Masdar Campaigns for Workers’ Heat Stress Awareness

Participants at the program held at Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, an independent, research-driven graduate-level university focused on advanced energy and sustainable technologies, included senior officials from Masdar City and Masdar’s strategic partner, Health Authority - Abu Dhabi (HAAD). The campaign demonstrated Masdar’s commitment to the government’s health & safety standards in all its projects.

The program included presentations from Masdar City Health and Safety department and HAAD authorities on best practices to control heat stress on construction sites. During the event, Yousef Ahmed Baselaib, Director of Masdar City Operations, and Ahmed Baghoum, Director of Masdar City Zone, distributed educational posters and water to workers at construction sites inside Masdar.

Baselaib said: “Safety is our highest priority across all our construction projects.  Through our partnership with Health Authority - Abu Dhabi and other Abu Dhabi government entities, we are confident that this campaign will not only educate our staff about the risks of heat stress but will also encourage them to look after each other during these hot summer months.”

During Masdar’s presentation regarding heat stress, Baselaib announced that Masdar City has achieved 12 million man hours without a single lost time incident in in all current projects.

The program also comprised an award ceremony to honour those responsible for ensuring compliance with safety norms mandated by the Abu Dhabi Environment Health and Safety Centre, a unit of the Emirate’s health department.

The heat stress program was initiated as part of a broader health and safety campaign that Masdar’s Health and Safety department launched this year. The program will include periodic awareness campaigns on other construction site hazards, like working safely at height, working with electrical connections and working at excavations.

Masdar has issued safety bulletins to project contractors that outline mandatory requirements, like providing rehydration fluids and supplements to workers before they arrive on site to reduce their risk of heat stroke and heat exhaustion. The safety bulletins also communicate the standards contractors should implement to prevent heat stress on sites. Educational heat stress posters have also been distributed in different languages in coordination with HAAD, and the contractors. Masdar’s contractors have been asked to post visible reminders for workers, such as posters of the rehydration program, to keep workers aware of how to avoid heat stroke.