Cognitive representation of the comprehension test of safety warnings using multivariate methods

This paper presents a multivariate method to assess the comprehension of safety signs. The proposed method uses the MDS and Procrustes, to obtain a consensus perceptual map. The results show that the map allowed discriminating signs with high levels of comprehension from others. The safety signs have no statistical difference as depicted by Bootstrap Analysis.     

Work of gravediggers and health

Gravediggers have death as object of their work. Their activities are painful, physically and mental demanding, as well as unhealthy. Literature is scarce about this theme. The aim of this study is to evaluate gravediggers' work activities and health consequences. The methodological frame which guided this study was Dejours' psychic suffering and its association with the psychodynamic aspects of work. Data collection took place in April-May 2011 in one public and one private cemetery of S?o Paulo, Brazil. Four male workers, aged between 45 to 60 years old were interviewed. Their work activities were observed during a workday. Participants reported their life dreams, defense mechanisms and frustration. The discourse of gravediggers showed serious problems associated to physical and mental demands, public invisibility and/ or social devaluation of work. The most important physical symptom was body pain. In spite this is a preliminary study, it was possible to raise a number of work stressors and health outcomes of gravediggers, an "invisible" worker of our society.     

Ergonomic initiatives at Inmetro: measuring occupational health and safety

This work studies biomechanical hazards to which the workforce of Instituto Nacional de Metrologia, Qualidade e Tecnologia Industrial (Inmetro) is exposed. It suggests a model for ergonomic evaluation of work, based on the concepts of resilience engineering which take into consideration the institute's ability to manage risk and deal with its consequences. Methodology includes the stages of identification, inventory, analysis, and risk management. Diagnosis of the workplace uses as parameters the minimal criteria stated in Brazilian legislation. The approach has several prospectives and encompasses the points of view of public management, safety engineering, physical therapy and ergonomics-oriented design. The suggested solution integrates all aspects of the problem: biological, psychological, sociological and organizational. Results obtained from a pilot Project allow to build a significant sample of Inmetro's workforce, identifying problems and validating the methodology employed as a tool to be applied to the whole institution. Finally, this work intends to draw risk maps and support goals and methods based on resiliency engineering to assess environmental and ergonomic risk management.     

Thermal comfort and personal protective equipment (PPE)

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is considered the last preferred solution to an Occupational Safety Health (OSH) system. Brazilian OSH legislation assumes and requires PPE usage to neutralize the possibility of pesticide contamination. This study examines the inadequacy of the PPE used in a tomato crop, particularly from the standpoint of thermal comfort. This study made observations regarding heart rate and body temperature in a controlled environment using a treadmill (with and without PPE) of 12 volunteers; and during the process of rural labor (at rest and in normal work routine) of 2 actual rural workers. Comparing the results of the treadmill test (with and without PPE) which tried to reproduce the same level of effort and environmental conditions of the actual rural work, this study demonstrated that PPE makes thermoregulation harder and tympanic temperature reaches higher values with the same level of effort. Moreover, body temperature increases quickly: with PPE it took 15 minutes to raise 1°C in body temperature, compared to 40 minutes without PPE. The results of this study indicated that the use inadequate PPE might pose thermoregulation risk to rural workers.     

Ergonomic factors and production target evaluation in eucalyptus timber harvesting operations in mountainous terrains

There are several forest operations involved in Eucalyptus timber harvesting. This study was carried out during brush-cutting; tree felling, bucking, delimbing, piling and manual extraction operations, with the following objectives: a) analyzing, ergonomically, two systems of brush-cutting: one manual and the other semi-mechanized, using two different machines; b) ergonomically evaluating three different brands of pruner machines used in delimbing felled trees. c) determining the feasible target of productivity as a function of ergonomic factors relevant to establish the time of resting pauses for workers in manual and semi-mechanized timber harvesting systems in mountainous terrain. Brush-cutting, either manual or semimechanized, is an activity carried out prior to timber harvesting. It is usually a hard work, with low productivity when compared with mechanized systems. Pruner machines have been used by forest companies, due to the great possibilities to improve productivity, quality and the health of workers. Ergonomics is a discipline that promotes the adequacy of work to the physical and mental characteristics of human beings, seeking to design production systems and products considering relevant aspects, including social, organizational and environmental factors. Companies should consider the ergonomic factor in the determination of daily worker production targets.