Comparisons of physical exposure between workers harvesting apples on mobile orchard platforms and ladders, part 1: back and upper arm postures.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Aulck L ; Boyle LN ; Ching RP ; Galvin K ; Johnson PW ; McQuade KJ ; Tchong-French M ; Thamsuwan O
• Description:
  This study compared farmworkers' exposure to non-neutral postures using a new mobile platform apple harvesting method and the traditional method using ladders. Twenty-four workers were recruited and assigned into three groups: ladder workers (n = 8) picking apples from full trees using a ladder, mobile platform workers (n = 8) picking apples from upper part of the trees while standing on a moving platform, and ground-based mobile platform workers (n = 8) picking apples from lower part of the trees which the mobile platform workers left out. Upper arm and back inclinations were continuously monitored during harvesting using tri-axial accelerometers over full work shifts (approx. 8 h). Upper arm posture was characterized as the percentage of time that upper arm flexion and abduction exceeded 30 degrees, 60 degrees, and 90 degrees. Back posture was characterized as the percentage of time that torso angles (sagittal flexion or lateral bending) exceeded 10 degrees, 20 degrees, and 30 degrees. The 10th, 50th, and 90th postural percentiles were also calculated. The platform workers had lower exposures to upper arm flexion and abduction than the ground and ladder workers. There were no differences in torso angles between the ladder and mobile platform workers; however, the ground workers were exposed to more and greater percentages of time in torso flexions. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Agriculture Biomechanical Phenomena Ergonomics Farmers Musculoskeletal Diseases Musculoskeletal System Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Agricultural workers; Agriculture; Farm workers; Ladders; Ergonomics; Posture; Biomechanics; Upper extremities; Musculoskeletal disorders; MSD
• ISSN:
  0003-6870
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 10 ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  89
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20065434
• Citation:
  Appl Ergon 2020 Nov; 89:103193
• Contact Point Address:
  Ornwipa Thamsuwan, #305 - 920 9th St E, Saskatoon, SK S7H 0N1, Canada
• Email:
  fahornwipa@gmail.com
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2021
• NORA Priority Area:
  Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
• Performing Organization:
  University of Washington
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20010930
• Source Full Name:
  Applied Ergonomics
• End Date:
  20270929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:06932f28498c55f54feb096254235056bd8db6dfe123a811eb88ef946f74d1a2ba2e57334b68b4a5d141e90f323977eb2bccbdf27dd2286677367382aa6ae163
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/248815/cdc_248815_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.08 MB ]