Development and Evaluation of Ergonomic Interventions for Bucket Handling on Farms
Objective: The aim of this study was to introduce and evaluate two interventions, Ergo Bucket Carrier (EBC) and Easy Lift (EL), for youths (and adults) to handle water/feed buckets on farms. Background: The physical activities of both adult and youth farm workers contribute to the development of low...
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| Published in: | Human factors Vol. 58; no. 5; pp. 758 - 776 |
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| Main Authors: | , , |
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Los Angeles, CA
SAGE Publications
01-08-2016
Human Factors and Ergonomics Society |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | Objective:
The aim of this study was to introduce and evaluate two interventions, Ergo
Bucket Carrier (EBC) and Easy Lift (EL), for youths (and adults) to handle
water/feed buckets on farms.
Background:
The physical activities of both adult and youth farm workers contribute to
the development of low-back disorders (LBDs). Many of the activities youths
perform on farms are associated with increased LBD risk, particularly, the
handling of water and feed buckets.
Method:
Seventeen adult and youth participants (10 males and seven females)
participated in this study. To assess the risk of LBDs, the participants
were instrumented with a three-dimensional spinal electrogonio-meter while
lifting, carrying, and dumping water buckets using the traditional method
and the two interventions.
Results:
For both the adult and youth groups, the results showed that the two
interventions significantly decrease the magnitudes of LBD risk in many of
the tasks evaluated. Overall, the use of the EBC resulted in a 41% reduction
in the level of LBD risk for the carrying task and a reduction of 69% for
the dumping task. Using the EL, on the other hand, is especially effective
for lifting tasks (55% reduction in LBD risk). Results of the subjective
response were consistent with the objective evaluations.
Conclusion:
This study demonstrated the potential for ergonomic interventions in reducing
LBD risk during the common farming task of bucket handling.
Application:
Potential application of this study includes the introduction of the EBC and
EL in family farms to reduce the LBD risk among youth and adult farmers. |
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| Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
| ISSN: | 0018-7208 1547-8181 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/0018720816631902 |