Investigation of ergonomic risks in manufacturing sector using quick exposure check method

Date

2019

Author

İnalçuk, Ecem

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Ergonomic risks are prevalent in the manufacturing industry due to the nature of the daily tasks completed by employees. Injuries and musculoskeletal disorders that result from poor ergonomics are some of the most commonly observed and severe kind of injuries in manufacturing. Therefore, investigating ergonomic risks towards improvement of the workplace is critically important for decreasing lost times and increasing effectiveness of the workforce. Ergonomic risk analysis is essential to specify the factors that potentially cause musculoskeletal disorders and to generate control strategies. The main objective of this research study is to investigate ergonomic risks in the manufacturing industry. The elements of this main objective include identifying the sources of hazards that do not comply with the ergonomic nature of employees and determining the control actions to eliminate MSDs and risk sources resulting from inappropriate working conditions. Research methodology followed in this study has three main stages. At first ergonomic risks are investigated using Quick Exposure Check method by making observation. Then, the collected data via questionnaires are analyzed and risk assessment is carried out. Finally, essential potential countermeasures are recommended in order to eliminate or reduce the ergonomic risks. Research findings and obtained results revealed that the majority of the CNC-5 axis multi-spindle operators got very high exposure scores in their back, shoulder/arm and neck part of body and technologically advanced machines significantly reduces ergonomic risk levels. The expected contribution of this research study is applying QEC methodology in manufacturing sector to identify the potential risks and propose improvements to eliminate these risks.

Subject Keywords

Human engineering., Ergonomics, Quick Exposure Check Method (QEC), Musculoskeletal Disorder, Occupational Health and Safety, Manufacturing Sector

URI

http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12624938/index.pdf
https://hdl.handle.net/11511/45251

Collections

Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Thesis