Effect of Step Height on Overhead Drilling in Construction

Details

• Personal Author:
  Anton D ; Cook T ; Fethke NB ; Hess, Jeffery E. ; Rosecrance J ; Shibley LD
• Description:
  The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of moving closer to the work while performing overhead drilling. This task was simulated by twenty subjects while standing on either a lower or a higher step of a stepladder. Shoulder load was estimated by root-mean-square amplitude of electromyographic (EMG) activity and cinematographic analysis to determine shoulder joint moment using static link segment modeling. The results indicated that moving closer to the work surface by moving up a step reduces shoulder joint moment and anterior deltoid EMG. However, biceps brachii EMG increased by moving up a step. There was no significant change noted in EMG median frequencies suggesting that fatigue was not a significant factor. We conclude that while moving up a step reduces the muscular load on some muscles and the shoulder joint, other muscles may work harder. There are also safety considerations regarding moving up a step and alternative methods to move closer to the work surface are suggested. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Construction Industry Ergonomics Musculoskeletal Diseases Musculoskeletal System Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Construction-industry Construction-workers Humans Ladders Muscle-function Muscles Musculoskeletal-system Musculoskeletal-system-disorders Physical-stress Power-tools
• ISBN:
  0945289138
• Publisher:
  Human Factors and Ergonomics Society
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Proceedings
• Place as Subject:
  California ; District of Columbia ; Iowa ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 7 ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  44
• Issue:
  31
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20026180
• Citation:
  Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting. Proceedings of the IEA 2000/HFES 2000 Congress, July 30-August 4, 2000, San Diego, California. Santa Monica, CA: Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 2000 Jul; 44(31):663-666
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2000
• NORA Priority Area:
  Construction
• Performing Organization:
  Center to Protect Workers' Rights
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  19950701
• Source Full Name:
  Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting. Proceedings of the IEA 2000/HFES 2000 Congress, July 30-August 4, 2000, San Diego, California
• End Date:
  20010630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:36e4ab84fc4551dc506df12d478237648a49084788343ff9d821554f685bcdbd2bc14508e6fc62988821e1f62f5c35d744d0699e7c719256ea3f796482fedcff
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/197230/cdc_197230_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 758.56 KB ]