Risk analysis in demolition works and a suggestion for a new method on risk assessment

In our country and in the world, the issue of occupational health and safety is being taken more seriously and various regulations and work is done on this matter. The precautions need to be taken against the occupational accidents and diseases are determined and therefore laws, regulations and legislations are made. Nevertheless, these regulations are generally inadequate, and as a consequence, occupational accidents and diseases result in great losses. According to the analyzed statistics and data on occupational accidents and diseases, it can be seen that it is like a worldwide brutal terrorist organization causing trouble to people. People die, be injured and have pecuniary and non-pecuniary losses while fighting this organization. According to the data from International Labour Organization (ILO), there are a million of occupational accidents in the world every day, and an average of 5000 people everyday and 2 million people every year die due to occupational accidents. And according to the statistics of Social Insurance Institution, 3 workers in Turkey everyday as a result of occupational accidents. The financial extent of the occupational accidents is stunning. According to the studies of International Labour Organization (ILO), it is estimated that the financial loss due to occupational accidents and diseases are 4 % of the gross domestic product of the countries. Specific to construction sector, this situation becomes even more dramatic. This is because construction sector is one of the most dangerous lines of work in our country and in the world. In our country, thousands of accidents happen on construction sites every year. These vary from simple cuts and scars to serious injuries that would change our lives and even death. According to the data from International Labour Organization (ILO), compared to the other sectors construction workers have six times as much risk of having accidents in developed countries. And in our country, it can be seen that far more people die in construction sector than developed countries and there are more problems like injuries and disabilities besides various occupational diseases in construction areas. According to the data from Ministry of Labour and Social Security, in Turkey, 10% of all occupational accidents, 25% of all permanent incapacities, and 34% of all fatal occupational accidents in a year are in construction business. Demolition works, one of the branches of construction sector, has become important since the start of Urban Transformation projects under the procedures and principles determined in Application Regulations of the Law No. 6306 enacted on 08/04/2012. In the framework of Urban Transformation projects, it is estimated that about 40% of total stock of buildings in our country (6-7 million houses) needs to be renewed or strengthened. Here, one of the most important issues that need to be discussed is evaluating the future demolition works of those 7 million structures in 20 years in terms of occupational health and safety. In this thesis, demolition works are studied in terms of occupational health and safety, and a risk analysis method is suggested. First, a field research was conducted using the literature research and statistics on accidents at the time of demolition works. This field research conducted in order to create input parameters and data from experts are used. These input parameters are used for fuzzy logic modeling. As a result, a risk analysis model with fuzzy logic is suggested. And this suggested risk analysis model is practiced in a demolition work. In this work, risks in demolition works and most probable accidents are examined and basic classifications like types of accidents and types of demolition work items are made. Moreover, related standards and regulations are analyzed in details, and descriptions and evaluations about the risk analysis are examined. All in all, a risk analysis model and a method to decrease or eliminate those risks are suggested to the companies conducting demolition works.