Architectural risk and workplace safety: proposal for an assessment method

The paper discusses a study on assessment of workplace risks related to characteristics of buildings where work activities are hosted. Despite architectural risk is mentioned in work safety Italian regulations, technical and regulation everyday practices demonstrate a poor consideration of this concept, that is applied to a limited number of built environment aspects. On the other side, many evidences exist about the relation between occupants’ injuries or diseases and technical and environmental characteristics of life and work environments. From this background, the presented study has considered comfort and occupants’ safety as Key Performance Areas for architectural risk controlling; KPAs have been detailed in architectural requirements for technical and environmental aspects of buildings. Then, for each requirement, specific a set of risk indicators has been defined and arranged in forms to be used for the assessment of the building in its whole as well as for each single room or space. The suite of forms is the protocol for architectural risk assessment, that has been validated in a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant.