Controlling the Ergonomic Hazards of Wiring Tasks for Household Appliances

Details

• Journal Article:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Personal Author:
  Estill, Cheryl F. ; Flesch, Jerome P. ; Hagedorn, Rosmarie T. ; McGlothlin, James D.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  The control of ergonomic hazards during the wiring of household appliances was examined. Repetitive wiring tasks placed assembly line workers at risk of musculoskeletal disorders of the hand, wrist, and arm, such as carpal tunnel syndrome. Engineering controls were considered to be the most effective means of diminishing the ergonomic risks associated with the wiring of household appliances. Low insertion force (LIF) terminals reduced the force needed to make electrical connections through the use of a stabilizing lock and release mechanism. The force required to attach the tab in wiring tasks was decreased by at least half when LIF terminals were used. Pneumatic terminal insertion tools, consisting of a lightweight riveter equipped with a special wiring jackset, were also useful for connecting terminals in wiring tasks. The use of pneumatic hand tools in wiring tasks was associated with reduced wiring errors and improved worker health. Ergonomically designed, manual terminal insertion tools were capable of relieving some of the stress associated with appliance wiring tasks by moving the forces from the fingers, with their small surface area, to the hand, with its larger surface area. If LIF terminals and specially designed hand tools were not available, properly designed pliers were regarded as more ergonomically sound than fingers for terminal instillation. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Engineering Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Musculoskeletal Diseases Musculoskeletal System Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Industrial-engineering; Body-mechanics; Hand-injuries; Carpal-tunnel-syndrome; Repetitive-work; Hand-tools; Pneumatic-tools; Control-methods; Assembly-line-workers; Electrical-equipment; Occupational-exposure; Musculoskeletal-system; Control-technology; Engineering-controls
• Source:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 98-108, (HC 25), 1997 Dec; :1-4
• Series:
  NIOSH Numbered Publications
• Subseries:
  Hazard Control
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Report
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  EID - Education and Information Division ; DPSE - Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  4 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00241562
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1998
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:3f68421555efe9e600447611f2f7399541256831f5fe8841247788d61e5f97959470ee82498c482c975093691714424ac6c411892992b115434966ba9f6a0e3b
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/112347/cdc_112347_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 102.29 KB ]