Construction Accident Reduction Strategies through the Adoption of Pre-Construction Contracting Methods Seo JaeWoo Advisor : Prof. Song Chang-Yeong, Ph.D. Department of Disaster Prevention & Safety, Graduate School of Gwangju University The persis...
Construction Accident Reduction Strategies through the Adoption of Pre-Construction Contracting Methods Seo JaeWoo Advisor : Prof. Song Chang-Yeong, Ph.D. Department of Disaster Prevention & Safety, Graduate School of Gwangju University The persistently high rate of severe accidents in the domestic construction industry is fundamentally rooted in the structural rigidity of conventional procurement and contract methods. his study aims to clarify, through empirical case studies, that a dual procurement system in which design and construction are separated can make it difficult to anticipate and respond to risk factors during construction, potentially serving as a root cause of construction accidents, and ultimately leading to project delays and cost overruns due to such accidents. Based on case analysis, this paper proposes the Pre-con (Pre-construction) contract method as an alternative, in which stakeholders regularly manage risks through information sharing at the preliminary stage of project design. Additionally, this study presents effective measures from three key perspectives institutional, policy, and technological to promote the — — successful adoption of the Pre-con method in South Korea and encourage a shift in on-site awareness. That is, although construction industry practitioners agree on the necessity and usefulness of adopting the Pre-con method, the absence of clear legal standards and rational compensation schemes for early-stage involvement, the lack of resources, and persistent institutional rigidities fundamentally block the introduction of integrated and collaborative project management approaches such as Pre-con. Based on previous research, this paper primarily focuses on the public sector and large-scale construction projects. This study demonstrates, through case-based evidence, that securing sufficient project duration and construction costs through Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) negotiations has a significant and positive impact on safety performance. Additionally, it suggests that the on-site experience of various participants in construction projects can serve as a strong alternative for effective risk management, leading to specific recommendations for improvements in construction policy. Through such empirical case analysis, this study makes a valuable contribution to the academic discourse on reducing construction accidents. In particular, it highlights the importance of proactively and effectively establishing a safety culture on construction sites in South Korea, and is significant in that it presents meaningful alternatives to existing construction safety regulations. Keywords: Order system, integrated order method, pre-con contract method, risk sharing, joint responsibility, disaster reduction