Latest News

Construction (Design & Management) 2015, commonly known as CDM 2015 is the biggest shake up in Health and Safety in over a decade. CDM are the main set of regulations for managing the health, safety and welfare of construction projects. The aim is for health and safety considerations to be treated as a normal part of your project’s development, not an afterthought or bolt-on extra.

The main areas of change with Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 – CDM 2015 are*:

• The revised legislation applies to all projects including for the first time domestic jobs
• All projects must have a written construction phase plan
• The role of CDM co-ordinator in the previous CDM Regs 2007 has been removed and replaced with a new role of Principal Designer.
• There is a duty to make sure all persons doing the job have the right skills, knowledge, training and experience.
• Some domestic and non-domestic projects will have to be notified to the Health & Safety Executive by the client.

*As per the CITB website.

Everyone involved with a construction project (including domestic clients) has to comply with CDM regulations and will apply to all building and construction projects regardless of size, duration and nature of the work.

CDM applies to all maintenance work – if the task looks like construction work, involves construction materials and skill then it qualifies as construction work. However, if there is only one contractor then the appointment of a Principal Contractor or Principal Designer is not required. However, if  more contractors are brought into the project then a Principal Contractor and Principal Designer is required for that particular project.

The new regulations came into force on the 6th April 2015.

So with this in mind, it’s essential that you get up to speed with all the regulations and how this will affect you and your business.

If you are a Client, Principal Designer, Designer, Principal Contractor or Contractor you have CDM duties in respect of ALL projects which are listed below.

There are also a series of general duties which need to be abided by Principal Contractors, Contractors and all those that control the way that construction is carried out.

Where relevant we have enclosed links directly to the CITB website who have compiled industry guidance for each of the duty holders.

CDM 2015 recognises that the client plays a pivotal role in the project as the head of the supply chain, and as such is best placed to set standards for the project.

Client Duties

A client is an organisation or individual for whom a construction project is carried out. To learn more about the responsibilities of a client under CDM 2015, click here.

If the work is carried out on an individual’s home, or the home of a family member and which is not carried out in connection with a business they are know as a domestic client and as such are subject to different duties and responsibilities.

To learn more about the responsibilities of a domestic client under CDM 2015, click here.

Principal Designer Duties

The principal designer will be replacing the role of CDM Coordinator as part of CDM 2015. This means that during the pre-construction phase the responsibility will be upon the Principal Designer to ensure that Health & Safety is considered.

To learn more about the duties of the Principal Designer as part of CDM click here.

Designer Duties

You are an individual or organisation who, as part of your business prepares or modifies designs for a building, product or prepares or modifies designs to any system relating to building work. When preparing or modifying these designs you are required to eliminate, reduce or control all foreseeable risks that might arise during the construction or the maintenance and use of the building once built. You are also required to provide information to other members of the project team to help them fulfil their duties.

To learn more about the duties of the Designer as part of CDM click here.

Principal Contractor Duties

Principal Contractors are contractors appointed by the client to co-ordinate the construction phase of a project where it involves more than one contractor.

To learn more about the duties of Principal Contractors as part of CDM click here.

Contractors Duties

Contractors are those who do the actual construction work. They can be either an individual or a company.

To learn more about the duties of Contractors as part of CDM click here.

So what are HBXL doing about CDM 2015?

In line with the updated CDM regulations and HBXL’s commitment to development, we launched Health & Safety Xpert 2015 on the 6th April 2015 with a range of new documents and documents updated throughout to reflect the changes to CDM 2015.  We regularly review and update Health & Safety Xpert and launched Health & Safety Xpert 2019 with Health & Safety Xpert 2020 in the pinpeline.