Increased delivery costs and delays, has caused the suspension on the development of a new occupational health system for the construction industry.
B&CE, a pensions and benefits company for the construction industry, has been developing a new occupational health system called People’s Health, for the construction sector, to replace its existing occupational health system, Constructing Better Health (CBH).
Despite its faults, the CBH scheme has continued to run, while BC&E worked on People’s Health for replace it. B&CE said: “The aims and principles of CBH were right, but it didn’t achieve what the industry required. We also recognise that the fee structure wasn’t representing good value for money.”
But it has been revealed that B&CE has now suspended the development of the People’s Health toolbox, as it explained: “Fulfilling the occupational health needs of the industry is challenging. As the project has progressed, there has been added complexity as the system’s functionality has been improved which, in turn, has led to delays and has increased delivery costs.
“The build has therefore been paused while B&CE review the information they’ve gathered so far. There is a responsibility to ensure that what is built will be successful, so the priority is to find the best way to address these complexities and make the system more efficient. The aim remains the same as it ever was – to build a successful and commercially viable occupational health system that can do exactly what the construction industry needs it to do.”
People’s Health was intended to be “a simple, cost-effective, digital end-to-end solution for managing occupational health in construction,” B&CE says. “This will mean that employers will be able to comply with legislation and manage their workers’ health-at-work more easily. So work-related ill health effects can be detected earlier.”
A statement released by Build UK, the industry trade association that counts B&CE among its members, said: “Build UK Partner B and CE has been developing People’s Health, a new occupational health system for the construction industry, taking learnings from key stakeholders on what they would find useful in such a system.
