Journal of Mines, Metals and Fuels

Postural analysis of dumper operators and construction workers – a case study


Affiliations

  • National Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mining Engineering, Mangalore, India

Abstract

This case study aims at assessing and understanding the level of ergonomics in manual material handling tasks (loading, granite cutting, concrete mixing, brickwork, and plastering) of civil construction workers and dump truck drivers working in Indian opencast mines. The study involves the determination of the level of musculoskeletal disorder and predicting the most affected body parts due to incorrect working posture. The comprehensive methodology involved in this study includes rapid upper limb assessment (RULA) and rapid entire body assessment (REBA) techniques to find the risk involved in the working posture of the construction workers and dump truck drivers. The study showed that posture adopted in civil construction work and dump truck operators (loading and unloading task) are ergonomically incorrect and may cause musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) related problems in the future. This study also showed that the trunk and wrist are the most affected parts of the body in construction workers and the neck and wrist in case of the dumper operator while performing different tasks.

Keywords

Posture assessment, RULA, REBA, MSD, ergonomics, labour statistics, construction workers

Full Text:

References

Ekpenyong, C.E., Inyang, U.C., (2014): Association between worker characteristic, workspace factors, and work-related musculoskeletal disorders: a crosssectional study of male construction workers in Nigeria. Int. J. Occup. Saf. Ergon. 20 (3), 447-462.

Ayub, Y., Shah, Z.A., (2018): Assessment of work related musculoskeletal disorders in manufacturing industry. J. Ergonomics 8 (3), 3- 7.

Rahman, M.S., Khan, A.H., Rahman, M.S., Biswas, B., (2019): Work-related musculoskeletal disorder: a case study of sawmill workers in Bangaldesh. Curr. World Environ. 14(2), 336-345.

Denis, D., St-Vincent, M., Imbeau, D., Jette, C., Nastasia, I., (2008): Intervention practices in musculoskeletal disorder prevention: a critical literature review. Appl. Ergon. 39, 1-14

Abedi, K., Darvishi, E., Karimi, S., Ebrahimi,H., Yagnesh, R. C., Salimi, S. (2017): Risk factors of Musciloskeletal Disorders in Bus and Truck Drivers, 1(1), 23-8

Hoozemans, M.J., Kuijer, P. P. F.,Kingma, I., Dieën, J.H.V., (2014): Mechanical loading of the low back and shoulders during pushing and pulling activities, Ergonomics, 47, 1-18

Bandyopadhyay, A., Dev, S., Gangopadhyay, S., (2012): A study on the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders among the coalminers of Eastern, 2(2), 34-37

Bureau of Labor Statistics, (2014): Nonfatal Occupational Injuries and Illnesses Requiring Days Away from Work, U.S. Department of Labor, https:// www.bls.gov/bls/newsrels.htm (Accessed November 2016).

Bureau of Labor Statistics, (2016): Nonfatal Occupational Injuries and Illnesses Requiring Days Away from Work, U.S. Department of Labor,https:// www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/osh2.pdf (Accessed February 2017).

Reddy G.M.M., Nisha B., Prabhushankar TG., Vishwambhar V., (2016): Musculoskeletal morbidity among construction workers: A cross-sectional community-based study, Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 20(3), 144- 149.

Punnett, L.,Pru¨ss-U¨stu¨n, A., Deborah Nelson, D., PhD, Fingerhut M. A., Leigh, J., Tak, S., and Phillips, S., (2005): Estimating the Global Burden of Low Back Pain Attributable to Combined Occupational Exposures, American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 48, 459-469.

Weston, E., Nasarwanji, M. F., Pollard, J. P., (2016): Identification of Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Mining, Journal of Safety, Health & Environmental Research, 12(1), 274-283.

Ahamad, A., and Alvi, R., (2017): Musculoskeletal disorders and risk factors of workers in Indian mining industry: a cross-sectional study, International Journal of Perceptions in Public Health, 1(4),241-248.

McAtamney, L., and Corlett, E. N., (1993): RULA: a survey method for the investigation of world-related upper limb disorders, Applied Ergonomics, 24(2), 91- 99.

Hignett, S., and McAtamney, L., (2000): Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA), Applied Ergonomics, 31, 201-205


Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.