CDM Management

Management solutions for audited compliance with CDM regulations.

What Do I do About CDM?

The Health and Safety Executive introduced the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations to improve the safety record in the construction industry.

The legal process introduced by the CDM regulations currently includes the appointment of a CDM Co-ordinator, a notification process and the requirement for risk assessment based health and safety plans. The 2007 update to the Regulations includes more onerous responsibilities for the construction Client and imposition of Competence Management on all parties in the construction process.

On completion, the law requires Clients to provide an ongoing Health and Safety File. This is to focus maintenance management on health and safety issues throughout the life of the built environment, and should be included in the facilities management documentation that now accompanies the structure involved in the CDM process.

The HSE’s Approved Code of Practice (ACoP) gives practical advice on how the law is to be complied with. It is important that CDM professionals keep up-to-date with the Regulations, and the implications of them for their construction activities. Within the CDM ToolKit™ there is a CDM knowledge base which is kept updated to help in this process. The software itself is changed to reflect the latest guidance from the HSE ensuring the CDM process is current and correct.

"Many people think that CDM requires people to produce paperwork for its own sake" says the ACoP introduction. "This is far from the truth, CDM is intended to encourage the integration of health and safety into project management; any paperwork should contribute to the management of health and safety."

If under CDM you are asked to do something with no health and safety benefit you are probably misunderstanding what the regulations require.

Here is a summary of what the HSE says that CDM does require;

  1. A realistic project programme with adequate time allowed for planning preparation and the work itself.
  2. Early appointment of key people.
  3. Competent duty holders with sufficient resources to meet their legal duties.
  4. Early identification and reduction of risks.
  5. Provision of health & safety information from the start of the design phase, through construction and maintenance and eventual demolition, so that everyone can discharge their duties effectively.
  6. Co-operation between duty holders.
  7. Proportionate effort and resources to be applied to managing health & safety issues.