Keeping Students Safe on Campus

As one of the top student housing general contractors in the nation, we understand the importance of safety during construction on active campuses. Campuses are bustling hubs of activity for not just students, but faculty, staff, and visitors as well. Ensuring safety in these areas is not just a priority – it’s imperative. We live by the motto “Safety Saves Lives” which applies to everyone in and around our work areas.

Understanding the Unique Campus Environment: Effective upfront coordination and a clearly communicated logistics plan are vital when working on an active college campus. Our approach includes:

• Comprehensive Scheduling: We coordinate all campus activities, such as athletic events, academic calendars, campus events, and other construction projects, to minimize the impact on traffic and visitors.
• Logistical Considerations: Redirecting pedestrian and vehicular traffic, creating covered walkways, maintaining fire access to existing structures, adjusting traffic and security cameras, and other measures are implemented to ensure a seamless construction process.

Implementing Robust Safety Measures:

University of South Carolina Campus Village Project: On the prestigious Campus Village project at the University of South Carolina, we entered into a valuable partnership with the South Carolina Occupational Safety and Health Administration (SC OSHA) to provide the safest possible work environment for students, employees and our trade partners. Throughout the project, SC OSHA regularly visited the jobsite to provide onsite training, audit our current safety measures, and identify and correct potential hazards onsite. Additionally, SC OSHA provided training and guidance, helping improve safety and health performance and support our existing safety culture. Safety Committees were created with attendees from each trade partner on site, who reviewed incident reports and walked the job site together, fostering a collective educational environment. One of the long-term benefits of partnerships like this one is that subcontractors and workers take what they learn about safety at the project site to future construction worksites. Due to the tremendous value received from this partnership USC Campus Village, our safety department has prioritized OSHA partnerships on all future projects and increased our safety department’s staff to support our safety culture.

Clemson Byrnes Hall Renovation: At our Brynes Hall Renovation project at Clemson University, we implemented additional safety measures for students on campus. Our safety department worked hand-in-hand with Clemson University to address high-traffic areas around the jobsite. One construction exit was located near a busy crosswalk, so we worked with the university to close the crosswalk to reduce student traffic and eliminate the blind corner at the construction road exit. Convex mirrors were installed at the delivery entrance and exit gates to ensure students had clear visibility of traffic before crossing the lane. Additional signage was added to those gates to increase awareness of potential traffic. Additionally, our field team regularly held meetings with the University to update them on construction progress and upcoming activities, as we know communication is a key factor in ensuring safety on site.

Emory Graduate and Professional Student Housing Project: Our student housing project at Emory University posed unique logistical challenges. The site, situated between the active Emory University campus, Druid Hills High School, Emory Hospital, and a portion restricted to preserve existing trees, was incredibly difficult to access. To address this, our Virtual Design + Construction department developed a 4D logistics model and haul plan before construction began to communicate with the neighboring facilities regarding scheduled deliveries, planning for pedestrian routes, and tower crane placement. Our tower crane did not operate over neighboring buildings, including the high school and neighboring homes, to ensure the safety of students and pedestrians.

Ensuring safety on campus construction sites goes beyond compliance; it’s about fostering a secure environment where education and growth can thrive uninterrupted. With more than 20 years of higher education construction experience, we have honed our craft to prioritize student safety on campus. Our expertise enables us to implement innovative solutions to logistical challenges, provide extensive upfront coordination, and mitigate risks to keep students safe. As we continue to build on campuses, we are committed to making safety our foremost priority.