State-of-the-Art review of blockchain applications for construction safety: Opportunities, challenges, and future directions

The construction industry remains one of the most hazardous sectors worldwide, facing persistent safety challenges that contribute to high rates of accidents and fatalities. Traditional safety management systems often suffer from inefficiencies, fragmented data handling, and lack of transparency, leading to delays in compliance enforcement and safety monitoring. Blockchain technology, with its decentralized, immutable, and transparent nature, has emerged as a promising solution to enhance construction safety management. This study conducts a systematic review of blockchain applications in construction safety, focusing on their current use cases, benefits, challenges, and future research directions. A systematic literature review (SLR) was conducted using Scopus and Web of Science databases. A total of 14 relevant studies were selected for in-depth qualitative and bibliometric analysis. The findings categorize blockchain applications in construction safety into five research clusters: (i) safety inspections and compliance, (ii) risk and accident information management, (iii) incentive-based safety compliance, (iv) blockchain integration with AI and IoT, and (v) privacy-preserving safety monitoring systems. The study highlights that blockchain enhances safety compliance automation, improves data security, incentivizes worker safety participation, and facilitates real-time monitoring through AI integration. However, barriers to adoption include scalability limitations, regulatory uncertainties, high implementation costs, and interoperability challenges. The study concludes by proposing a research agenda to address these challenges and facilitate broader adoption of blockchain in construction safety. The findings offer practical insights for researchers, industry practitioners, and policymakers to develop scalable, efficient, and secure blockchain-driven safety management solutions.