March 5, 2015

The NYC Department of Buildings recently revised the Site Safety requirements for façade alteration projects on buildings 15 or more stories in height, filed on or after December 31, 2014.

For these projects, contractors or owners may now opt to have one of the follow
ing provide site safety oversight:

a)      Site Safety Manager

b)      Licensed Rigger (or Designated Rigging Foreman Employed by the Licensed Rigger)

c)       Qualified Person for Site Safety (Approved by the Designated Site Safety Manager)

What this Means for Building Owners/Managers:

The new requirement revisions address the shortage of site safety inspectors by allowing Owners more options for site safety oversight. This way, the Owner will save money and speed up the start of construction.

Exceptions:

• For façade alteration projects filed before December 31, 2014, projects may proceed with the two-hour/part-time site safety manager, if previously granted. 

• All façade recladding projects (i.e. installing a new building envelope over an existing façade) filed under the 2014 code must have a full time Site Safety Manager.

To read about the complete rule change with examples of Façade Work Oversight, please refer to the 2014 NYC Construction Codes + RCNY: Façades update:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dob/downloads/pdf/facade_safety_rule.pdf

If you would like more information on how this new requirement may affect your building and/or an on-going project, please feel free to contact us at (718) 767-0923 or HCerone@merrittengineering.com.