Confidential Reporting on Structural Safety (Cross) is a system that has been established to capture and share lessons learned from structural safety issues. It was established in the UK in 2005; other versions have followed including one covering the USA.

Cross-US is seeking to disseminate lessons and is asking for reports on new structural safety hazards arising from lockdowns or other consequences of the pandemic. “Safety hazards might be in the present during lockdown, be in the future as we hopefully get back to normal afterwards or become embedded in the built fabric and give problems in years to come,” it said.

Cross-US is interested in aspects such as:

  • concerns about designs, checks or quality assurance;
  • works suspended, sites closed, structures left part-built;
  • revised work methods or changed supervision practice that have knock-on effects to structural safety;
  • consequences of the higher occupation of residential buildings during lockdown;
  • consequences of vacancy of non-residential buildings, or non-use of other structural assets;
  • postponement or curtailing of safety or inspections or maintenance activity;
  • loss of ‘look, see, touch, feel’ - the intuitive engagement with hazard, risk and early warning signs; and
  • other responses to the crisis.

Reports can be submitted via www.cross-us.org (link opens in new tab)