Track: Human Factors and Ergonomics

Abstract

The present research seeks to design and implement an ergonomic improvement in the roll-forming station of a metal-mechanical company, where the incidence rate for low back pain is 29.4%. The methodology used to evaluate the situation prior to the improvement was the NIOSH equation, where the risk of injury was found to be 3.30 at the origin and 3.57 at the destination. According to NIOSH benchmarks, these factors constitute a high risk of injury and urgent intervention. Following the design and implementation of the improvement, the NIOSH equation was again used to demonstrate the decrease in risk presented by the operation. An improvement of 81.5% in the rate of lifting at the origin and 73.4% at the destination was achieved. The research presented validity in the NIOSH equation, helping to corroborate the effectiveness obtained by the design and implementation of an ergonomic improvement, thus reducing the probability of injury, and increasing job satisfaction.

Keywords
Manual Load Operations, Ergonomic Design, NIOSH Equation, Musculoskeletal Trauma, Low Back Pain Trauma.