Digital tools and devices used the building and construction industry

Student Guide

This unit of competency is suitable for those using specialised knowledge to complete routine and non-routine tasks and using their own judgement to deal with predictable and sometimes unpredictable problems.

Completion of the general construction induction training program specified by the model Code of Practice for Construction Work is required for any person who is to carry out construction work. Achievement of CPCCWHS1001Prepare to work safely in the construction industry meets this requirement.

	CORE CONCEPTS Throughout your training, it is likely that you will have already been

construction industry.

Student Guide

BCENV Environmental
requirements/issues in building and
construction

BCLEG Legislation in building and
construction

WHS Work health and safety in
building and construction

waste

Assessment checkpoint

Legislation and regulations

the top few industries with the highest number of serious claims for workers compensation.

spaces, some working with hazardous materials and
substances and others working around electricity and gas.

For more information about WHS, or if you haven’t reviewed your WHS fundamentals for a while, check out Module WHS Work health and safety in building and construction.

CPCCBC4021 Minimise waste on the building and construction site 5

In 2018–19, Australia generated approximately 74.1 million tonnes of waste. The construction and demolition sector contributed some 27 million tonnes (or 44%) of waste to that number! This was an increase of 3.6 million tonnes from 2016–17.

construction and demolition sector’s contribution to Australia’s waste generation. At 156 pages, it is a lengthy document, so you may like to search for keywords such as ‘construction’ and ‘demolition’. Chapter 11 discusses the role of states and territories in waste management and minimisation – you should look for the section that covers your state and

CPCCBC4021 Minimise waste on the building and construction site		6

As you have seen in other areas of your study, effective planning is important in most parts of a building and construction project. This is no less true for waste management.

The waste management plan for a project includes things like:

As you will know by now, PCBUs (and their workers) in the building and construction industry have many legal and regulatory requirements that they must adhere to. In the context of waste management, legislative requirements generally fall within the environmental protection and WHS areas. For the most part, legislation in this area is state and territory based.

 Environment Protection Authority Victoria:

 Environment Protection Authority South Australia:

 Environment Protection Authority ACT:

	Environment Protection Authority Tasmania:

CPCCBC4021 Minimise waste on the building and construction site 8

Student Guide

A thorough understanding of workplace policies and procedures is required for any job role, and this is no different in a management role in the building and construction industry. Your organisation will have many policies and procedures in place. Not all will be applicable to sustainability and waste management, of course, but the key ones include (names will vary between organisations):

 Environmental practice; sustainability; environmental protection (including environmental management plans)

Any decisions made about waste management for the project need to be in line with not just the legal and regulatory requirements, but your organisation’s policies and
procedures.

Work health and safety is paramount when it comes to any work processes, and you need to make sure that you consider the range of WHS aspects when planning for waste management. For example:

 Where will hazardous substances be stored until they are removed from site? They must be secured to protect against spills, public access and so on.

 What types of hazardous materials will need to be disposed of? What risks do they pose to the health and safety of your workers, those on adjacent properties and the public?

These include:

 avoid

Waste avoidance is basically exactly as per its name – what can you do to avoid creating waste? Of course, some waste is inevitable but effective planning will help you to avoid creating it wherever possible.

One of the best ways to do this is to be involved in the very early stages of the project. This may not always be possible. However, if you are fortunate enough to be able to work with clients, architects, designers and engineers you should use this to your advantage. This is the time to talk about how methods of building and construction, procurement strategies and efficient use of materials can be considered in terms of waste avoidance.

Student Guide

The next principle is to reduce the amount of waste that is created throughout the building process. We will discuss this in more detail later in this guide.

Reuse

The next principle is to reuse materials and products. Analyse any materials already on site and determine whether they can be reused either as part of the project, part of the landscape or for another project. You should also think about other projects your organisation has – can you use any leftover materials from that site, rather than throwing them out? Alternatively, can you purchase reclaimed materials?

(and the list grows every day). Equally, awareness of what can’t be recycled is important– the wrong thing added to a skip can cause contamination which can lead to the whole thing ending up in land fill.

Student Guide

	Drill down – Going green Read more about convincing clients to ‘go green’ here:

	Drill down – Communication techniques Take a few moments now to review Module COMMS Communicating in building and construction. If you have already looked at this module you

Calculating construction waste

As part of the waste management strategy, you will need to work out how much it will cost to store, handle and dispose of all site waste. This includes the cost of all skips and bins that will be placed on site and any collection services to be used, as well as calculating the quantities of construction waste expected for the project.

which shows how you would transfer your calculations and identify the ways in which you can reuse, recycle and dispose of many different types of construction materials.

 Where are the bins and waste collection services coming from? Try to find a good supplier who is relatively local, if possible. This cuts down on the amount of pollution being emitted from transportation, but also means that transportation costs will be cheaper.

 What types of services do they provide? Skips, bins, bags, how can/do they collect, do they pick up hazardous substances as well? Do skips and bins come with covers or lids to reduce the amount of site litter?

Student Guide

Knowing how to identify and dispose of these materials is just one of the legal requirements you will need to fulfil in your role.

Hazardous materials and substances can be found dumped on the site (for example, dumped by other builders in the area, dumped by members of the public before the site is fenced off) and they can be found within existing structures on the site. They may also be generated as part of the many activities that occur on site.

	memory.

Student Guide

Tips for materials waste minimisation

 Don’t forget to check for recycled options.

 Try to think of as many different types of waste generated across the different stages of construction. Review the plans, drawings and specs and materials lists.

These set out the requirements for compliant constructions to ensure the safety of structures.

CPCCBC4021 Minimise waste on the building and construction site 19

Digital tools, technology and devices
	Drill down – Technology By now you should be familiar with the types of technology, digital tools and devices used in the building and construction industry. However, take