Appointing a SiGeKo: Obligations Under the Construction Site Ordinance (BaustellV) and How to Engage the Coordinator with Legal Certainty

The Construction Site Ordinance (BaustellV) of 10 June 1998 obliges clients to appoint a Safety and Health Coordinator (SiGeKo) for construction sites involving more than one employer or particularly hazardous work as listed in Annex II of the BaustellV — and to do so during the planning phase, not merely at the groundbreaking ceremony. Anyone who ignores this obligation or names the SiGeKo only after the first construction defect risks fines under § 25 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (ArbSchG) as well as civil liability towards injured workers.

This article explains which projects trigger the mandatory appointment, what formal requirements apply to the engagement, what qualifications the coordinator must demonstrate, and how the ongoing documentation — advance notification, Safety and Health Plan (SiGe-Plan), and the dossier — must be maintained to withstand scrutiny. At the end, you will learn how CIVAC enables the external appointment of a qualified SiGeKo within two working days.

§ 3(1) BaustellV establishes the appointment obligation in two scenarios: first, when several employers are working simultaneously or in succession on a construction site; second, when work listed in Annex II of the BaustellV is carried out — including work involving a fall risk of more than 7 metres, earthworks with a risk of burial, work on live electrical installations, and activities involving ionising radiation.

Crucially, the threshold is not a specific contract value or project duration, but solely the involvement of multiple employers or the hazard profile under Annex II. Even a small refurbishment project in which shell construction workers, electricians, and painters overlap in time triggers the obligation. The employers' liability insurance associations regularly examine this constellation during site inspections under § 17 SGB VII.

In addition, there is an advance notification obligation under § 2 BaustellV: for construction sites expected to last more than 30 working days on which more than 20 workers are employed simultaneously, or where the scope exceeds 500 person-days, the competent occupational health and safety authority must be notified in writing in advance. This notification must include details of the client, the coordinator, the nature of the work, and the anticipated schedule — and the SiGeKo must already be named at the time of notification.

For site managers and SiGeKo coordinators: the appointment obligation arises with planning, not with the start of construction. Anyone who names a coordinator only at the first construction meeting has already passed through the planning phase without legal protection.

The BaustellV itself does not conclusively define the qualifications required of the SiGeKo; in § 3(2) it refers to the competence necessary for the assigned task. This is elaborated upon by DGUV Information 201-011 and RAB 30 (Rules on Occupational Safety at Construction Sites). According to these, the coordinator must demonstrate a construction engineering background or equivalent qualification, relevant professional experience on construction sites, and specific SiGeKo training of at least 40 teaching hours (per RAB 30).

For more complex construction sites — Category III under RAB 30 — the required training extends to 72 hours. The classification is based on the hazard potential: structural construction below a contract value of EUR 10 million corresponds to Category I; industrial and civil engineering corresponds to Categories II to III. Many clients underestimate this classification and appoint a coordinator with Category I training for a Category II project — a qualification the employers' liability insurance association will not accept.

In addition, practice demands up-to-date knowledge: amendments to DGUV V 38, new regulations on load securing under VDI 2700, or updated requirements for personal protective equipment (PPE) under the PPE Ordinance (PSA-BV) must be known to the coordinator. Regular continuing professional development is not explicitly prescribed, but in the event of a dispute it is a key liability factor. CIVAC verifies qualification evidence during partner selection and assigns the coordinator to the correct category.

The BaustellV prescribes no form for the appointment — neither written form nor notarial certification is required by law. In practice, however, employers' liability insurance associations and occupational health and safety authorities take the view that anyone unable to produce a written letter of appointment is considered not to have been appointed. Verbal arrangements cannot be proved in an inspection.

A legally sound letter of appointment must contain at a minimum: the description of the construction project with its address, the name and qualifications of the appointed SiGeKo, the start date and anticipated duration of the engagement, a description of duties in accordance with § 3(1) BaustellV (coordination during planning and/or execution), signatures of the client and the coordinator, and the date. It is also advisable to include a reference to the supporting qualification documents (certificate, training record).

It is important to distinguish between coordination during the planning phase (§ 3(1) No. 1 BaustellV) and coordination during the execution phase (§ 3(1) No. 2 BaustellV). On larger projects, a separate coordinator may be appointed for each phase; more commonly, however, one person is responsible for both. The letter of appointment must clearly describe this scope. Letter of appointment, signed, filed, verifiable — that is the standard the DGUV expects during site inspections.

In addition to the letter of appointment, the BaustellV requires two further documents that the SiGeKo must prepare and keep up to date: the Safety and Health Plan (SiGe-Plan) under § 2(3) BaustellV, and the dossier for future works under § 3(2) No. 3 BaustellV.

The SiGe-Plan is not a static document. It must describe the specific measures for each construction phase, address hazards arising from the interaction of several trades, and be updated when there are significant changes to the construction programme. A SiGe-Plan that was prepared only at the start of construction and not subsequently updated does not meet the requirements — particularly where trades are rescheduled or new subcontractors are added.

The dossier for future works contains information that employers will need when carrying out subsequent maintenance, refurbishment, or demolition work: the location of concealed pipes and cables, structural features, and materials used with potential hazardous substance issues (e.g., asbestos in older structures). After project completion, this dossier becomes part of the building owner's records and must be stored in a permanently accessible manner. In the CIVAC workspace, SiGe-Plan updates, coordination minutes, and dossiers are stored in a tamper-proof manner and can be retrieved immediately in the event of an inspection.

Under § 4 BaustellV, the client is personally responsible for fulfilling the coordination obligations. If they do not delegate these obligations properly, they remain liable even if a SiGeKo was factually engaged. Common sources of error include: no written letter of appointment, appointment of a coordinator without sufficient qualifications, failure to distinguish between planning and execution phases, and insufficient monitoring of the coordinator's performance by the client.

In the event of a workplace accident on the construction site, the employers' liability insurance association and the public prosecutor will first examine whether a SiGeKo was validly appointed. If the letter of appointment is missing or the qualifications do not meet the RAB 30 requirements, the client faces a regulatory offence under § 25 ArbSchG carrying a fine of up to EUR 25,000 — and, in the case of gross negligence, criminal liability under § 26 ArbSchG.

There is also a civil law dimension: recourse claims by the employers' liability insurance association under § 110 SGB VII can reach substantial sums if an accident is attributed to inadequate coordination. Demonstrating proper appointment and ongoing coordination is therefore not a bureaucratic burden but a tangible measure of liability protection.

Many medium-sized clients ask themselves whether to fill the SiGeKo role internally or to engage an external coordinator. The answer depends on project size, complexity, and the internal expertise available. An internal employee may take on the role if they meet the qualification requirements under RAB 30, are not overloaded with other responsibilities, and can perform the function independently of operational site management.

Independence is crucial: a site manager who simultaneously acts as SiGeKo quickly encounters conflicts of interest — scheduling pressure and safety requirements regularly conflict during the construction programme. DGUV Information 201-011 explicitly recommends separating the roles on complex projects. For Category II and III projects under RAB 30, external appointment is therefore the objectively superior solution.

An external SiGeKo also brings up-to-date expertise on DGUV regulations, workplace guidelines (ASR), and amendments to the BaustellV that internal employees can barely maintain without continuous professional development. CIVAC places certified external coordinators and ensures that qualifications, letters of appointment, and project documentation are complete from the outset.

The SiGeKo is neither a replacement for the site manager nor a superior to the companies working on the site. The function is one of coordination, not of authority over individual employers. This means: the coordinator aligns construction programme plans, flags hazard interfaces, and records coordination meetings — however, the coordinator cannot issue binding instructions to a subcontractor whose contract does not include that provision.

The working relationship with the site manager under state building regulations (LBO) and DGUV V 38 must be clearly defined. Both functions pursue different objectives: the site manager is responsible for compliance with building law and technical standards (DIN, EN); the SiGeKo coordinates occupational safety under the BaustellV. Overlaps arise in the areas of scaffolding, fall protection, and earthworks — in those areas, both functions must communicate closely.

The competent state authority for occupational safety (depending on the federal state: Landesamt für Arbeitsschutz or Gewerbeaufsichtsamt) may conduct an unannounced site inspection at any time. The inspector calls — the evidence must be ready. This requires that the letter of appointment, SiGe-Plan, and advance notification to the authority are always immediately to hand, not buried in a filing cabinet for a week's search.

On public construction projects subject to procurement law under the Act Against Restraints of Competition (GWB), the Public Procurement Regulation (VgV), or the Award and Contract Regulations for the Construction Industry (VOB/A), the SiGeKo is frequently included as a separate line item in the tender specification. The public client must ensure, pursuant to § 650p BGB in conjunction with the BaustellV, that a suitable coordinator is named — and not only after the contract is awarded, but by the time construction commences.

In practice, many public clients award the SiGeKo services as a separate lot or integrate them into the object planning services under HOAI Phases 5 to 8. It should be noted that the HOAI contains no independent fee item for the SiGeKo — remuneration must therefore be contractually specified explicitly, otherwise disputes arise over additional remuneration claims under § 650c BGB.

For private clients in the mid-market sector carrying out publicly funded construction projects (e.g., KfW programmes, BAFA grants), the grant notice may require full BaustellV compliance including proof of a coordinator. In the absence of this evidence, recovery of grant funds is at risk. Early appointment of a qualified SiGeKo thus safeguards not only occupational safety but also the project's eligibility for funding.

The BaustellV is not an academic requirement — it is an operationally effective obligation with fine and liability consequences for the client. A missing or insufficiently qualified SiGeKo is one of the most frequent findings raised by occupational health and safety authorities during site inspections.

CIVAC offers SiGeKo appointment as part of its Officer-as-a-Service model: you receive a certified coordinator with the RAB 30 qualification matching the project category, a complete letter of appointment, integration into the digital workspace for tamper-proof documentation of the SiGe-Plan and coordination minutes, and ongoing support throughout the construction project.

Licence the workspace for your internal officers — or have our officers handle the appointment. For clients who have neither internally qualified personnel nor the capacity to manage coordination themselves, the external SiGeKo through CIVAC is the structurally superior solution: verified qualifications, documented appointment, evidence on demand.

Turn reading into action. Write to us at info@civac.de or use the contact form at civac.de — we will clarify the project category, the required qualifications, and the SLA for your construction site.