Construction accidents that involve scaffolding. The source of knowledge was accident documentation containing information
Scaffolding on the circumstances of accidents, as well as their course and consequences. As part of the research, an IT
Fall from height
Database (ITD) was developed, which involved accidents that occurred in Poland over the past five years which
Accident scenario
Direct graph
were related to work on scaffolding. An original graphical, mathematical and IT process model was developed in
Dijkstra algorithm order to enable a large set of accidents involving construction scaffolding to be studied. Due to the fact that every
Process model accident proceeds according to a different scenario, a map of possible accident scenarios was developed and
presented in the form of a directed graph. Graph algorithms, including the Dijkstra algorithm, were used to build
the IT model.
Based on the information contained in the ITD, the course of the accident sequence was analysed in the
proposed graph. The most probable accident scenarios, the probability of their occurrence, and the course of the
critical path were determined. The obtained results constitute a starting point for estimating the occupational
risk associated with working on scaffoldings.

1. Introduction renovation of existing ones [11]. According to research conducted by

A high accident rate in the construction industry occurs in many
countries of the world. This is confirmed by the reports of various or­
ganizations and offices that deal with occupational safety [1–3]. The
results of accident rate studies conducted in 2014 in 28 European Union
countries showed that among all sections of the economy, the con­
struction industry is in 3rd place regarding the total number of occu­
pational accidents, and in 2nd place in terms of both the frequency of
accidents that cause more than three days of absence from work and the
frequency of fatal accidents at work [4].
An example of a country with a very high accident rate is Spain
[5–7], where 34.6% of occupational accidents in the construction in­
dustry are severe, and 33.9% are fatal. Most of the deaths are caused by
falling from height. A similar tendency is observed in other European
Union countries [8], as well as in the United States [9], Australia, China,
Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Singapore [10].
The risks of falling from height occur, among others, when carrying
out construction works on various types of scaffolding that are used
during demolition works, the construction of new buildings, or the
Collins et al. [12], in the United States over 65% of all workers employed
on construction sites work on construction scaffolding. Of these, about
4500 people suffer occupational accidents each year, and 50 of them die
as a result of falling from scaffolding. According to studies carried out in
Spain, falls from height accounted for over 55% of all accidents in the
construction industry [13]. In turn, in Japan, about 300 employees are
killed each year in occupational accidents in the construction industry.
Of this number, over 130 accidents, or as many as 40%, are caused by
falling from height, with scaffolding also being the material factor that is
most often associated with a fatal accident [14].
Studies concerning accidents conducted to date were primarily
focused on identifying causes and effects, analysing the mechanisms of
accidents within the static approach, and building models that reflect
various aspects of accidents. However, it should be noted that any
occupational accident is a process that begins at a specific location of
conducting works (accident site), where certain working conditions and
circumstances exist. In the course of performing work, the applicable
norms and provisions of labour law are violated, which leads to dis­
ruptions in the proper course of this process. The result of these

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: mariusz.szostak@pwr.edu.pl (M. Szóstak).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2021.103690
Received 23 June 2020; Received in revised form 1 March 2021; Accepted 26 March 2021
Available online 1 April 2021
0926-5805/© 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
M. Szóstak et al.
disturbances is the occurrence of a dangerous event that causes injury to
employees. When analysing the circumstances leading to accidents, it
can be concluded that every accident is a process that follows a different
scenario. Moreover, in a set of accidents, scenarios that very often
repeat, and those that occur sporadically, can be identified.
The main aim of the research was to identify the most frequently
recurring accident scenarios based on a detailed analysis of the cir­
cumstances, course, and effects of accidents involving scaffolding. Such
an issue has not yet been studied by scientists. For this purpose, an IT
database was built, which contained information concerning accidents
that involve building scaffolding. A process approach was used to
analyse the accidentality phenomenon. An original graphical, mathe­
matical and IT model was developed in order to enable a sequence of
accidents to be studied as a process consisting of a series of events. The
process approach, graph theory, and graph algorithms, including the
Dijkstra algorithm, were used to build the model. The research was
carried out with the use of the constructed model. Characteristic features
of the phenomenon were identified with regards to the most frequently
repeated scenario, and conclusions of a scientific and preventive nature
were formulated.
A new scientific element in the conducted research was the use of the
process approach to investigate a set of accidents that involve building
scaffolding, and also to analyse accidents in the construction industry as
a phenomenon in which certain invariable features can be distinguished.
One of these features is the most frequently repeated accident scenario.
2. Literature review
Studies concerning accidents that involve scaffolding have been
conducted by many researchers and concerned, among others, the
identification of causes of accidents in the technical, organizational and
human areas. The most common direct causes of falls from height are
deficiencies and errors in collective protection devices, improper
employee behaviour, and the poor organization of work [15,16]. The
most common result is the death of an injured person. Only in a small
number of cases do falls from height lead to severe injuries, and very
rarely do they result in light injuries [17].
A separate group involved studies on problems related to the
exploitation of scaffolding. These studies included issues [18–25], such
as: analysis of variability of loads acting on scaffolding [18–20], impact
of wind on scaffolding [21], impact of environmental parameters on
people working on scaffolding [22.23], and the assessment of the
technical condition of the elements of scaffolding [24]. Research con­
cerning the assessment of the safety state of over 100 used scaffoldings,
which were carried out in 2001–2002 by Halperin and McCann [25],
showed that more than 30% of them should not be approved for use, as
they were a direct threat life. Another 25% of scaffoldings had at least
one or more structural defects, such as an improper anchoring of the
scaffolding to an object, or incorrect foundations.
The number of used scaffoldings depends on the specific socio-
economic factors that occur in the construction industry. The authors
of paper [26] identified the following socio-economic factors that affect
the accident rate in the construction industry, namely: the value of
construction and assembly production, the value of current assets in
construction companies, the capital of enterprises, investment expen­
diture, and the number of employees.
There are also studies on the impact of human factors on the risk of
an accident occurring [27–30]. The basis for its assessment involved,
among others, the monitoring of the basic life parameters of employees
working on scaffolding [28], the assessment of the concentration and
visual work of employees [29], as well as surveys regarding an
2
Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690
employee’s perception of risk, safety culture and safety climate [30]. In
turn, papers [31–33] determine the professional characteristics of peo­
ple injured in occupational accidents that involve scaffolding.
To sum up, research in the field of occupational safety related to
work on building scaffolding was carried out with regards to many as­
pects. It concerned, among others, the identification of the causes of falls
from scaffolding, the issues of improper use of scaffolding, occupational
risk assessment, and the impact of the human factor on the occurrence of
accidents. In the large set of scientific publications, there was no paper
concerning the modelling of a large set of accidents on scaffolding as a
phenomenon that is characterized by certain repetitive features.
A very important element in shaping a policy to prevent accidents is
the understanding of the mechanisms of accidents. For this purpose,
various models are built that reflect the most important elements related
to accidents. One of the best known is the Domino model proposed by
Heinrich [34]. There are also event, cause and error tree models [35,36],
energy transfer models [37–39], human error and dangerous behaviour
models [40,41], plus many more.
The sources of information concerning accidents that may constitute
a database for building the model are reports of the occurred accidents.
For example, Gholizadeh and Esmaeili [42] used historical data of ac­
cidents among electrical contractors. The authors examined the impact
of selected circumstances of accidents, which were described in the
accident reports, on the degree of injuries among the injured people. In
their analysis, they used a logistic regression model, which allowed the
circumstances that had a significant impact on the accident to be
indicated.
In turn Chua and Goh [39] proposed the Modified Loss Causation
Model (MLCM), which was built on the basis of analysis of accident
reports. It enables the causes of accidents to be identified. The model
was developed based on reports that concerned 140 real accidents,
which were obtained from Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower, Occu­
pational Safety Department. The determination of the direct causes of
accidents allowed for the understanding of the mechanism of an acci­
dent, but only with regards to indicating the failed elements.
The amount of the collected data and the number of accident reports
is very large, and therefore many research techniques are used for their
analysis. However, the most common technique is to manually collect
and analyse source data. This method requires professional knowledge
and large human and material resources. When facing these problem,
Zhang et al. [43] proposed a method for the automatic classification of
texts that were written in a natural language. However, there is very
little research concerning text mining and natural language processing
techniques for the analysis of accidents narratives.
The models described above are static models. This means that they
do not describe accidents as processes related to time. However, an
accident is a dynamic phenomenon. In order for it to occur, the cir­
cumstances and conditions of the work process must change. Process
models represent a dynamic approach to accident analysis. An example
of a process model is the OARU (Occupational Accident Research Unit)
model, which was developed by Kjellen and Larson in 1981 [44,45]. In
this model, the accident process was divided into 3 phases: the initiation
phase, the implementation phase and the injury phase. There are 4
transitional states between these phases: the transition from normal
working conditions to a lack of control over the situation, the transition
from a lack of control to a loss of control, the transition at which the
human body begins to absorb energy, and the end of the energy ab­
sorption process, i.e. the injury to the employee.
Another process model is the one proposed by the European Statis­
tical Office (EUROSTAT) [46]. In this model, an accident is presented as
a process that runs through three phases, namely: the pre-accident
M. Szóstak et al.
phase, the accident phase and the post-accident phase. The pre-accident
phase includes those elements of the work process that relate to em­
ployees and the task performed by them. The accident phase is separated
from the pre-accident phase by an event that is a deviation from the
normal state. This is an event that is inconsistent with the appropriate
course of the work process. This deviation is commonly related to the
material factor. An event that is a deviation from the normal state ini­
tiates a dangerous event that causes an injury. The post-accident phase
includes the consequences of an accident, i.e. the number of victims, the
types of injuries suffered, the location of injuries, an inability to work,
material losses, and losses of working time. The two above-mentioned
models can be applied to the analysis of a single accident.
Accidents in the construction industry occur at different construction
sites and under different circumstances and conditions. The sum of ac­
cidents occurring in a given period of time is called the accidentality
phenomenon, in which certain regularities can be noticed if it is inves­
tigated in a large set of accidents. A dynamic approach to the analysis of
the accidentality phenomenon was proposed by Bellamy et al. [47]. The
authors proposed an IT tool in the form of a computer program: Story­
builder, for the assessment of occupational risk in the construction in­
dustry. As part of this Dutch project called: Workgroup Occupational
Risk Model (WORM), more than 20,000 reports of occupational acci­
dents in the construction industry were analysed.
The main element in the proposed model is the so-called central
node, which reflects the occurrence of a dangerous event where the
threat becomes active. This node is related to the circumstances of the
event and the limiting barriers. The model uses three types of barriers
that prevent or reduce the risk of an accident: passive, active and
behavioural barriers. The model enables occupational risk related to the
type of the central event to be investigated. The construction of the
model was cyclical. With an increasing number of analysed accidents, it
was possible to identify an increasing number of central incidents,
barriers and hazards.
When summarizing this part of the literature review, it should be
stated that the models presented above are universal, i.e. they are
designed to analyse various accidents that may occur in different sectors
of the economy. However, they do not take into account the specific
features of the construction industry, or accidents related to building
scaffolding. The model proposed by the authors is dedicated primarily to
the construction industry in order to analyse the accidentality phe­
nomenon related to accidents involving construction scaffolding. Due to
the fact that the construction industry is characterized by a large vari­
ability of implementing conditions, executed facilities, used technolo­
gies, and methods of work organization, the circumstances of each
accident are different. Therefore, in order to analyse the accidentality
phenomenon, which is created by the sequence of accidents involving
building scaffolding, a model based on the process approach and graph
theory should be built. The literature review shows that to date there are
no studies and analyses of accidents involving scaffolding, the purpose
of which would be to investigate the mechanisms of the formation of
accidents [48]. There is also no evidence of a process model that would
allow for the accidentality phenomenon to be studied with regards to a
large set of accidents, and for its significant permanent features to be
formulated.
3. Research methodology
The starting point for the research was the universal methodology for
the examination of occupational accidents, which was developed by the
European Statistical Office [46]. This methodology was prepared to
determine unambiguous and common (to all EU countries) guidelines
3
Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690
for the collection of statistical data on occupational accidents. The in­
formation obtained using the developed methodology enables entire
regions, countries and sectors of the economy to be compared in terms of
accident rates with regards to statistics.
However, due to the fact that accidents occur at different times, at
different construction sites, and with using different technical equip­
ment, the phenomenon of workers succumbing to these events is a dy­
namic phenomenon that changes over time. Detailed analysis of post-
accident documentation concerning accidents involving scaffolding,
which was carried out by the authors, showed that the circumstances of
individual accidents are different. For this reason, each accident, which
is analysed as a series of specific events, can take place according to a
different scenario. According to the authors, the analysis of a sufficiently
large set of accidents and their scenarios can reveal common charac­
teristics of this phenomenon, such as the most common accident sce­
narios and the probability of their occurrence.
In order to investigate the accidentality phenomenon as a mass dy­
namic phenomenon, the authors of the article propose the use of the
process approach. In this approach, it is not only the individual events
that characterize an accident that are important, but above all the re­
lationships between them. Events and the relationships that connect
them form a process. Due to different circumstances and conditions in
which an accident occurs, the set of accidents corresponds to a set of
different scenarios. In order to identify characteristic and repetitive
scenarios, a map of all possible scenarios should be created and the
course of events on such a map should be analysed. The authors propose
the use of a directed graph to visualize such a map. The analysis of many
accident processes will enable the frequency of activation of individual
events and relationships on the map of the phenomenon to be deter­
mined, and thus accident scenarios with the highest probability of
occurrence to be defined.
As part of the conducted research, a methodology that consists of the
following stages was developed:
• Stage I - obtaining post-accident documentation concerning acci­
dents involving scaffolding in the form of post-accident inspection
reports from the District National Labour Inspectorates in Poland,
• Stage II - building an IT database of occupational accidents involving
scaffolding, which takes into account the assumptions adopted in the
methodology developed by the European Statistical Office, and then
the introduction of information about accidents into the database,
• Stage III – on the basis of the analysis of information contained in the
database, developing the graphical-mathematical and IT model of
the accidentality phenomenon, which refers to falls from scaffolding
and which is presented in the form of a directed graph,
• Stage IV - developing computer software, and the discrete analysis of
accident processes, which includes accidents that are in the database,
• Stage V - analysing the obtained results. Identification of the most
common scenarios, determination of the probability of their occur­
rence, and the formulation of final conclusions.
3.1. Sources of data on accidents involving scaffolding
In Poland, post-accident inspection reports, which are developed by
the National Labour Inspectorate and collected in the official archives,
are the available sources of data on occupational accidents. In order to
obtain documentation, cooperation with the National Labour Inspec­
torate in Poland was established. Information concerning accidents
involving scaffolding, which happened from 2014 to 2018 in 5 provinces
(Dolnoslaskie, Lubelskie, Lubuskie, Mazowieckie and Wielkopolskie),
M. Szóstak et al.
was provided at the request of the authors by the National Labour
Inspectorate, who prepared and submitted detailed post-accident
documentation concerning 219 injured persons.
In post-accident reports, labour inspectors include information on
the circumstances and causes of the investigated event, in particular:
• information about the time and place of the event, the performed
activities, and the used materials and equipment,
• data about the victims,
• a description of the course of the event, including its circumstances
and causes,
• an assessment of the post-accident proceedings, taking into account
the conclusions and preventive measures proposed by the post-
accident team.
The accident investigation procedure that was used by labour in­
spectors and applied in the post-accident reports is based on the as­
sumptions developed by the European Statistical Office [46]. Labour
inspectors, based on the above procedure, examine the circumstances
and course of an occupational accident. The analysis of accident docu­
mentation performed by the authors of the research, and also their
occupational practice, show that labour inspectors enter precise verbal
and code statements, which are directly derived from the aforemen­
tioned methodology, in their reports. This means that individual
detailed cases were determined by labour inspectors (as a specialist in
this field) and were not subjected to changes by the authors of the
research. It is also important in this respect that the analysis of docu­
mentation was carried out by people with extensive experience in the
investigation of the accidentality phenomenon (more than 10 years of
experience), and who also have qualifications in this field, i.e. the
powers of an occupational health and safety inspector.
Although the post-accident reports were prepared in accordance
with the applicable regulations, i.e. all sensitive data were removed (e.g.
name and surname of the victim, name of the company in which the
accident took place, etc.), the authors of the study analysed the docu­
ments in their original, substantially unchanged, form.
3.2. IT database
On the basis of the analysed inspection protocols, an IT Database
(ITD) on occupational accidents that involved scaffolding was devel­
oped. This database is built in the form of a two-dimensional table
ITDZ×S, where Z means the number of accidents wz saved in the data­
base, z = 1, …. . , Z, and S means the number of attributes that describe
each accident. The set of information contained in the ITD is saved in the
form of a data matrix:
⎡ ⎤
w1,1 ⋯ w1,S
W= ⎣ ⋮ ⋱ ⋮ ⎦ (1)
wZ,1 ⋯ wZ,S
where:wz, s - the value of attribute s in accident wz, where z = (1, …, Z),
and s = (1, …, S).
The z -th row of the ITD matrix designates a row vector of values of
features s = (1, …, S), which characterize accident wz. Each row contains
data about one accident. The collected data includes:
A. general data about accident wz,such as: protocol designation, voi­
vodeship, year, city, description of the accident, weather conditions
during the works, number of employees, date and time of the acci­
dent, number of victims
[ ]
wzA = wz,1 wz,2 … wz,sk− 1 … wz,sk ,
(2)
s = 1, …, sk
4
Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690
B. data concerning the injured person (excluding sensitive data), such
as: sex, year of birth, age, citizenship, employment status, performed
occupation, preparation for work, work experience, hours worked by
the injured person
wzB = [ wz,sk+1 wz,sk+2 … wz,sn− 1 … wz,sn ],
(3)
s = sk+1 , …, sn
C. information about the course of the accident and its consequences,
such as: place of the accident, work process, activity performed by
the injured person at the time of the accident, material factor related
to the activity performed by the injured person at the time of the
accident, event being a deviation from the normal state, material
factor related to the deviation, event causing the injury, material
factor being the source of the injury, type and location of the injury,
result of the accident
[ ]
wzC = wz,sn+1 wz,sn+2 … wz,sn− 1 … wz,sp ,
(4)
s = sn+1 , …, sp
D. causes of the accident divided into technical, organizational and
human
[ ]
wz,p = wz,sp+1 wz,sp+2 … wz,S− 1 … wz,S ,
(5)
s = sp+1 , …, S
The set of information about accident wz can be written as the sum of
the subsets:
wz = wz,A ∪ wzB ∪ wzC ∪ wzD (6)
A verbal and code description was used to describe the attributes of
the accidents in the database. Each attribute of an accident has a nu­
merical code assigned to it, which facilitates the obtaining of data from
the database and then their analysis. A computer program was built in
the form of the web application system “IT Database” [49].
The IT Database collects statistical data on accidents involving
scaffolding. It enables statistical data, e.g. with regards to the activity
carried out by the injured person at the time of the accident, an event
being a deviation from the normal state, the type of accident etc. to be
obtained. However, it is not possible to obtain information about the
relationship between the defined attributes. In order to identify mutual
relations between attributes and to assess their weight, a computer
model that reflects the course of accidents in the database should be
developed.
3.3. Graphical-mathematical model of the accidentality phenomenon
A number of assumptions were made in order to build a graphical
and mathematical model of the accidentality phenomenon, namely:
• Accidents wz : z = 1, …, Z involving scaffoldings form set ZW. They
are ordered according to the passage of time t and form an infinite
sequence of events, which can be analysed as a discrete resultant
process, which is shown in Fig. 1.
• One accident corresponds to one injured person. This means that if
two or more people were injured in an accident, the analysis is car­
ried out as if each of them were injured in a separate accident. The
analysis of collective accidents (in which two or more people were
injured) showed that the conditions and circumstances of the
Fig. 1. Discrete accident process.
M. Szóstak et al.
accident are identical for all injured people, however, the conse­
quences of accidents may be different for each injured person.
• A vector of information was assigned to each accident and it referred
to the circumstances and conditions contained in Part C of the IT
Database in which the accident occurred:
wzC = [Az , Bz , Cz , Dz , Ez , Fz , Gz , Hz , Uz , Rz ],
z = 1, …, Z
where:Az – the place of accident wz,Bz – the work process carried out
by the injured person at the time of accident wz,Cz – the activity per­
formed by the injured person at the time of accident wz,Dz – the ma­
terial factor related to the activity performed by the injured person at the
time of accident wz,Ez – the event that is a deviation from the normal
state during accident wz,Fz – the material factor related to the devia­
tion from the normal state during accident wz, ,Gz – the event causing
an injury during accident wz,Hz – the material factor being the source
of the injury, which is associated with the event causing the injury
during accident wz,Uz – the type of injury that occurred during acci­
dent wz ,Rz – the result of accident wz. In Poland, the effects of acci­
dents are classified as light, severe and fatal.
• Elements listed in Formula (7) are arranged in the form of a logical
cause and effect sequence of events. In the course of each accident wz,
there are real events Ez and Gz, which cause a change in the state of
the system - a construction site. There are also elements that describe
the circumstances in which the accident occurred, as well as its re­
sults - elements: Az, Bz, Cz, Dz, Fz, Hz, Uz, Rz.
• Taking into account the cause and effect relationships that occur
between individual attributes, the authors of the article noticed that
each occupational accident wz may occur according to a different
scenario, and the accidentality phenomenon, which covers a big set
of accidents, can be presented in the form of the directed graph Y:
Y = 〈N, T〉
where:N – any non-empty set of nodes,T – a set of possible ordered
pairs of adjacent nodes N, which are called directed edges or relations.
• Each node in the directed graph shown in Fig. 2, depending on the
circumstances and course of the accident, can have many different
meanings, and subsequent information can be described by different
attributes:
Fig. 2. Model in the form of a directed graph
Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690
Az = {ai ; i = 1,….I},
{ }
Bz = bj ; j = 1,….J ,
Cz = {ck ; k = 1,….K}
Dz = {dl ; l = 1,….L},
Ez = {e
{ o ; o = 1,….O},
}
Fz = fp ; p = 1,….P
(7)
{ }
Gz = gq ; q = 1,….Q ,
Hz = {hs ; s = 1,….S},
Uz = {uv ; v = 1,….V},
Rz = {rx ; x = 1,….3}
Individual specific cases concerning various situations and circum­
stances are identified by the index, which is next to a small letter and
denotes the node.
Cause-effect relationships between individual nodes, i.e. successive
conditions and circumstances, are presented using directed edges. In the
model shown in Fig. 2, the edges of the graph connect individual vertices
in adjacent subsets of vertices on a peer-to-peer basis and result from the
possible theoretical succession of subsequent events. Simulation of
successive accidents will enable the numerical values that characterize
the frequency of the occurrence of individual relations to be determined.
In addition, due to the fact that accidents occur at construction sites that
are different in terms of their location, node m was introduced in order
to indicate the conventional source of accident initiation.
In the proposed model, each occupational accident wz runs through
individual vertices from node m to node rx according to an individual
scenario. In order to determine the most common accident scenarios, it
is necessary to identify not only the most loaded nodes in the graph, but
also the weights for individual relationships. By recreating the course of
subsequent accidents, it is possible to determine the number of activa­
tions of individual nodes and the number of activations of specific re­
lationships between the nodes. This information will eliminate those
nodes and relationships from the graph model that in the case of acci­
(8) dents involving scaffoldings have never been activated.
Knowledge about the number of activations of individual nodes and
relationships will enable the probability of occurrence of individual
relationships to be determined. The obtained value of the probability for
various paths that lead from node m to node rx will allow the most
probable accident scenarios in the construction industry to be identified.
The path with the highest probability creates a critical path in the set of
analysed accidents, and illustrates the most activated nodes and re­
lationships in the graph.
5
M. Szóstak et al.
Fig. 3. The graph structure: connections between nodes (n) and edges (t).
Edges t1 − t3, which share the same start node nS, form a sequence of objects
connected by pointer next and are finished with end node nT.
3.4. IT model of the accidentality phenomenon
The model in the form of a graph contains events and the relation­
ships between them. This is sufficient to visualize accident scenarios.
However, effective scenario analysis requires a graph structure to be
represented in computer memory. The implementations that are
commonly used in computer science are based on tables or lists. They are
not efficient in computational analysis, which requires frequent graph
tracking or path finding. Therefore, a topological data structure was
implemented for the purpose of the described research. It allows infor­
mation related to events and relationships, which are represented by the
appropriate nodes and edges, to be stored. In addition, the graph to­
pology, i.e. the connections between nodes and edges, is stored in the
data structure itself. This representation enables much more efficient
calculations in the computer’s memory to be conducted.
Each relation in the graph, which is represented as an edge, is limited
by two nodes, the first of which is in the layer of preceding nodes, with
the second one being in the layer of the following nodes (Fig. 3). Each
node has a pointer assigned to the first edge, which is limited by that
node. In turn, each edge starting from the same node is connected to the
following edge using pointer “next”. In addition, edges store pointers to
two boundary nodes located on the adjacent layers of event nodes. The
node-edge relationships are shown in Fig. 3. Any nS start node that is
located on any node layer indicates the first edge t1 using pointer next, i.
e. nS. next = t1. In turn, t1. next points to t2, and t2. next points to t3. The
edges also store pointers to the nS start node, and to the nT end node. In
the presented example of the graph, t1. nS, t2. nS and t3. nS are the same
node, while t1. nT, t2. nT and t3. nT are different nodes in the subsequent
layer of nodes.
This uncomplicated data structure is sufficient to represent the
graph. Because it is a directed graph, each edge begins with a node in a
specific layer and points to the node in the subsequent event layer - the
opposite direction is not allowed. Therefore, it is possible to follow the
graph shown in Fig. 2 from node m towards nodes rx.
3.5. Identification of circumstances and events related to falls from
scaffolding
The methodology proposed by the European Statistical Office defines
the circumstances and conditions of accidents that may occur in all
6
Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690
sectors of the economy. The number of possible circumstances is very
large and amounts to about 800 specific cases. From this huge set of
information, a subset of information that is appropriate for accidents
involving scaffolding should be selected. Based on the analysis of acci­
dent reports concerning occupational accidents involving scaffolding,
the authors of the article defined the possible circumstances and con­
ditions for such accidents, i.e. the detailed cases of nodes A, B, C, D, E, F,
G, H, U, and R, which are described and summarized in Table 1. Indi­
vidual specific cases concerning various situations and circumstances
are identified by the index next to the small letter denoting the node.
3.6. Analysis of the accident process
As already mentioned, each accident runs in a graph through a series
of selected nodes and relations - from node m to node rx through exactly
one selected node in each group. As a result of activating the model,
information about subsequent accidents is collected from the IT Data­
base and their course is presented on the map of processes in the graph,
which is presented in Fig. 2. The authors of the article understand the
analysis of the accident process as the reconstruction of its course on the
scenario map based on the data contained in the ITD. For example, Fig. 4
presents the scenario of one accident registered in the ITD. The accident
occurred during the construction (a1) of a new single-family house (b1).
The injured person during moving (c4) on the stationary scaffolding (d2)
slipped (e4) on a slippery working platform of the scaffolding (f2) and hit
(g2) the ground (h1), which resulted in fractures of his lower limbs (u2).
This classifies the event as a severe accident (r2).
After completing the analysis of all the accidents contained in the
ITD, the model’s output gives the characteristic features of the accident
phenomenon, such as: the number of activations of individual nodes in
the graph, the number of activations of individual relations in the graph,
and the critical path illustrating the most activated nodes and relation­
ships. Tables 2 and 3 contain the obtained numerical data.
The implementation of the graph model presented in chapter 2.3
enables the direct use of graph algorithms, e.g. following the graph, or
finding the shortest paths. It is also the basis for the searching and
analysing of data performed in this study. Although the number of ac­
tivations of individual nodes and relations in the graph results directly
from the data contained in the IT database, and that it can be determined
using simple queries, the critical path requires calculations based on the
number of activations of the relations in the graph. The algorithms that
enable the determination of the critical path are the algorithms for
finding the shortest path between nodes in the graph, e.g. the Dijkstra
algorithm [50]. They are based on weights - numeric attributes attached
to the edges. . In the standard case, such a weight attribute represents the
distance between two adjacent nodes connected by an edge [51–53]. In
the presented study, the weight is calculated on the basis of the number
of activations of a specific relation, where the relation is represented as
the edge of the graph. Selected values of the number of relationship
activations are presented in Table 3.The weight is a value calculated
using the reverse scale min-max normalization method:
wmax − wi + 1
(9)
′
wi =
wmax − wmin
where:wi′ – weight of edge i,wi – number of activations of edge i,wmax –
maximum value of the relation activation in the graph,wmin – minimal
value of the relation activation in the graph (in this study wmin = 0).
The sequence of edges from starting node m to node rx (the graph is
shown in Fig. 4), with the largest sum of weights, is the shortest path,
and therefore it is the critical path. It should be noted that more than one
M. Szóstak et al. Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690

Table 1
Summary of specific accident cases.
Element Description of specific case Element Description of specific
case

A - place of occupational accident a1 – object under construction G - an event causing an injury g1 – drowning
a2 – object dismantled, demolished, g2 – collision with/
renovated hitting an
immovable object
B - work process b1 – building of new buildings g3 – being hit by an
object in motion
b2 – building of infrastructure, e.g. g4 – being trapped,
roads, crushed
bridges, etc. H - a material factor being the source of an h1 – buildings, structures
b3 – rebuilding, repair, extension, injury, which is associated with an event and their
maintenance of facilities causing injury elements at ground
level
h2 – fixed elements
b4 – dismantling and demolition above ground
works level (roofs, ceilings,
terraces)
C - activity performed by the injured person at the c1 – work with hand tools h3 – stationary/systemic
time of the accident scaffolding
c2 – handling with different items h4 – movable, mobile
c3 – manual transport and freely
mobile scaffolding
c4 – moving around h5 – elements of the
c5 – presence natural
D - a material factor related to the activity d1 – fixed elements above ground environment, e.g.
performed by the injured person at the time of level, water
the accident e.g. roofs, ceilings, terraces, reservoirs
U - type of injury u1 – wounds and surface
wounds
d2 – stationary/systemic scaffolding u2 – bone fractures
d3 – movable, mobile and freely u3 – dislocations, sprains
mobile and tears
(with wheels) scaffolding u4 – traumatic
amputations
E - an event that is a deviation from the normal e1 – deviation related to electricity u5 – internal injuries
state e2 – damage, rupture, cracking, u6 – shocks (acute stress
slipping, response,
falling, collapsing of scaffolding traumatic shock)
components u7 – numerous injuries
e3 – loss of control over the u8 – unspecified injuries
transported as a result
load of falling from height
e4 – slipping, tripping, falling down u9 – unspecified injuries
of a leading to
person death
e5 – body movements without R - severity of injury r1 – fatal accident
physical r2 – severe body injury
exertion
F a material factor related to deviation from the f1 – fixed elements above ground r3 – light body injury
normal state level,
e.g. roofs, ceilings, terraces
f2 – stationary/systemic scaffolding
f3 – movable, mobile and freely
mobile (with wheels) scaffolding

critical path can be determined in the graph. Such a case is included in
the conducted calculations. Other statistics, e.g. the number of nodes, or
the number of relationship activations, can be derived directly from the
implementation of the graph.
4. Results
As part of the research, an IT Database (IBD) was developed that
contained 219 occupational accidents involving construction scaf­
folding. The collected data, in the form of Control Protocols obtained
from the archives of the National Labour Inspectorate in Poland, con­
cerned all the accidents that took place in 5 Polish voivodeships (Dol­
noslaskie, Lubelskie, Lubuskie, Mazowieckie and Wielkopolskie) in the
years 2014–2018.
Table 2 contains data on the number of activations of individual
nodes of the graph that is shown in Fig. 4 and obtained after the analysis
of 219 accidents that involve scaffolding. The accidents happened be­
tween 2014 and 2018. The most active nodes are marked in bold.
Tables 3 and 4 contain data on the number of activations of indi­
vidual relationships. Zero relations and those with a probability of

7
M. Szóstak et al. Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690

Fig. 4. The course of an exemplary accident that was registered in the IT database.

Table 2 Table 3
The number of activations of individual nodes. Number of activations of the most burdened relationships.
Element Specific Number of % Share of a specific case in an Relations Number of % Relations Number of %
case activations element with the activations Share with the activations share
preceding preceding
A a1 104 47,5
node node
a2 115 52,5
B b1 101 46,1 0 219 100,0 d2 − e2 22 10,0
b2 3 1,4 m− a1 104 47,5 d3 − e2 19 8,7
b3 110 50,2 m− a2 115 52,5 d2 − e4 91 41,6
b4 5 2,3 a1 − b1 101 46,1 d3 − e4 73 33,3
C c1 38 17,4 a2 − b3 110 50,2 e2 − f2 22 10,0
c2 57 26,0 b1 − c1 14 6,4 e4 − f2 91 41,6
c3 20 9,1 b3 − c1 24 11,0 e2 − f3 19 8,7
c4 88 40,2 b1 − c2 32 14,6 e4 − f3 73 33,3
c5 16 7,3 b3 − c2 23 10,5 f2 − g2 111 50,7
D d1 7 3,2 b1 − c3 11 5,0 f3 − g2 86 39,3
d2 117 53,4 b1 − c4 37 16,9 g2 − h1 185 84,5
d3 95 43,4 b3 − c4 49 22,4 g2 − h3 11 5,0
E e1 2 0,9 c1 − d2 15 6,8 h1 − u2 44 20,1
e2 43 19,6 c2 − d2 28 12,8 h1 − u8 89 40,6
e3 4 1,8 c4 − d2 53 24,2 h1 − u9 43 19,6
e4 169 77,2 c5 − d2 12 5,5 u9 − r1 44 20,1
e5 1 0,5 c1 − d3 23 10,5 u2 − r2 29 13,2
F f1 7 3,2 c2 − d3 27 12,3 u8 − r2 71 32,4
f2 117 53,4 c4 − d3 32 14,6 u2 − r3 20 9,1
f3 95 43,4 u8 − r3 30 13,7
G g1 1 0,5
g2 203 92,7
g3 8 3,7
g4 7 3,2
occurrence of less than 5% are given in Table 4.
H h1 189 86,3 Based on the analysis of the obtained results, it can be stated that
h2 4 1,8 about 35% of the relations that can be seen in Fig. 5 were not activated
h3 16 7,3 in any case, about 44% of the relations were activated in less than 5% of
h4 9 4,1
the analysed accidents, while 21% of the relations were activated many
h5 1 0,5
U u1 8 3,7 times. This indicates some recurring mechanisms of the accident process
u2 49 22,4 involving scaffolding.
u3 5 2,3 Fig. 5 presents a model of the accidentality phenomenon involving
u4 1 0,5
falls from scaffolding, which was determined for 219 accidents. In the
u5 7 3,2
u6 1 0,5
graph, which is a general model of the accidentality phenomenon pre­
u7 3 1,4 sented in Fig. 2, those nodes and relationships that were never activated
u8 101 46,1 were removed. The nodes and relationships that were activated in less
u9 44 20,1 than 5% of cases were marked in light grey. Dark grey indicates those
R r1 44 20,1
nodes and relationships that were activated in more than 5% of cases.
r2 111 50,7
r3 64 29,2 Fig. 5 also presents critical paths for the set of accidents that occurred
during the construction of new facilities (blue path), and also those that
The most active nodes are marked in bold with a probability of occurrence of
occurred during the renovation of existing facilities (red path). The
more than 5%.
scenarios that happened less frequently are marked in grey.

8
M. Szóstak et al. Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690

Table 4 Table 4 (continued )

Zero relations and those with the probability of occurrence of less than 5%. Relations with the Relations with the preceding Relations with the
Relations with the Relations with the preceding Relations with the preceding node node preceding node
preceding node node preceding node
f2 − g3
0% <5% 0% <5% (1,4%)
a2 − b1 g 1 − h1 g3 − h1 (1,4%) f3 − g3
a2 − b2 a1 − b2 g4 − h1 (0,5%) (1,8%)
(1,4%) f1 − g4 f2 − g4
a1 − b3 a2 − b4 g1 − h2; g4 − h2 g2 − h2 (1,4%) (1,4%)
(2,3%) g3 − h2 (0,5%) f3 − g4
a1 − b4 (1,8%)
b2 − c1; b4 g 1 − h3 g3 − h3 (0,9%)
− c1 g4 − h3 (1,4%)
– b 2 − c2 g 1 − h4 g2 − h4 (1,8%) The main nodes in the model are nodes d2 and d3, as well as f2 and f3,
(0,5%) g3 − h4 (0,9%) which refer to the basic material factors that occur in the analysed ac­
b 4 − c2 g4 − h4 (1,4%)
cident processes, and which are also the main subject of the research, i.e.
(0,5%)
– b 2 − c3 g2 − h5; g3 − h5; g4 − h5 g1 − h5 (0,5%) stationary scaffoldings (d2 and f2), as well as movable and freely mobile
(0,9%) scaffoldings (d3 and f3).
b 3 − c3 As part of the study, the probability of critical paths for the set of
(2,3%) accidents that occurred during the construction of new facilities, as well
b 4 − c3
(0, 9%)
as those that occurred during the renovation of existing facilities were
b2 − c4 b 4 − c4 h2 − u1; h4 − u1; h5 − u1 h1 − u1 (1,8%) also calculated. The probability of the occurrence of individual partial
(0,9%) h3 − u1 (1,8%) and final scenarios was calculated using the formula for the probability
b2 − c5; b4 b 1 − c5 h5 − u2 h2 − u2 (0,5%) of conditional events of dependent events [54,55]. The obtained values
− c5 (3,2%) h3 u2 (0,9%)
−
are presented in Tables 5 and 6, respectively. These tables, and Fig. 5,
b 3 − c5 h4 − u2 (0,9%)
(4,1%) show the values obtained for the sequence of events from node m to node
c1 − d1; c5 c2 − d1 h2 − u3; h5 − u3 h1 − u3 (1,4%) hs,including the pre-accident phase and the accident phase. The
− d1 (0,9%) h3 − u3 (0,5%) remaining nodes, uv and rx that were not included in the analysis, are
c3 − d1 h4 − u3 (0,5%) responsible for the severity of the consequences.
(0,9%)
c4 − d1
As a result of calculations conducted for 104 accidents that occurred
(1,4%) during the construction of new buildings, the following critical path was
– c3 − d2 h2 − u4; h3 − u4; h4 − u4; h5 h1 − u4 (0,5%) obtained: m − a1 − b1 − c4 − d2 − e4 − f2 − g2 − h1. It is shown in blue in
(4,1%) − u4 Fig. 5. The analysis showed, among others, that:
– c3 − d3 h5 − u5 h1 − u5 (1,4%)
(4,1%) h2 − u5 (0,5%)
c5 − d3 h3 − u5 (0,9%) • the probability that the injured person at the time of the accident
(1,8%) h4 − u5 (0,5%) worked on erecting the construction of a new building is equal to
c5 − d3 97.1% (m − a1 − b1),
(1,8%) • the probability that the injured person at the time of the accident
d1 − e1; d3 d2 − e1 h1 − u6; h2 − u6; h3 − u6; h5 h4 − u6 (0,5%)
− e1 (0,9%) − u6
walked on a stationary (systemic) scaffolding is equal to 23.0% (m −
– d1 − e2 h2 − u7; h3 − u7; h5 − u7 h1 − u7 (0,9%) a1 − b1 − c4 − d2),
(0,9%) h4 − u7 (0,5%) • the probability that the injured person will undergo a collision or hit
– d1 − e3 – h2 − u8 (0,5%) a stationary object at a ground level as a result of slipping, tripping or
(1,4%) h3 u8 (3,2%)
−
falling from stationary scaffolding is equal to 9.7% (m − a1 − b1 − c4
d2 − e3 h4 − u8 (1,4%)
(0,5%) h5 − u8 (0,5%) − d2 − e4 − f2 − g2 − h1).
d3 − e3
(1,4%) As a result of calculations conducted for 115 accidents that occurred
– d1 − e4 h3 − u9; h4 − u9; h5 − u9 h2 − u9 (0,5%) during renovations of existing facilities, the following critical path was
(0,9%)
d1 − e5; d3 d2 − e5 u1 − r1; u2 − r1; u3 − r1; u4 − –
obtained: m − a2 − b3 − c4 − d2 − e4 − f2 − g2 − h1. It is shown in red in
− e5 (0,5%) r1; u5 − r1; u6 − r1; Fig. 5. The probability of the occurrence of such an accident scenario is
e1 − f1; e3 − e2 − f1 u7 − r1; u8 − r1 equal to 20.9%.
f1; e5 − f1 (0,9%) The analysis of the critical paths showed, regardless of the type of
e4 − f1
construction works carried out (object under construction, dismantled,
(2,3%)
– e1 − f2 u6 − r2; u9 − r2 u1 − r2 (0,5%) demolished, or renovated), that the accident scenario indicates a con­
(0,9%) u3 − r2 (0,5%) stant and repetitive mechanism of the accident process: during the
e3 − f2 u4 − r2 (0,5%) movement of an employee on building scaffolding (stationary/systemic)
(0,5%) u5 − r2 (2,3%) there is a slip, stumble or fall, and as a result of which the injured person
e5 − f2 u7 − r2 (1,4%)
hits a stationary object, which are building surfaces or structures at
(0,5%)
e1 − f3; e5 − e3 − f3 ground level.
f3 (1,4%) Critical paths were identified in the set of 219 accidents. Along with
f1 − g1; f2 − f3 − g1 the implementation of new investments in the construction industry,
g1 (0,5%)
there are new accidents involving scaffolding, the data of which is
– f1 − g2 u4 − r3; u7 − r3; u9 − r3 u1 − r3 (3,2%)
(2,7%) u3 − r3 (1,8%) updated in the IT Database. They have an impact on the shaping of new
u5 − r3 (0,9%) accident scenarios, and possibly cause a different course of the critical
u6 − r3 (0,5%) path.
– f1 − g3 The obtained values presented in Tables 5 and 6 may constitute a
(0,5%)
database for estimating occupational risk related to work on
scaffoldings.

9
M. Szóstak et al. Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690

Fig. 5. The accidentality phenomenon model that was built for accidents involving scaffolding - alternative paths in the graph.

5. Discussion of results
Table 5
The probability of the occurrence of the critical path, and examples of other
The literature on the subject includes many different accident models
paths in the analysed set of accidents during the construction of new buildings.
[36,37,40,56,57]. However, to date, no model has been constructed to
Path Number of path Conditional
identify the most repetitive scenarios in a set of many accidents
instances probability
involving scaffolding. A novelty in the conducted research was a mass
m − a1 104 – approach to the accidentality phenomenon and a procedural approach
m − a1 − b1 101 97,1%
to its analysis. Because the place where an employee is working is
m − a1 − b1 − c4 37 35,6%
m − a1 − b1 − c4 − d2 21 20,2% constantly and dynamically changing, the circumstances of each acci­
m − a1 − b1 − c4 − d2 − e4 14 13,5% dent may be different. Taking into account the changing circumstances
m − a1 − b1 − c4 − d2 − e4 − f2 14 13,5% and causes of accidents, an original model was proposed, which, unlike
m − a1 − b1 − c4 − d2 − e4 − f2 − 14 13,5%
other accident models proposed in the literature, is developed along
g2
m − a1 − b1 − c4 − d2 − e4 − f2 − 10 9,6% - the critical with the inflow of information about subsequent accidents. The analysis
g 2 − h1 path of data on occupational accidents collected in a dedicated IT Database
m − a1 − b1 − c4 − d3 − e2 − f3 − 9 8,7% enables accident scenarios related to work on scaffolding that occur
g 2 − h1 most frequently to be determined, and the probability of their occur­
m − a1 − b1 − c2 − d2 − e4 − f2 − 8 7,7%
rence to be specified.
g 2 − h1
The analysis of accidents and the obtained results indicated a com­
mon and largely repeatable mechanism of the accident process. How­
ever, the authors of the model would like to emphasize that with an
Table 6
increase in the number of accident data, there is a possibility that nodes
Probability of the occurrence of the critical path, and examples of other paths in
and relations that have not been active yet will occur in the graph. The
the analysed set of accidents during renovations of existing buildings.
model developed by the authors, as is the case with the process model -
Path Number of path Conditional Occupational Risk Model (ORM) [47] - is cyclical. In the ORM, an ac­
instances probability
cident investigation begins with the identification of the event that
m − a2 115 – causes an injury. Afterwards, the relations between this event and the
m − a2 − b3 110 95,6%
circumstances and conditions in which the accident occurred are ana­
m − a2 − b3 − c4 49 42,6%
m − a2 − b3 − c4 − d2 32 27,8% lysed. Based on the analysis of subsequent accidents, a network of de­
m − a2 − b3 − c4 − d2 − e4 28 24,3% pendencies is created. The model proposed in this article focuses on
m − a2 − b3 − c4 − d2 − e4 − f2 28 24,3% finding common accident mechanisms that are described by the course
m − a2 − b3 − c4 − d2 − e4 − f2 − 24 20,9% of characteristic paths in the graph, including the critical path. Finding
g2
m − a2 − b3 − c4 − d2 − e4 − f2 − 24 20,9% - the critical
such paths is possible by cyclical reproduction of the course of subse­
g 2 − h1 path quent accidents.
m − a2 − b3 − c4 − d3 − e4 − f3 − 20 17,4% As part of the research, an IT Database (ITD) was developed, which
g 2 − h1 contains 219 occupational accidents that involve scaffolding. The share
m − a2 − b3 − c2 − d2 − e4 − f2 − 13 11,3%
of stationary systemic scaffoldings in this database was equal to 53.4%,
g 2 − h1
while movable systemic scaffoldings - mobile or freely mobile - was

10
M. Szóstak et al.
equal to 43.4%. In the remaining 3.2%, the material elements related to
an accident were: roofs, ceilings and terraces. The negative effect of
working on scaffolding is falling from a height or being hit by a falling
object.
Among the 219 examined accidents, 52.5% occurred during reno­
vation, modernization and maintenance works (a2), 50.2% of them were
works related to reconstruction, extension and repair (b3), and only
2.3% were dismantling and demolition works (b4). 47.5% of accidents
occurred during the construction of facilities (a1), 46.1% of accidents
occurred during the construction of buildings (b1), and 1.4% occurred
during the construction of infrastructure objects such as roads, streets
and bridges (b2). The low number of accidents involving scaffolding
during dismantling and demolition works, as well as during the con­
struction of infrastructure facilities, is primarily due to the methods used
in this area of construction works, where construction scaffolding is used
to a lesser extent, and also due to a smaller number of conducted works
(in 2018 dismantling and demolition works constituted 2.4% of total
construction and assembly production in Poland, while works related to
the construction of infrastructure facilities - 3.4%) [58].
The most falls occur when workers move along scaffolding. This
activity was being performed in 40.2% of accidents. Falls from scaf­
folding also occurred during the movement of construction products and
works carried out with various tools. Similar results were obtained by
Fredericks et al. [59], who proved that falls from a height occur most
often when moving on slippery and sloping surfaces, i.e. working plat­
forms and communication lines, which are used for moving, working,
and when handling heavy and bulky working tools and building
materials.
A detailed analysis of the technical condition of scaffolding showed
that over 80% of all causes of these accidents resulted from: a lack of or
inappropriate safety devices (27.9%), a lack of or inappropriate collec­
tive protection measures (18.8%), a wrong spatial structure of the
scaffolding (17, 4%), or inadequate scaffolding stability (16.7%). In 129
cases, the following was found: a lack of external upper and intermediate
protective balustrades, curb boards, working platforms with a hatch that
enables safe communication between levels, or a lack of internal pro­
tective balustrades despite the considerable distance of working plat­
forms from a building’s wall. The reason for a fall in 48 cases was the
incorrect spatial structure of the scaffolding, which resulted from its
incorrect assembly, i.e. a lack of communication paths, or a lack of full
working platforms and other structural elements such as anchors or
bracing. In 46 cases, however, the cause of the fall involved the inade­
quate stability of a material factor, namely: incorrect scaffolding foun­
dation, the execution of working platforms from loosely laid boards, a
lack of anchoring of scaffolding, or a lack of wheel blockages in the case
of mobile scaffolding. As can be concluded from research carried out by
Jahangiri et al. [60], it is these technical condition elements that have
the greatest influence on the risk of falling from scaffolding. The authors
used the above information to develop a model for predicting the risk of
falling that was based on a neural network. The model used the Adaptive
Neural Network-based Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS).
A fall from scaffolding also occurred as a result of an event that is
inconsistent with the appropriate conduct of the work process. In 77.2%
of cases, the event that was inconsistent with the correct course of the
work process was the slipping, tripping or falling of an employee (e4),
and in 19.6% of cases it was the cracking or collapsing of scaffolding
elements (e2). Two cases concerned errors related to electricity (e1), four
cases concerned a loss of control over a transported load (e3), and one
case involved movements of the body without physical effort (e5).
An event that caused injury in 92.7% of cases was a fall from scaf­
folding and a collision with a stationary object at ground level (h1), and
in 7.3% of cases the material factor that caused injury involved the lower
scaffolding level (h3) on which an employee fell. As a result of a fall,
employees suffered serious injuries. The type of injury is often not
possible to identify at the time of the accident. In Poland, the final type
of injury, or injuries, is determined within 6 months of the occurrence of
11
Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690
the accident. Therefore, in post-accident reports, which are drawn up
within 14 days of the occurrence of the accident, the information “un­
specified injury as a result of falling from height” is very often included.
The reported injuries are the basis for qualifying accidents as fatal,
severe and light. Based on the analysis of post-accident reports, in the set
of 219 analysed accidents, which were related to work on scaffolding,
the following was found: 20.1% were fatal accidents, 51.7% were ac­
cidents that resulted in serious bodily injury, and 29.2% of accidents
were classified as light.
When comparing the obtained data concerning the effects and con­
sequences of falls from height, with the results of other studies, it can be
seen that this study showed a lower number of fatal accidents and a
higher number of severe accidents that lead to significant temporary
unavailability to work. For example, according to the results of research
conducted by Zlatar et al. [61], which concerned falls from a height, the
death of injured people occurred in about 36% of falls from a height, and
temporary unavailability to work in about 45% of injured people.
Importantly, in both studies, the number of cases where injuries did not
occur or in which the effects of accidents were small, i.e. only superficial
wounds, was very low (less than 4%). This is due to, among others, the
fact that every day there are many falls from a low height and a sig­
nificant number of them end up without injury or with a light injury
[62]. Such situations are normally not reported to the authorities and
are therefore not included in statistics.
The conducted research and the developed model have several
important limitations that should be mentioned.
• First of all, the developed model of the accident phenomenon focuses
on the analysis of the circumstances that lead to accidents. It does not
take into account the direct causes of accidents.
• The model assumes that one accident corresponds to one injured
person. This means that if two or more people were injured in an
accident, the analysis is carried out as if each of these people was
injured in a separate accident. This simplification is justified. It was
adopted on the basis of an analysis of collective accidents (in which
two or more people were injured) in which the conditions and cir­
cumstances are identical for all injured people, but the consequences
of the accident may be different for each injured person.
• The research was limited in order to only analyse accidents involving
building scaffolding. The application of the proposed approach to the
analysis of other types of accidents requires changes in the structure
of the model. Such changes can be made with little effort, because the
model automatically adjusts the structure of the graph to the
collected data.
6. Conclusions
This study concerned the identification of the most frequently
recurring accident scenarios in a set of many accidents involving scaf­
folding. In order to identify such scenarios, it is necessary to know the
events and circumstances in which each individual accident occurred.
Such information can be found in post-accident reports prepared by
labour inspectors. The phenomenon of falls from scaffoldings can be
analysed as a discrete dynamic process that runs according to various
scenarios. For this purpose, an original graphical, mathematical and IT
process model was developed, which enables the space of possible ac­
cident scenarios to be determined. An innovative method based on
graph analysis was used to model the accidentality phenomenon. Each
accident included in the IT database has its individual path in the graph,
which is determined on the basis of the information contained in the
post-accident report. The individual nodes of the graph indicate specific
circumstances and specific events related to the accident. In order to
fully describe the phenomenon, it is necessary to know the relations
between neighbouring nodes in the graph, which indicate which nodes
are connected with each other. However, this information cannot be
found in the available databases. Therefore, it is not possible to
M. Szóstak et al.
determine the probability of individual scenarios on only the basis of
information contained in the database. The simulation of the course of
all accidents in the IT database enables the probability of various acci­
dent scenarios to be calculated. For this purpose, a new tool - graph
analysis - was used for the quick analysis of the obtained results. It en­
ables selected data to be automatically presented, and results/queries to
be quickly limited with regards to the given parameters. The results of
the calculations indicate the scenarios with the highest probability of
occurrence, and thus indicate the circumstances in which accidents most
often occur. This knowledge may constitute the basis for conducting
preventive activities. The authors of the article are not aware of a similar
approach from literature that can be used in the analysis of the acci­
dentality phenomenon.
The analysis of accidents from the ITD, including the analysis of the
frequency of activation of individual nodes and relationships in the
graph, showed a common and largely repeatable mechanism of the ac­
cident process. An accident most often occurs when employees move
along scaffolding. As a result of this event, a person falls from a height
and hits a stationary object at ground level. More than 77% of accidents
result from the slipping, tripping or falling of an employee, and about
20% of accidents are caused by the breakdown of scaffolding compo­
nents, or its damage, tears, or cracks.
The range of possible injuries is extensive and includes: fractures,
surface wounds, amputations and also internal wounds, the severity of
which is classified as light, severe or fatal. When considering the variety
of circumstances and the conditions of work mentioned above, it should
be noted that every occupational accident related to work on scaffolding
may take place according to a different scenario.
The proposed model is of great importance for construction practice.
The obtained test results constitute the basis for the improvement of
safety in the construction industry thanks to the 3E approach. The 3E
approach covers Engineering, Education and Enforcement.
Engineering includes, among others, the development of modern
solutions that aim to improve the current state of occupational safety for
the analysed area of research concerning the construction industry in
which scaffolding is used. On the basis of a large set of data regarding
accidents that are contained in the IT database, it was possible to
examine the impact of technologies that are used in the construction
industry and the types of construction facilities and used devices
(including construction scaffolding) on the accident rate. The obtained
values can be used as a database for estimating the occupational risk
associated with working on scaffolding.
Education. The results of research regarding the most dangerous
areas of the construction industry, and the most probable scenarios of
events, should be used in the teaching and education of construction
workers, e.g. those working on building scaffolding. Greater awareness
of the existence of hazards in the workplace, and knowledge of the most
dangerous events among employees means greater safety for employees
and bystanders.
Law enforcement mainly concerns activities that aim to control
construction sites in terms of safety, but also concerns activities that
enable new labour law provisions to be formulated. Work performed at
height and with the use of scaffolding is particularly dangerous and is
closely related to the immediate threat to the life or health of workers.
Irregularities in organizing these works can lead to fatal and serious
accidents.
Knowledge of the circumstances of accidents will enable labour law
to be properly formulated or modified, as well as preventive measures
and trainings in the field of occupational safety to be accordingly
orientated. This will certainly reduce the number of accidents, e.g. by
tightening the rules concerning the assembly, use and disassembly of
scaffoldings, as well as significantly contributing to the raising of the
level of work safety in the construction industry.
12
Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690
Author contributions
The manuscript was written through the contributions of all authors.
Funding
The article is the result of the implementation by the authors of the
research project No. 244388 "Model of the assessment of risk of the
occurrence of building catastrophes, accidents and dangerous events at
workplaces with the use of scaffolding", financed by the National Centre
for Research and Development in Poland (NCBiR) within the framework
of the Programme for Applied Research on the basis of contract No.
PBS3/A2/19/2015.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
the work reported in this paper.
References
[1] E. Jazayeri, G. Dadi, Construction safety management systems and methods of
safety performance measurement: a review, J. Saf. Eng. 6 (2017) 15–28, https://
doi.org/10.5923/j.safety.20170602.01.
[2] B. Hoła, T. Nowobilski, I. Szer, J. Szer, Identification of factors affecting the
accident rate in the construction industry, Procedia Eng. 208 (2017) 35–42,
https://doi.org/10.1016/J.PROENG.2017.11.018.
[3] C.Q.X. Poh, C.U. Ubeynarayana, Y.M. Goh, Safety leading indicators for
construction sites: a machine learning approach, Autom. Constr. 93 (2018)
375–386, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2018.03.022.
[4] https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/data/database. Accessed date: 15 May 2020.
[5] M.A. Camino López, D.O. Ritzel, I. Fontaneda, O.J. González Alcantara,
Construction industry accidents in Spain, J. Saf. Res. 39 (2008) 497–507, https://
doi.org/10.1016/j.jsr.2008.07.006.
[6] A. López Arquillos, J.C. Rubio Romero, A. Gibb, Analysis of construction accidents
in Spain, 2003-2008, J. Saf. Res. 43 (2012) 381–388, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
jsr.2012.07.005.
[7] J. Pérez-Alonso, Á.J. Callejón-Ferre, Á. Carreño-Ortega, J. Sánchez-Hermosilla,
Approach to the evaluation of the thermal work environment in the greenhouse-
construction industry of SE Spain, Build. Environ. 46 (2011) 1725–1734, https://
doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2011.02.014.
[8] B. Hoła, M. Szóstak, Analysis of the state of the accident rate in the construction
industry in European Union countries, Arch. Civ. Eng. 61 (2015) 19–34, https://
doi.org/10.1515/ace-2015-0033.
[9] B. Evanoff, A.M. Dale, A. Zeringue, M. Fuchs, J. Gaal, H.J. Lipscomb, V. Kaskutas,
Results of a fall prevention educational intervention for residential construction,
Saf. Sci. 89 (2016) 301–307, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.SSCI.2016.06.019.
[10] W. Umer, H. Li, W. Lu, G.P.Y. Szeto, A.Y.L. Wong, Development of a tool to monitor
static balance of construction workers for proactive fall safety management,
Autom. Constr. 94 (2018) 438–448, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
autcon.2018.07.024.
[11] G. Birhane, L. Yang, J. Geng, J. Zhu, Causes of construction injuries: a review, Int.
J. Occup. Saf. Ergon. (2020) 1–11, https://doi.org/10.1080/
10803548.2020.1761678.
[12] R. Collins, S. Zhang, K. Kim, J. Teizer, Integration of Safety Risk Factors in BIM for
Scaffolding Construction, Comput Civ. Build. Eng, American Society of Civil
Engineers, Reston, 2014, pp. 307–314, https://doi.org/10.1061/
9780784413616.039.
[13] J.C. Rubio-Romero, J.A. Carrillo-Castrillo, A. Gibb, Prevention of falls to a lower
level: evaluation of an occupational health and safety intervention via subsidies for
the replacement of scaffolding, Int. J. Inj. Control Saf. Promot. 22 (2015) 16–23,
https://doi.org/10.1080/17457300.2013.838272.
[14] K. Ohdo, The effect of fall Prevention methods for construction scaffolds in
accident prevention, in: AHFE 2019, Adv. Saf. Manag. Hum. Factors, 2018,
pp. 306–314, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94589-7_30.
[15] J.C. Rubio-Romero, M. Carmen Rubio Gámez, J.A. Carrillo-Castrillo, Analysis of
the safety conditions of scaffolding on construction sites, Saf. Sci. 55 (2013)
160–164, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2013.01.006.
[16] A. Hoła, M. Sawicki, M. Szóstak, Methodology of classifying the causes of
occupational accidents involving construction scaffolding using Pareto-Lorenz
analysis, Appl. Sci. 8 (2018) 48, https://doi.org/10.3390/app8010048.
[17] S. Ajith, C. Sivapragasam, V. Arumugaprabu, Analysis on Constructional Hazards,
Risk Assessment Techniques and Safety Helmets in Construction Sites, AIP
Publishing, AIP Conf. Proc., 2019, p. 050013, https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5117985.
[18] J. Grosel, M. Sawicki, W. Sawicki, M. Szóstak, Z. Wójcicki, The effect of vibration
on the possibility of a threat to the health of workers on scaffolding, MATEC Web
Conf. 196 (2018), https://doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/201819604094.
M. Szóstak et al.
[19] P. Cyniak, E. Błazik-Borowa, J. Szer, T. Lipiecki, I. Szer, The choice of boundary
conditions and mesh for scaffolding FEM model on the basis of natural vibrations
measurements, in: AIP Conf. Proc., AIP Publishing, 2018, p. 150002, https://doi.
org/10.1063/1.5019155.
[20] E. Błazik-Borowa, A. Roabak, Numerical models of scaffolding decks and their
applications, Int. J. Civ. Eng. 15 (2017) 979–989, https://doi.org/10.1007/
s40999-017-0183-x.
[21] I. Szer, E. Błazik-Borowa, J. Szer, The influence of environmental factors on
employee comfort based on an example of location temperature, Arch. Civ. Eng. 63
(2018) 163–174, https://doi.org/10.1515/ace-2017-0035.
[22] K. Czarnocki, E.T. Błazik-Borowa, J. Szer, I. Szer, Apparent temperature
distribution on scaffoldings during construction works, World Acad. Sci. Eng.
Technol. Int. J. Med. Heal. Sci. 12 (2018) 71–77.
[23] T. Lipiecki, P. Jamińska-Gadomska, J. Bęc, E. Błazik-Borowa, Façade scaffolding
behaviour under wind action, Arch. Civ. Mech. Eng. 20 (2020) 3, https://doi.org/
10.1007/s43452-020-00034-0.
[24] A. Robak, M. Pieńko, E. Błazik-Borowa, J. Bęc, I. Szer, Analysis of exploitation
damages of the frame scaffolding, MATEC Web Conf. 284 (2019), 08008, https://
doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/201928408008.
[25] K.M. Halperin, M. McCann, An evaluation of scaffold safety at construction sites,
J. Saf. Res. 35 (2004) 141–150, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsr.2003.11.004.
[26] B. Hoła, T. Nowobilski, Analysis of the influence of socio-economic factors on
occupational safety in the construction industry, Sustainability. 11 (2019) 4469,
https://doi.org/10.3390/su11164469.
[27] M. Bussier, H. Chong, Relationship between safety measures and human error in
the construction industry: working at heights, Int. J. Occup. Saf. Ergon. (2020),
https://doi.org/10.1080/10803548.2020.1760559.
[28] K. Szaniawska, K. Czarnocki, Z. Wiśniewski, M. Wiśniewska, Influence of the
human factor on the risk of work on scaffolding, in: AHFE 2020, Adv. Saf. Manag.
Hum. Factors, 2019, pp. 58–68, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20497-6_6.
[29] K. Czarnocki, E. Czarnocka, K. Szaniawska, Human factors as the main reason of
the accident in scaffold use assessment, Int. Sch. Sci. Res. Innov. 12 (2018)
107–114.
[30] H. Bojar, F. Silveira, M. Rebelo, E. Czarnocka, K. Czarnocki, Health behaviours in
scaffold use risk assessment model – SURAM, Ann. Agric. Environ. Med. 26 (2019)
138–142, https://doi.org/10.26444/aaem/100534.
[31] M. Sawicki, M. Szóstak, Analysis of the dependence between the number of
accidents at workplaces that involve scaffolding and changes in work efficiency,
MATEC Web Conf. 174 (2018), https://doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/
201817404014.
[32] M. Sawicki, M. Szóstak, Assessment of the safety of working on scaffolding based
on post-accident protocols, Acta Sci. Pol. Archit. 18 (2019) 51–59, https://doi.org/
10.22630/ASPA.2019.18.2.22.
[33] Z. Hong, F. Gui, Analysis on Human Unsafe Acts Contributing to Falling Accidents
in Construction Industry, in: Adv, Springer Verlag, Intell. Syst. Comput, 2018,
pp. 178–185, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60525-8_19.
[34] H.W. Heinrich, Industrial Accidents Prevention, Mc Graw Hill Book Company, Inc.,
New York, Toronto, London, 1959.
[35] B. Shao, Z. Hu, Q. Liu, S. Chen, W. He, Fatal accident patterns of building
construction activities in China, Saf. Sci. 111 (2019) 253–263, https://doi.org/
10.1016/j.ssci.2018.07.019.
[36] G. Mistikoglu, I.H. Gerek, E. Erdis, P.E. Mumtaz Usmen, H. Cakan, E.E. Kazan,
Decision tree analysis of construction fall accidents involving roofers, Expert Syst.
Appl. 42 (2015) 2256–2263, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eswa.2014.10.009.
[37] P.A. Manu, N.A. Ankrah, D.G. Proverbs, S. Suresh, Investigating the multi-causal
and complex nature of the accident causal influence of construction project
features, Accid. Anal. Prev. 48 (2012) 126–133, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
aap.2011.05.008.
[38] W. Haddon, Energy damage and the ten countermeasure strategies, Hum. Factors J.
Hum. Factors Ergon. Soc. 15 (1973) 355–366, https://doi.org/10.1177/
001872087301500407.
[39] D. Chua, Y. Goh, Incident causation model for improving feedback of safety
knowledge, J. Constr. Eng. Manag. 130 (2004) 4, https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)
0733-9364(2004)130:4(542).
[40] M. Behm, A. Schneller, Application of the Loughborough construction accident
causation model: a framework for organizational learning, Constr. Manag. Econ. 31
(2013) 580–595, https://doi.org/10.1080/01446193.2012.690884.
13
Automation in Construction 126 (2021) 103690
[41] J. Reason, Human Error, Cambridge University Press, New York, 1990, https://doi.
org/10.1017/CBO9781139062367.
[42] P. Gholizadeh, B. Esmaeili, Developing a multi-variate logistic regression model to
analyze accident scenarios: case of electrical contractros, Int. J. Environ. Res.
Public Health 17 (2020) 4852, https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17134852.
[43] J. Zhang, L. Zi, Y. Hou, D. Deng, W. Jiang, M. Wang, A C-BilSTM approach to
classify construction accident reports, Appl. Sci 10 (17) (2020) 5754, https://doi.
org/10.3390/app10175754.
[44] U. Kjellén, The deviation concept in occupational accident control-II. Data
collection and assessment of significance, Accid. Anal. Prev. 16 (1984) 307–323,
https://doi.org/10.1016/0001-4575(84)90024-1.
[45] U. Kjellen, T.J. Larsson, Investigating accidents and reducing risks - A dynamic
approach, J. Occup. Accid. 3 (1981) 129–140, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00134-
016-4504-3.
[46] European Statistics on Accident at Work ESAW, Summary Methodology,
Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 2013. ISBN: 978-92-79-
28419-9.
[47] L.J. Bellamy, B.J.M. Ale, T.A.W. Geyer, L.H.J. Goossens, A.R. Hale, J. Oh, M. Mud,
A. Bloemhof, I.A. Papazoglou, J.Y. Whiston, Storybuilder-A tool for the analysis of
accident reports, Reliab. Eng. Syst. Saf. (2007), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
ress.2006.02.010.
[48] C. Vigneshkumar, S. Urmi Ravindra, A scientometric analysis and review of fall
from height research in construction, Constr. Econ. Build. 20 (2020) 17–35,
https://doi.org/10.5130/AJCEB.v20i1.6802.
[49] B. Hoła, M. Szóstak, A Computer knowledge database of accidents at work in the
construction industry, IOP Conf. Ser. Mater. Sci. Eng. (2017), https://doi.org/
10.1088/1757-899X/251/1/012049.
[50] E.W. Dijkstra, A note on two problems in connexion with graphs, Numer. Math. 1
(1959) 269–271, https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01386390.
[51] Y.D. Rosita, E.E. Rosyida, M.A. Rudiyanto, Implementation of dijkstra algorithm
and multi-criteria decision-making for optimal route distribution, in: Procedia
Comput. Sci., Elsevier B.V., 2019, pp. 378–385, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
procs.2019.11.136.
[52] Y.Z. Chen, S.F. Shen, T. Chen, R. Yang, Path optimization study for vehicles
evacuation based on Dijkstra algorithm, in: Procedia Eng., Elsevier Ltd, 2014,
pp. 159–165, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2014.04.023.
[53] S.X. Wang, The improved Dijkstra’s shortest path algorithm and its application, in:
Procedia Eng., Elsevier, 2012, pp. 1186–1190, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
proeng.2012.01.110.
[54] A. Hebda, A method of engineering and economical assessment of components and
occupational risk disutility in coal mines, University Scientific and Educational
Publishing AGH, 2005, p. 126 (ISSN: 0867-6631).
[55] B. Hoła, M. Szóstak, Modeling of the accidentality phenomenon in the construction
industry, Appl. Sci. 9 (2019) 1878, https://doi.org/10.3390/app9091878.
[56] B. Shao, Z. Hu, Q. Liu, S. Chen, W. He, Fatal accident patterns of building
construction activities in China, Saf. Sci. 111 (2019) 253–263, https://doi.org/
10.1016/j.ssci.2018.07.019.
[57] P. Mitropoulos, T.S. Abdelhamid, G.A. Howell, Systems model of construction
accident causation, J. Constr. Eng. Manag. 131 (2005) 816–825, https://doi.org/
10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2005)131:7(816).
[58] Statistics Poland, Construction and assembly production in 2018, Warsaw, 2019
(Avaiable online, https://stat.gov.pl/en/topics/industry-construction-fixed-
assets/construction/construction-and-assembly-production-in-2018,7,2.html.
[59] T.K. Fredericks, O. Abudayyeh, S.D. Choi, M. Wiersma, M. Charles, Occupational
injuries and fatalities in the roofing contracting industry, J. Constr. Eng. Manag.
131 (2005) 1233–1240, https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2005)131:11
(1233).
[60] M. Jahangiri, H.R.J. Solukloei, M. Kamalinia, A neuro-fuzzy risk prediction
methodology for falling from scaffold, Saf. Sci. 117 (2019) 88–99, https://doi.org/
10.1016/j.ssci.2019.04.009.
[61] T. Zlatar, E.M.G. Lago, Willames de Albuquerque Soares, João dos Santos Baptista,
B.B. Junior, Falls from height: Analysis of 114 cases, Producao 29, 2019, https://
doi.org/10.1590/0103-6513.20180091.
[62] X.S. Dong, J.A. Largay, S.D. Choi, X. Wang, C.T. Cain, N. Romano, Fatal falls and
PFAS use in the construction industry: findings from the NIOSH FACE reports,
Accid. Anal. Prev. 102 (2017) 136–143, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
aap.2017.02.028.