Ecology & Safety, Volume 18, 2024

Abstract: Safety is of utmost importance to the Abu Dhabi City Municipality, particularly for those working in the construction sector. Given the high-risk and critical nature of activities in this industry, it is essential to provide proper training to increase awareness and promote safety among the workforces. This paper aims to test the hypothesis that "VR Training on Construction Sites is an effective tool to prevent accidents and undesirable events" by comparing its effectiveness to traditional training methods in terms of coaching construction workers and improving their abilities to identify and assess risks. The framework in this paper includes understanding the root causes of incidents through the analysis of historical incident data. Based on this analysis, 15 training scenarios were developed using virtual reality technology to provide workers with an engaging and interactive training experience that enables them to visualize site risks better and effectively understand safety precautions. After the VR training sessions, participants were asked to evaluate their training experience through a short questionnaire to measure the effectiveness of VR technology in safety training. In addition to the training assessment, "incident trend analysis exercises" were carried out after delivering the VR training courses to measure the effectiveness of the VR training and its impact on the safety culture, overall workers' hazard identification, and awareness of work site risks. The study showed a positive attitude among participants toward VR safety training and a tangible reduction in the number of undesirable events recorded over a certain time span. These findings suggest that VR technology can be a valuable tool for promoting safety and preventing accidents in the construction industry.