MRO Today - Working 'til it hurts

Working til it hurts
Sore muscles, blisters and callouses arent a sign of hard work; they are a sign that youre damaging your body. Job planning and proper tools can help minimize long-term trouble.

Editors Note: The National Safety Council and Stanley Tools teamed up to explore the ways to help workers reduce injury and improve productivity. Following is an edited version of their findings. You can read the complete report at www.nsc.org/csinfo/stanley.htm.

When people feel good, they work better. Increasingly, employees and employers are realizing that productivity often comes down to safe ergonomic practices and smart tool choices.

What is ergonomics?
Ergonomics is one of the trendiest terms of the new millennium. It is the science of fitting the job to the person instead of forcing the person to fit the job.

Good ergonomic design enhances the safety of tools, machines, systems, tasks and work environments.

Well-designed work improves worker health and morale, provides safer conditions and attitudes and results in fewer injuries from long-term use and high task repetition. It also leads to better working practices, which helps increase efficiency on the job.

Tips to use tools safely
Good ergonomics is just one component of a comprehensive tool safety program. Keep in mind these tool safety basics:

1) Always choose the right tool for the job. If you dont have the proper tool, get one or at least borrow it.

2) Before using any tool, inspect it for cracks and loose parts. Most tools are built to last, but they all eventually break or wear out.

3) Wear personal protective equipment, especially safety goggles.

4) Store tools when you arent using them. This reduces clutter and ensures you can find them when you need them.

5) Keep tools in lightweight equipment boxes or in rolling boxes. The standard 50- to 70-lb. toolbox can set the stage for a back injury. Consider using a pair of smaller toolboxes, but if you must use a heavy toolbox, use a hand cart to transport it from the vehicle or tool room to the work site. When rolling your toolbox, push the cart rather than pull it.

6) Carry tools carefully. Keep sharp points and edges pointing away from you and others. Keep an eye on the ground and people around you as you move tools from one work area to the next.

Common cumulative trauma disorders When workers use well-designed hand tools, it reduces the risk of certain types of injuries and illnesses.

Many injuries related to poor hand tool design fall into a category called cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs), also known as repetitive strain injuries (RSIs). Whichever term you use, the result is the same: Over time, poor task design and repeated body movements to do your job can result in injury or trauma.

In 1994, the Bureau of Labor Statistics tallied 332,100 disorders associated with repeated trauma. Further, a review conducted by the National Council on Compensation Insurance in 1994 reported the average compensated claim for this type of injury cost $12,617.

CTD injuries vary widely. Some appear within weeks or months of beginning a new job. Others materialize after many years. Much depends on how often you perform a certain task and how susceptible you are to a trauma.

Typically, CTDs damage nerves, joints and muscles; most affect the upper limbs. Some result from the shock, impact and vibration caused by hand tools. Other injuries occur when overtaxed muscles and inflamed tendons swell, reducing blood flow.

Minor damage, called micro trauma, can heal overnight. However, when workers perform the same stress-producing job tasks for months or years, their bodies may not recover as quickly or completely.

Physical factors
People come in different shapes, sizes and physical abilities. Not everyone has the same musculoskeletal strength to perform lifting tasks. Your chance of injury can increase if you are in poor physical shape.

After 20 years of repetitive work, even routine tasks can cause problems. As workers reach their mid-40s, the body can get a bit more brittle and can take longer to heal.

In fact, by age 55, the average person has lost about 15 percent of the muscle mass he or she had at age 25. Consequently, workers need to recognize job tasks that place them in awkward ergonomic positions and take steps to prevent injury.

Environmental factors
Job site temperature and lighting conditions affect CTDs. Cold weather increases risks and aggravates existing CTDs, especially those tasks which produce percussion or vibration.

Poor lighting can cause people to use poor postures to complete tasks. Years of hunching over a workbench or assembly line may lead to back injuries and CTDs.

To better manage the causes of CTD injuries, ergonomists ask the following questions:
" How much weight can the person easily lift?
" Is the person sitting or standing?
" How often does the person perform the task each day?

Solutions to work problems vary from person to person. Smart ergonomic job design accounts for that by following these general guidelines:

1) It is always better to adapt the tool to the task than the user to the tool. Users should not have to adapt to a poorly fitted or poorly designed tool.

2) Avoid tasks with repetitive reaching above the shoulder or behind the body. Restrict these movements to between your waist and shoulder area.

3) Use tools designed to accommodate neutral postures instead of forcing your hand into an awkward posture.

4) Almost any design change that reduces physical force also reduces the stress of impact when a tool strikes the work.

Make smart choices
CTDs occur when tools are not well-matched to a task or person. Baseball players select bats to match their strength, hitting style and hand size; job site workers should select tools in the same way.

Create an ergonomics team
Many work sites have safety committees that focus on safety matters. These committees can also consider job ergonomics. Some companies establish committees devoted solely to ergonomic audits and improvements.

The National Safety Council strongly supports both types of employee involvement efforts. The most effective committees involve executive managers, supervisors and hourly employees. After all, no one understands workplace conditions better than the people who perform those jobs every day.

Click here to read Criteria for common tools