Grants awarded 2009

Our call for bids in 2009 asked for research proposals into how best to meet the challenges of securing healthy and safe work for all members of a diverse working population and enabling them to work while minimising risk of harm.

We also considered innovative applications that address other aspects of the IOSH vision, 'A world of work which is safe, healthy and sustainable'. In this round of funding we've committed around £0.23 million to two projects:

Institution: University of Reading
Project leader: Dr Jennifer Whyte
Title: Building safely by design: Appraising safety hazards virtually before construction
Start date: March 2010
End date: May 2012

Aimed at facilitating safe construction processes, this project uses a virtual reality tool to investigate effective modes of interaction between designers and builders. A series of experiments will be carried out in a Cave Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE) and findings will help provide guidance for structuring effective designer-builder collaboration.

Institution: Cardiff and Oxford Brookes Universities
Project leader: Professors David Walters and Philip James
Title: The role of supply chains in influencing health and safety management in three sectors
Start date: April 2010
End date: December 2011

Building on our recent international literature review examining the relationship between supply chains and health and safety (full report), this empirical study looks at factors that positively influence the way health and safety is managed by suppliers in the construction, transport and food production and processing sectors.