Identification of Critical Causal Factors and Paths of Tower-Crane Accidents in China through System Thinking and Complex Networks
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 147, Issue 12
Abstract
Tower-crane accidents occur frequently with serious consequences, including deaths, serious injuries, and economic losses. To identify the critical causes and paths of tower-crane accidents, the network analysis method is utilized. First, according to the relevant laws, regulations, and standards regarding tower-crane safety, a system of tower-crane accident causes is decomposed into 6 subsystems and 34 causal factors through system thinking. Then a sample of 194 tower-crane accident reports is used as empirical data. Accident causes are considered the nodes, and correlations among the causes are considered edges, through which a network model of tower-crane accident causes is established. The statistical indicators of the network model, such as the degree, strength, and shortest path, are calculated, after which seven critical factors and three critical paths of tower-crane accident causation are identified. Finally, a major tower-crane collapse accident in the city of Yueyang is adopted to conduct a case study and verify the practicality of the established systematic model and the reasonability of the analysis results.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code generated or used during the study are available from the corresponding author by request.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51308240) and the Key Technologies Research and Development Program (2017YFC0805500) for their support of this research. The factor identification and systematic modeling were supported by experts in safety management from universities and companies. The authors would like to thank these supportive people and organizations. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant 51308240 and the Key Technologies Research and Development Program of China under Grant 2017YFC0805500. Wei Zhang and Nannan Xue conceived the study and were responsible for the data collection, analysis, and paper writing. Jianrong Zhang was responsible for the case study, while Xiao Zhang was responsible for the data interpretation.
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Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 147 • Issue 12 • December 2021
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© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jan 9, 2021
Accepted: Jul 22, 2021
Published online: Oct 4, 2021
Published in print: Dec 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Mar 4, 2022
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