# Prevention through Design Workshop Initiative

> **NIH ALLCDC R13** · ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY-TEMPE CAMPUS · 2020 · $19,438

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Construction hazard prevention through design (PtD) in capital projects holds the promise to eventually reduce
exposure of construction workers to safety and health hazards, and hence minimize accidents, morbidity, and
fatalities. The absence of prevention through design accounts for more than 2/3 of the fatalities in the US
construction sector. In countries where PtD is common practice the construction fatality rate is at least four
times less than in the US. Despite its potential, the awareness and implementation of PtD by design and
engineering professionals is scarce. In addition, substantial gaps in PtD knowledge still exist.
In order to address these shortcomings, we propose a 5-year PtD Workshop Initiative. A total of one kickoff
workshop and five annual PtD workshops will be offered. Each workshop will be completed in a single day.
Each of the five PtD workshops will be tentatively offered at a premiere meeting, networking, and knowledge
sharing and advancement annual venue attended by highly influential construction stakeholders. The proposed
sequence of workshop themes is: 1) current and future state of the art research and practice; 2) training and
education; 3) incentives, barriers, and liability; 4) benefits, costs, and lifecycle costs; and, 5) advanced design
technologies and PtD. Post-workshop dissemination will enable a broader impact of workshop content and
outcomes. Six graduate instruction modules on PtD themes will be produced and disseminated at no cost.
The hypothesis of this proposal is that the engagement of compelling stakeholders can overcome the scarce
PtD adoption among industry organizations. Our goal is to improve the well being of the US construction
workforce. To that end, we propose a 5-year PtD Workshop Initiative. The Aims of such Initiative are:
1. Aim 1: To drive the implementation of PtD at large industry organizations. We will inform and engage
 highly influential stakeholders at large client / owner, designer, and contractor organizations. We will
 measure the cumulative engagement of these organizations with PtD during the 5-year effort.
2. Aim 2: To advance knowledge in PtD. We will collect information for the effective demonstration of
 concepts and strategies. We will query stakeholder participants. We will identify and analyze information
 and research gaps. We will evaluate the number, quality, and broader impacts of knowledge contributions.
3. Aim 3: To promote the instruction of PtD in construction management and construction
 engineering programs at US colleges and universities. We will design and disseminate six graduate
 instruction modules. We will cumulatively track the programs including the PtD modules in their curriculum.
The PtD Workshop Initiative will contribute to overcome current limitations of scarce awareness and
implementation by engaging highly influential stakeholders and US colleges and universities, and
provide deeper and broader insights into specific as...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9998733
- **Project number:** 5R13OH011707-02
- **Recipient organization:** ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY-TEMPE CAMPUS
- **Principal Investigator:** DAVID GRAU
- **Activity code:** R13 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $19,438
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-01 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9998733

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9998733, Prevention through Design Workshop Initiative (5R13OH011707-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9998733. Licensed CC0.

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