Ergonomic work analysis of urban bus drivers in Rio de Janeiro city

This article is the result of a case study on ergonomic work analysis carried out in an urban bus company located in Ilha do Governador, Rio de Janeiro. The methodology used in this work follows the French-tradition Ergonomic Analysis of the Work (EWA) combined with the best tradition from anglo-saxon ergonomic work analysis. The situated diagnosis was performed to provide relevant information about the work conditions of a bus driver.     

Contributions of participatory ergonomics to the improvement of safety culture in an industrial context

This paper presents the results of an ergonomic intervention conducted within a blast furnace plant. As part of its risk prevention program, the company decided to set up an action plan, in a participatory manner, by setting up working groups to solve health & safety issues. This field mission involved 230 employees, 80 of whom participated actively by being incorporated into working groups. After four months of intervention, a questionnaire survey has been conducted among employees to study the effects of participation on the safety climate. The results seem promising and show that the benefits of participation are numerous: a more positive safety climate associated to safer attitudes and behaviors. However, rather than just participation, it seems to be the employee involvement in the working groups and the satisfaction they derive from their participation that guarantee these positive results. Hence, participatory ergonomics seems to be an effective way to decrease the number of unsafe behaviors at work, provided that the type of participation has been previously well defined and organized according to the specific context of each organization.     

Eletrobras management program in ergonomics: the pursuit of excellence through maturity levels

Ergonomics for Eletrobras arose from the need in having an environment more suitable to the characteristics and circumstances of employees, in compliance with Regulation Standard no. 17 - Ergonomics (NR17) of the Ministry of Labor and Employment. Being a mixed economy company with regionalized anthropometric characteristics of its employees, the study of ergonomic adjustments and improvement of the concept of Ergonomics were and have been of great importance to the company's production environment. These advances have contributed to the development of specific technical criteria for the purchase of furniture and work tools (accessories), apart from their possible effects on the user. Ergonomics has been perceived as a technical-scientific tool, aimed to study labor interactions, new technologies and specific characteristics of the activities performed. To meet these demands a multidisciplinary Ergonomics Committee was created in Eletrobras, and effectively established the Ergonomics Management Program in the company; This program is marked by well-defined phases with great success in making use of these studies for other types of corporate activities and also facilitating the program control and its maturity levels, even at a business level.     

全面实施五化改造推动天津公交工作再上新台阶

天津市公共交通集团(控股)有限公司作为天津市从事公共交通客运的国有大型骨干企业,集市内公共汽车、出租汽车、客车装配制造、汽车配件销售、汽车维修、广告、旅游、物业管理等多种经营于一体,是由市政府授权经营的大型国有企业集团.目前共有公交运营车辆5825部,公交运营线路316条,经营管理出租汽车近万台,运营线路总长7791公里.     

Professional guidelines in occupational health and ergonomics

The disciplines of Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy both play an important role in providing services in the area of Occupational Health and Ergonomics. This article will explore Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy professional guidelines in these two areas. For purposes of this article, Occupational Health and Ergonomic guidelines affecting therapists in Australia, The Netherlands, Canada and the United States will be discussed. The article will illustrate how the Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy organizations of several countries not only have existing Occupational Health and Ergonomic guidelines, position statements or like documents, but are also partnering with other organizations to make an impact on healthy workers and work environments. The information provided is not meant to be all-inclusive, but provide a look into professional responses to these expanding areas of practice.     

The ambivalence of the work of the hotel managers: an approach to ergonomics

This article uses the contributions of ergonomics to understand the work performed by hotel managers. The concern to understand the job of managers is something new in the ergonomics and few studies address this issue, especially in what concerns the work of hotel managers and its aspects of performance and health, which is the focus of this article. Through a literature review on the subject, it is sought to understand the managers' work activity, the impacts on their health and their organizational performance, as managers take an ambivalent position in organizations, since they have to deal directly with the demands of upper and lower hierarchies in a context of high competition, organizational changes and user requirements. It is then inferred there is a risk of increased work density for managers, bringing negative consequences to their health and organizational performance. This phenomenon, still poorly covered by ergonomics, contributes to a certain invisibility of the manager's work in society as a whole, when the manager may suffer from health problems, which are also common in certain populations of workers who do not take the managerial function.     

Strategic lessons for public policy to promote health: Early case studies and future work

Beginning efforts are being made in many countries to promote health through public policy in ways that go beyond the traditional mandate of the health policy sector. This paper examines several national case studies and other relevant examples in order to draw strategic implications for po‐licymaking and to suggest the further analytic work that can be done in support of policymaking.     

Identifying extraordinary contributors to work and family research: eight modalities of excellence

ABSTRACT

In this study we quantitatively and qualitatively explore two research questions: (1) ‘What qualifies a scholar to be classified as an extraordinary contributor to work and family research?’ and, (2) ‘Who are extraordinary contributors to work and family research?’ We first selected a group of top work and family scholars based on total citation counts and a multi-level nomination process. We then qualitatively explored our research questions via e-mail correspondence and telefocus groups. From these data, we distilled eight core themes, or ‘modalities of excellence,’ to categorize extraordinary contributors: (1) publishing (traditional academic metrics), (2) publishing (reputation among scholars), (3) disseminating work and family research (translational research), (4) funding work and family research, (5) service to the work and family field, (6) mentoring future work and family scholars, (7) landmark work and family contributions, and (8) overall reputation. Using quantitative measures (citation counts) and qualitative exploration (e-mail correspondence, telefocus groups, and surveys of work and family scholars), we identified extraordinary contributors in each modality.     

Using process evaluation to determine effectiveness of participatory ergonomics training interventions in construction

The construction industry continues to experience high rates of musculoskeletal injuries despite the widespread promotion of ergonomic solutions. Participatory ergonomics (PE) has been suggested as one approach to engage workers and employers for reducing physical exposures from work tasks but a systematic review of participatory ergonomics programs showed inconclusive results.. A process evaluation is used to monitor and document the implementation of a program and can aid in understanding the relationship between the program elements and the program outcomes. The purpose of this project is to describe a proposed process evaluation for use in a participatory ergonomic training program in construction workers and to evaluate its utility in a demonstration project among floor layers.     

Participatory ergonomics and new work: reducing neck complaints in assembling

A participatory ergonomics approach is used to create a new work environment, which is aimed at reducing neck complaints in a cell phone assembly. The participatory ergonomics program included an initiative, problem identification, a selection of solutions, an implementation and evaluation. Twenty-eight women, all operators on an assembly line of cell phone boards, voluntarily participated in the design and evaluation of a device before implementing the device to all 215 employees performing that job. Prior to and after the intervention, RULA, comfort experiences and interviews were used. After introducing an adjustable angled small counter, these measurements showed both posture and comfort improvements. 90% of the 215 workers preferred the new work station and the neck complaints were reduced in 75% of the group. It also showed that the initial prototype needed to be modified as to reduce its sharp edges/compression points for the forearm. This project shows the importance of iterative testing and that an initiative by workers enlarges the chance of successful implementation.     

The use software ERGOSHOW in the education of health and safety at work to regardin the safety to children

It is believed that health and safety of workers should be worked with children and early teenagers, the perspective that adults are more aware of these issues by providing them with health and quality of life in their daily lives, this is want the ERGOSHOW. The choice of media means for transmitting content of Ergonomics, Health and Safety (OSH) is justified because of the great popularity of computer games are among the public of the study, thereby providing a greater assimilation of the content worked. Therefore, the aim of this study was to work with OSH issues related to children between 08 and 12 years old, city of, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. To achieve this we used the software ERGOSHOW, quizzes, and lecture. One can see that the use of multimedia tools in the learning, especially when considering the reports of mothers according to the different behavior of children after the development of activities, such as parents in correcting posture in relation to computer use.     

Thinking about gender, thinking about a common space of observation and discussion of the work activity of the other: the case of bus drivers

The work activity of urban bus drivers is held in the public space and characterized by a constant vigilance, but the moments of observation the colleagues' work are scarce. This fact results in a paradox--it is a work activity that is more visible to "outsiders" than to "insiders"--which has an important impact on the debate of the work activity from a perspective of gender and the women's work in a predominantly male context. Ergonomic analysis of work and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 32 urban public transport drivers, 16 women and 16 men. The results reveal the lack of conditions for the drivers' knowledge of the activity of another, especially when that other is a woman--while men attribute characteristics to women based on gender stereotypes and an extension of their role in the private sphere, women relate them with the need to prove their competence and be recognized. It is proposed the development, in the context of training, of a space for debate and knowledge of the activity of the other and for the creation of conditions for another integration of women in the profession and for another visibility of their work.     

Evaluation and control of ergonomics actions in federal public service: the case of FIOCRUZ-RJ

This article presents information about the development of the dissertation. Deals with the production of ergonomic diagnosis in the environments and work processes of an important center of research and development in Public Health, FIOCRUZ. Critically evaluates the performance of a team promoting and facilitating the process of implementing ergonomic changes suggested. Through analysis of documents and statements by some managers and representatives of Human Resources was possible to identify the factors that facilitate and hinder the implementation process, linking them to the organization of the institution and conduct of the agents involved. Finally, it makes a reflection on practice, results and developments involved in the processes of change initiated by the ergonomic actions, proposing its replication along with other institutes of the Civilian Personnel of Federal Public Administration.     

Mass of materials: the impact of designers on construction ergonomics

Many construction injuries are musculoskeletal related in the form of sprains and strains arising from the handling of materials, which are specified by designers. The paper presents the results of a study conducted among delegates attending two 'designing for H&S' (DfH&S) seminars using a questionnaire. The salient findings include: the level of knowledge relative to the mass and density of materials is limited; designers generally do not consider the mass and density of materials when designing structures and elements and specifying materials; to a degree designers appreciate that the mass and density of materials impact on construction ergonomics; designers rate their knowledge of the mass and density of materials as limited, and designers appreciate the potential of the consideration of the mass and density of materials to contribute to an improvement in construction ergonomics. Conclusions include: designers lack the requisite knowledge relative to the mass and density of materials; designers are thus precluded from conducting optimum design hazard identification and risk assessments, and tertiary built environment designer education does not enlighten designers relative to construction ergonomics. Recommendations include: tertiary built environment designer education should construction ergonomics; professional associations should raise the level of awareness relative to construction ergonomics, and design practices should include a category 'mass and density of materials' in their practice libraries.     

Ergonomics at Volkswagen Brasil. Multidisciplinary work to equalize health, productivity and quality

Following the technological developments and presented to the multidisciplinary processes as automakers, Volkswagen Brazil, represented by its ergonomists, through this paper, shows the importance of ergonomic efficiency of management applied to various levels of life of a product, since its creation to its final implementation on production lines.The preventive work of ergonomists during the processes leading to production of a vehicle is accomplished through assessments on a simulated system called the Digital Factory. Since the initial stages to final product delivery there is a need for a multidisciplinary aligning the concepts of ergonomics, productivity and quality of product. Industrial Engineering, Process Engineering, ergonomists and workers are involved in the analysis made through the Workshop's showing the importance of discussion between the various users of the systems. The processes of series are also equipped with a set of certifications flow of job and planned audits on items that describe processes and applied ergonomics.