Khalifa International Stadium has reached a major milestone completing 3.7 million man-hours without Lost Time Accidents. Over 3,200 people work daily at the site of the historic stadium, which is one of the proposed host venues for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar™.

An event was held at Khalifa International Stadium – Aspire Zone Precinct to commemorate this safety mark, which is based on industry practice representing working hours without any Lost-Time Accidents. This event was part of a series of safety-related events organised by the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) and its partners across all stadium sites currently underway.

Safety days and safety recognition initiatives are held on a regular basis across all 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar™ proposed host venue construction sites, helping to contribute to the SC's safety record of zero fatalities on all projects.

A joint venture between Midmac Contracting and Sixconstruct Qatar W.L.L. (a subsidiary of the Belgian Besix Group) is overseeing the main construction works as main contractor on the stadium. Dar Al Handasah and Projacs are the Design and Project Manager Consultants respectively. All mentioned parties, in addition to workers on site, took part in the celebratory event held recently.

Gary D. Higham, Site Senior Safety Engineer, SC Technical Delivery Office, highlighted the importance of good management and training activities to achieve this safety mark. He said: "Coordination has been paramount. Part of the achievement has been the excellent management and facilities on site, in addition to the standards of health care that are here."

Eric Chantraine, HSE Manager for the Main Contractor, highlighted the importance of this achievement, given the number of workers on site is over 3,200 on a daily basis: "All stakeholders have the same commitment: Our main criteria is always safety."

On the first day on the project, workers attend a safety induction and a presentation to remind them of the basic rules and also have further training three times a week. During these regular sessions the team evaluates safety procedures and points out practices that need to be improved.

Meanwhile, Sureshkuar Sreedharn, one of the scaffolders at the site who attended the event, emphasised that safety is very important for everyone working at Khalifa International Stadium: "I remind my team the safety rules every day before they start work and tell them to use their PPE. I also attend safety training regularly so I can transmit this knowledge to the rest of the workers," he said.

Originally built as a 20,000-seater stadium in 1976, the stadium is currently undergoing a comprehensive renovation to meet the FIFA Requirements and Standards for World Cup stadiums. Work includes adding a new building to the east wing, and building a single roof to cover the whole seating area.

After the renovation, Khalifa International Stadium will seat more than 40,000 spectators and will be completely cooled, including the field of play, all seats and concourses. The redevelopment will allow the stadium to host group stage, round of 16 and quarter-final matches.