The second decade of the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) will close on September 30, 2016. The NORA Construction Sector Council has been very successful in achieving outstanding results and accomplishments based on its published goals and objectives to prevent construction related injuries and illnesses. The construction industry continues to experience injury and illness rates significantly higher than other industry sectors. The NORA Construction Sector was challenged to identify research areas where the greatest impact could be realized. This included the use of a priority setting process that addressed key factors in setting the goals, including:
The number of workers at risk for a particular injury or illness
The seriousness of the hazard or issue
The probability that the new information and approaches will have a positive impact
The NORA Construction Sector Council—consisting of construction safety and health experts from industry, labor, professional associations, and state and federal governments—was the first such council to develop a national research agenda in October 2008 (http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/nora/comment/agendas/construction/). This was the first national effort to create an occupational safety and health research agenda for the construction industry. Efforts are still underway to answer the question: "What information do we need to be more effective in preventing injuries and illnesses in construction?" A description of research needs and information gaps was an important basis for the agenda. The other was to advance "research to practice" (r2p); specifically, a description of how research findings could be used by construction stakeholders to reduce injuries and illnesses in construction. The NORA Construction Sector Council promoted the most important research, the most effective interventions, and helped to implement strategies to achieve sustained improvements in workplace practice.
