View paper - Institute of Industrial Engineers

Interventions in
Agriculture
Ira Janowitz, PT, CPE
Sr. Ergonomist
University of California SF/Berkeley Ergonomics Program
1301 South 46th St, Bldg. 163
Richmond, CA 94804 USA
[email protected]
www.me.berkeley.edu/ergo
Investigators
™Julia Faucett
™Ira Janowitz
™Jim Meyers
™John Miles
™Mike Tarter
UC Staff
™Victor Duraj
™Erica Garcia
™Mir Shafi
™Sally Suriano
™Diana Tejeda
Funding:
National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health
UC Division of Agriculture & Natural Resources
Ergonomics Interventions in California
Labor Intensive Agriculture
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Nursery Spacing
Spacing in plant nurseries
Task: Lifting and
carrying potted plants
to ‘space’ them apart
as they mature. Can
be three 1-gallon
plants or one 5-gallon
plant in each hand;
typically 22-27
lbs./hand.
Risk Factors:
•Repeated heavy lifting
•Repetitive trunk flexion
•High force pinch grips w/ contact stresses on hands
Goals:
• Reduce extreme sagittal flexion
• Eliminate pinch grips
Power
vs.
Pinch
Grip
Adjustable
length
handle
2
Assess Effectiveness of Intervention
Nursery Handle
Results
FEATURES
1. Handles grasp the edge of the pots, provide a
comfortable power grip for the worker.
[5-Gallon containers]
Criterion
No Handle
With Handle
NIOSH Lifting Index
5.2
3.3
Forward Bending
22%
11.15%
Aerobic capacity
50.3%
50.0%
Grip Capacity
25%
12%
2. Handles are height-adjustable to preference of the user.
3. Grips designed to keep wrist in neutral during carrying,
and for handling near ground level.
4. The handles work best for
• Larger (2.5 – 5 gallon) pots
• Pots made of firmer materials
• Low trailers or trucks
3
Results
[5-Gallon containers]
Forward
Bending
50%
Grip
Capacity
50%
NO HANDLE
HANDLE
22%
11%
NO HANDLE
Aerobic
Capacity None
Wine Grape Harvest
HANDLE
25%
12%
NO HANDLE
HANDLE
50%
50%
No significant change in productivity
Wine Grapes Intervention
Smaller picking tub
• reduced weight from 57# to 46#
• 130 / 150 lifts per 8 hour shift
Improved handles reduced contact stress
Wine Grapes Harvest
Smaller Picking Tubs
46 lbs.
New bin
57 lbs.
Old bin
Smoother bottoms reduced sliding force
Lifting
Force
19%
Pain &
Symptoms
65%
Aerobic
Capacity
2.2%
Large Tub
Small Tub
57 #
46 #
Large Tub
Small
Large Tub
Small Tub
47.7%
45%
2.51% Productivity Reduction
4
Harvest Aid Machine
Agricultural Field Application
Wine grapes harvest-Intervention
CONCLUSIONS
1. Agricultural workers suffer from a high incidence of MSDs
2. Priority risk factors in agriculture are:
•
Stooped posture
•
Heavy lifting & carrying
•
Highly repetitive hand activities (cutting/clipping)
3. Task specific engineering changes have been shown to be
effective in reducing job hazards
4. Quantitative/biomechanical assessment is essential for
identifying and reducing the risks involved in physical work
References
• Janowitz et al, “Ergonomics interventions in the manual harvest of wine
grapes” in the Proceedings of the 14th Triennial Congress of the
International Ergonomics Association and the 44th Annual Conference
of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 2000.
• Janowitz et al, "Reducing WRMSD risk factors and symptoms in plant
nurseries through material handling modifications" in the Proceedings of
the Annual Conference of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society,
September, 1999.
• Meyers, J, Miles, J, Faucett, J, Janowitz, I, Tejeda, D, Weber, E, Smith,
R, Garcia, L. 2001. Priority Risk Factors for Back Injury in Agricultural
Field Work. Journal of Agromedicine. 8(1):37-52.
• Waters, T.R., Putz-Anderson, V., Garg, A., and Fine, L.J. Revised
NIOSH equation for the design and evaluation of manual lifting tasks,
Ergonomics, 36:749-776, 1993.
• Waters, T.R., Baron, S., Piacitelli, L., et al., “Epidemiological evaluation
of the revised NIOSH lifting equation,” Spine, 24:386-395, 1999.
Cooperators/Collaborators
•California State Insurance
Compensation Fund
•Walsh Vineyard Management
•Clos Du Bois Winery
•Domaine Chandon Winery
•Robert Mondavi Winery
•Sierra Gold Tree Nursery
•Bordiers Nursery
•UC SF/Berkeley
Ergonomics Program
•Western Center for
Agricultural Safety and
Health
•Center for Occupational
and Environmental
Health
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