Construction Safety Week 2018
Construction Safety Week reinforces DOB's core
mission of promoting safety for everyone who builds, works, and lives
in New York City by overseeing the lawful use of nearly 1.1 million
buildings and enforcing safety regulations at construction sites across
the five boroughs.
In observance of Construction Safety Week 2018, held May 7th-10th,
DOB staff fanned out across the five boroughs to raise awareness about
new construction safety regulations, including increased penalties for construction-related
violations and new construction-safety training requirements under Local Law 196 of 2017. In order to ensure that all workers are informed of
the new regulations and requirements, Commissioner Chandler visited the
US Tennis Association’s Louise Armstrong Stadium construction site in
Flushing, Queens to discuss the importance of worker safety. The
Commissioner also held a Q&A session with day laborers at the headquarters of nonprofit
organization New Immigrant Community Empowerment, which works to
organize and educate workers.
DOB also continued its Experience is Not Enough campaign by
distributing multi-lingual educational materials (available in English, Spanish, and Chinese) that offer workers simple steps they can take to stay safe on job sites,
emphasizing the importance of safe construction practices. Staff members also worked with
our partners at OSHA for their annual Stand Down for Safety events, and passed out information on the Department's
new campaign to educate workers about what to do in the event of work-site accidents.
The highlight of Construction Safety Week was DOB's 2018 Build Safe│Live Safe Conference, where the agency
hosted over 300 construction professionals and government regulator at a daylong event featuring a series of seminars on subjects related to accident trends, new
regulations, and updates to DOB policies, as well as best practices for improving safety. The conference, now in its 14th year, is a
critical link between the Department and members of NYC's real estate
and construction industries, with a focus on improving safety in the
building and construction trades. Seminar presentations for this
year's conference can be viewed on our website.
Site Safety Training Curriculum Released
Earlier this month, DOB announced increased safety training requirements
for many of the city's construction workers. DOB will mandate that
workers at sites for which the Department requires construction superintendents,
site-safety coordinators, or site-safety managers have 40 hours of
safety training and that supervisors have 62 hours of training. These
requirements will take effect in stages over the next 12 to 28 months.
Workers can satisfy the 40-hour training requirement in a variety of
ways, including taking a 30-hour safety course approved by OSHA plus
eight hours of training on fall prevention and two hours of training on drug and
alcohol awareness, or by participating in a DOB-approved 100-hour
training program of the kind typically completed by union apprentices. Details
on the types of training required can be found in the corresponding Service Update.
Safety-training course providers must be approved by DOB. Information on becoming a DOB-approved course provider can be found on the
department's website. In addition, as part of Local Law 196 of 2017, the
City's Department of Small Business Services will develop a program to
provide greater access to construction jobs through safety training and
to fulfill Mayor de Blasio's commitment to train the employees of
small businesses and day laborers.
DOB in the Community: Fostering the Next Generation of Architects, Engineers, and Builders
This month, DOB architects and engineers visited a total of eight elementary and
high schools throughout the five boroughs, conducting interactive
presentations with approximately 1,750 students. These presentations
included an overview of different types of buildings in New York City,
the relationship between buildings and the environment, and the role
that architects and engineers play in designing building structures. The
presentations also included a hands-on learning segment, where students
draw their favorite New York City buildings and have the opportunity to
discuss what makes these buildings unique. These visits are designed to foster interest
in the building trades and science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics (STEM) fields among New York City public school students.
In addition to Junior Architects and Engineers, DOB also participated in
the High School for Construction Trades, Engineering, and Architecture's
Career Day. Six staff members from DOB's Technical Affairs, Plan
Examination, and Emergency Operations units traveled to the Queens
school, which specializes in preparing young people to enter building
trades, to share their experiences working for DOB and their passion for
promoting the safety of NYC's built environment. DOB staff participated
in panel discussions with other professionals active in various aspects
of building design and construction, spoke one-on-one with students
interested in pursuing careers in the public sector, and participated in
student-led tours of the school's facilities - including an active
construction site - and presentations of engineering and architecture
projects.
Crane Notification Web Form Now Active
DOB's new
crane notification web form is now active. Beginning June 1st,
crane or derrick equipment users must use the online notification to
provide the Department notice of certain crane or derrick activities, in
accordance with
1 RCNY 3319-01(c)(5). See the corresponding
Industry Notice for additional information.
Users should note that the web notification form does not replace any existing
notification requirements, and submission of documents including
inspection requests, e-mail notices for crawler crane activities, and
CD-7 forms for tower crane erection, jumps, and dismantling are still
required. This may result in providing duplicate notices to the
department, while DOB works to streamline all crane and derrick notifications.
If you have questions or require assistance, please email
CNotifications@buildings.nyc.gov.
Increased Civil Penalties for Stop-Work Orders and Work Without A Permit Violations
As of June 18th, the Department will increase civil penalties for breach of a stop-work order and work without a permit violations. Civil penalties for violation of a Stop Work Order will increase to $6,000 for an initial violation and $12,000 for subsequent violations. Those for work without a permit violations will increase to six times the permit fee, ranging from $600-$10,000 for one-and two-family dwellings, and 21 times the permit fee, $6,000-$15,000, for all other dwellings.
DOB NOW In-Person Trainings
DOB is offering free training sessions to industry members, owners, and
the general public to learn more about DOB NOW. The next scheduled
session is 3:30pm Monday, June 4th at DOB’s Staten Island
Borough Office, located at Staten Island Borough Hall, 10 Richmond
Terrace, 2nd Floor.
DOB staff will demonstrate how to submit two of the most common DOB
NOW filings and will answer questions about DOB NOW.
To sign up, or for links to past presentations, please visit the
DOB NOW Training page. Future sessions will be added to this page
as they are planned – please revisit for the most up-to-date schedule.
Sign up for Weather Advisories
Service Updates
New Requirements for PW2 Work Permit Application
Filing Requirements: Changes to Elevator Door Monitoring System
New Audit Template for LL87/09 Energy Audits and Retro - Commissioning Reporting Requirement
Requirement: Injuries and Fatalities Must be Reported to Department Within Three Business Days
2014 Construction Code Updates
Update page # 51 reflects changes made by Local Law 13 of 2018 related to requiring requiring anemometers on cranes.
Update page # 52 reflects changes made by Local Law 77 of 2017 in relation to requiring cranes to be equipped with global positioning systems or similar locating devices.
Update page # 53 reflects changes made by Local Law 204 of 2017 in relation to requiring pre-shift safety meetings for workers at construction sites.
Update page # 54 reflects changes made by Local Law 206 of 2017 in relation to requiring site-specific safety orientations for workers at construction sites.
Update pages are printable inserts to keep your hard copy Construction Codes up to date.
All update pages for the 2014 NYC Construction Codes.
Local Laws
Local Law 106 of 2018 (Int. No. 96-A) A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to allowing residential cooperatives to consolidate required energy efficiency reports.
Local Law 105 of 2018 (Int. No. 50-A) A Local Law to amend the New York city noise control code, the administrative code of the city of New York and the New York city building code, in relation to small wind turbines.
Hearings + Rules
1 RCNY 103-06 Amendment of Reporting Requirements for Energy and Water Use in Certain Buildings
Promulgated Effective Date 06/06/18
Buildings Bulletins
2018-003: Establishes acceptance criteria for fire resistive duct assemblies as approved alternative protection in the NYC Construction Codes. Supersedes Buildings Bulletin 2015-013.
2018-004: establishes acceptance criteria for multi-point gravity pneumatic waste transport systems as an alternative material in the NYC Construction Codes.
Website Updates
Updated Department Approved Course Provider List
Updated DOB NOW: Build Superseding Letter
Updated DOB NOW: Build Resources for Electrical Filings
Updated DOB NOW: Build Resources for Sidewalk Shed, Supported Scaffold, Fence and Sign Filings
Updated Information on Stop Work Orders
Updated Information for Administrative Enforcement Unit
Updated Information on Boiler Unit
Updated Information on Violations and Vacates
Updated Housing Maintenance Code
Updated Energy Audits and Retro-Commissioning
Updated Filing Representative Training Course Schedule
Major Disciplinary Cases
$52,000 in penalties and revoked the license of hoist machine operator Kevin Reilly for the unsafe operation of a crane, failure to safeguard, failure to follow a manufacturer's specifications and unfamiliarity with equipment at 60 Hudson Street, Manhattan, where a crane collapsed and killed one pedestrian in February 2016.
$50,000 in penalties issued to licensed master rigger Greg Galasso for the unsafe operation of a crane and failure to safeguard at 60 Hudson Street, Manhattan, where a crane collapsed in and killed one pedestrian in February 2016.
$52,000 in penalties issued to building owner Marlo Gitto for the illegal transient use of two residential units at 12-14 27th Avenue, Queens.
The voluntary surrender of Professional Certification and Directive 14 filing privileges of Charles Jordan, R.A., Adam Kushner, R.A., Frederick Goldberg, P.E., Sohel Ahmed, P.E., and Mang Wong, P.E., for wrongfully certifying applications of non-code complaint projects submitted to the Department.
DOB is now publishing monthly bulletins detailing the agency's efforts to sanction and deter bad actors in the construction industry. You can find this information posted on the Enforcement Action Bulletin page of our website.
Additional Disciplinary Actions & Voluntary Surrenders
Industry Code of Conduct for Construction Professionals
Did You Know
The NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission recently launched an interactive web map for permit applications. This new tool will allow the public to see where LPC permits for work have been filed and issued.
Rick D. Chandler, P.E., Commissioner
