Zavitz on Ergo:
Ergonomic Solution Guidelines are a Growing Trend:
Shipyards Lead the Way
 |
|||||||
|
|||||||
 |
|||||||
For many employers the biggest challenge with ergonomics has been the lack of practical knowledge on solutions to their problems. The need to address these challenges beyond administrative and work practice controls has resulted in a push and emphasis by employers and government to provide practical solutions to address ergonomic issues in the workplace. A paradigm shift occurred on September 15th, 2007 when OSHA released its voluntary ergonomics guideline for shipyards. This guideline follows a similar format to other OSHA ergonomic guidelines, but the emphasis is on practical solutions, verified through real photographs of solutions in the guidelines, and the link between workplace injuries and efficiency. As a member of the OSHA team who conducted the shipyard site visits and developed the solution guidelines, I would like to share a systematic and practical approach on how to develop effective solution guidelines.
Define the Problem and Goal
The first step in developing and deployment an ergonomics solution guideline -- EORM calls them “Ergonomic Design Templates” -- is to define your audience for the guideline (EHS, Engineers, Supervisors, Employees, etc.), purpose of the guideline, and the problems you are trying to solve. My experience is the more specific you define your problem the more successful the deployment and the document. Generic problems and solutions are not beneficial to a mass audience. EORM has developed very specific design templates based on the type of work activity (e.g., software programmer, laboratory technician), the equipment or materials used (e.g., microscopes, roll handling), or the type of industry (electronic assembly). A good place to start is a review of lagging indicators (e.g., injury/illness records, absenteeism rates, product/quality issues, employee complaints) and an assessment of leading indicators through ergonomic job screening.
Measure Current State
Before effective solutions can be developed, a measure of the current state of the problem is needed to identify root causes and appropriate solutions. Typical measures of the current state include
- workstation/equipment features and functions,
- ergonomic risk factors associated with the workstations and equipment,
- the level of ergonomic risk factors present (i.e. low, moderate or high), and
- productivity/quality data.
Ergonomic job evaluation tools and methods are employed in this stage (see Zavitz on Ergo: Injury Prevention Through Ergonomic Risk Assessment for details on risk assessment methods).
Analyze Solutions
Once the root causes and specific risk factors have been identified, analysis of potential solutions can begin. The hierarchy of controls should be used to as a basis to categorize solutions. All solutions -- from simple, low-cost, and easy to implement, to long-term, complex engineering controls -- need to be evaluated. Not all solutions are equal. Sometimes low-cost solutions are the most effective, and other times long-term engineering controls are needed. The goal in analyzing solutions is to look at the overall impact of each solution by evaluating both the positive and negative impacts together. Impacts EORM generally uses in their design templates include:
- ergonomic risk reduction by solution,
- cost of solutions,
- commercial availability of solutions,
- degree of difficulty to implement, and
- impact of solutions on operational efficiency and quality.
Implement and Improve Solutions
Once solutions have been developed, they need to be tested and validated to ensure they are effective and practical. The best way to do this is to implement the solutions on a small scale prior to global deployment. The ability to test, validate, improve, re-test, re-improve, and re-validate cannot be underestimated. Even if a solution has great merit or has been successfully implemented at another company, it may not be effective for you. The only way to know for sure is to “try for yourself” and document all lessons learned in implementing that solution for others to learn from.
Control
Once a known solution or set of solutions has proven itself to be effective in reducing risk and demonstrating a return on investment, the solution can then be integrated into a design template/solutions guideline. For each solution, an impact statement should be developed. An example impact statement might read: "Implementation of a $500 lift cart results in a 50% reduction in ergonomic risk and a 30% improvement in efficiency." In addition to the impact statement, all the necessary information required to purchase and successfully implement the solution must be in the guideline document, including such items as description, usage, advantages/disadvantages, cost, points to remember, ordering information, vendor contacts, etc. This information can be used to successfully deploy the solution globally across all sites. Another key component of the Control phase is sustainability (ensuring solutions are effective). One way to do this is to conduct periodic evaluations of the job/solution to ensure that no new risks have developed and the operation is not “out of control” (ensuring that risk levels do not exceed risk metrics).
If you are interested in learning more about OSHA’s Ergonomic Guidelines for Shipyards or how to develop an Ergonomic Design Template/Solutions Guideline for your company, please contact me.
Ergonomically Yours,
Ben Zavitz, CPE
zavitzb@eorm.com
More Information:
- Contact an EORM consultant to learn how our services will benefit your company.
- View the current issue of Priority Press.
- View previous issues of Priority Press.
- Subscribe to Priority Press.
- Send us your comments or suggestions.