A taxonomic review of the application of safety management systems in construction

The construction industry is one of the industries considered with the highest accident rates over the world because of its high risk and fast changing work nature (Tam, 2004). Construction safety has been perceived as one of key research areas in recent 20 years. Safety management system (SMS) was introduced in the construction industry in 1980s which aimed at reducing the number of injury cases, eliminating harmful conditions to workers and preventing materials damage at work. Content analysis was applied to review the previous relevant research papers and analyze the findings regarding the topic of various safety management systems adopted in the construction industry. The aim of this paper is to investigate and compare the research findings on safety management systems which had been implemented in the construction industry worldwide. Key features under safety management systems including the success factors, perceived benefits and potential difficulties will also be examined in order to identify the existing research gaps and corresponding research opportunities through this critical taxonomic review study.