The newest member of the Microsoft Windows family, Windows 8, was released late last year.  Anyone who has had a chance to try out a device loaded with Windows 8 will have noticed some major changes, such as a start screen instead of a start menu, built-in Windows 8 apps that look different from regular programs, and the use of shortcuts called “charms” for search and other functions.

If you’re like me, you might have found these changes a little bit awkward. Why? Windows 8 was designed for touchscreen devices, so if you’re using it on a non-touch device, you won’t have the optimal Windows 8 experience. A local conference I attended had a couple of presentations concerning this topic. (These were all preliminary results, and I could not find any published studies.) One study looked at user preferences between direct input (touchscreen) and indirect input (touchpad/mouse).  Between direct input and indirect input, users of touch-capable Windows 8 devices showed a preference to direct input – given the option, they preferred using the touchscreen. Another study looked at experiences with Windows 8 machines in the home environment. Overall, satisfaction with Windows 8 devices was higher for users with touch-capable devices than for those using machines without touch capabilities.

With study results showing that Windows 8 users prefer touch devices, the market will likely continue to shift away from traditional computers and more towards touch-capable devices. I already see a ton of advertising for touch devices such as the laptop/tablet hybrid (which were the most popular device from the Windows 8 home study). Touch devices are fun to use, but as an ergonomist I am concerned with the posture implications of using a touch device. Because the screen and the input device are one and the same, there is no way to position the device ideally for all body parts involved. Your screen should be elevated so the top of the screen is at eye level and 18”- 30” away from your eyes. With a touchscreen in this position, you have to extend your arms to reach the screen, placing your shoulders in a sustained awkward posture. If you place the touch device where your arms are in a neutral position, on a work surface at elbow height, then you have extreme neck flexion to see the screen.

The studies mainly looked at device use for casual media consumption (e.g. web surfing, watching movies, playing games.)  What happens if the shift towards touch-capable computers hits the office and people start using these devices six or more hours every day?  Already office workers doing some work on touch devices such as smart phones and tablets, but most office workers are still using a traditional setup with a separate monitor, keyboard, and mouse for the majority of their computer work, and office ergonomics programs are designed to fit this traditional computer setup to the worker. If Windows 8 has a big impact, we may see an increase in touch-capable devices in the office – and then we may need to reconsider our entire approach to office ergonomics.  What do you think?  Are we going to see a big shift towards touch devices, or are office workers going to hold on to their mice and keyboards?

Open Ergonomics is a UK-based website that provides information on anthropometry, office ergonomics, back pain, and a basic introduction to ergonomic principles.  The site also includes a workstation assessment checklist and there is some great information regarding biomechanical best practices for manual material handling tasks as well.  

• Pain – Implementing an office ergonomics program can help reduce the job-related discomfort and pain experienced by up to one-half of office workers today. By providing employees with proper training in how to set up a workstation, along with the right tools and equipment, injury and illness rates decline and employees are more productive.
• Cost – Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) account for one-third of injury and illness costs in U.S. businesses. A workstation that is set up based on the user’s anthropometry promotes good “sitting hygiene” and eliminates the postures that lead to MSDs.
• Changing Trends – The workplace is constantly changing. With advances in technology, people are sitting more, working longer, and working from home and other non-office locations.

Effective ergonomics programs have been proven to substantially reduce work-related injury claims by managing these three elements. Download a PDF version.

Q: Aren’t “overuse” injuries (e.g. wrist tendinitis in an office worker) also “overexertion” injuries, and are these included in these stats?­

Great point.  Repetitive motion injuries were also included in Liberty Mutual’s 2012 Workplace Safety Index.  They accounted for about 4% or $2.02 billion of injury costs to companies. 

Q: ­Can the full OHIO website be provided by email, I only got part of it.

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation Lifting Guide is another great tool to assess some of the MMH tasks where you work, to make sure that our employees are protected from ergonomic risk.

Q: ­If I push a cart normally, but want to measure the push force w/ a fish scale, I assume I can measure w/ the fish scale pulling and that will also tell me the pushing force? ­

That is right.  We also recommend turning all swiveling casters 90 degrees to simulate the worst case pushing force.  Remember to get at least three measurements to ensure accuracy.

Q: ­For loading water bottles onto water coolers, I’ve seen a powered lift for the bottle but are the simpler solutions to this problem that you’ve seen?­

Remember the ‘comfort zone’.  If possible store the bottles above 24″ (the bottom of the comfort zone).  I have seen companies block the bottom shelf, or raise the entire storage unit above 24″.

Q: ­Where did the Cart Guidelines come from – research?­

We base all of our design guidelines on scientific research.  One resource we used for cart design is “Pushing and Pulling Carts and Two-Wheeled Hand Trucks” by Jung, M., Haight J., Freivalds (2005).

Q: ­do you have a reference for your cart guidelines – load >500lbs   I am assuming the 500 lbs is the load on cart not the cart and load weight­?

You can see the reference above for the publication.500 lb does represent the load on the cart. What we have found is that if you have less than optimal conditions (poor handle design and flooring) then having a load of greater than 500 lb will generally result in a push/pull force above suggested guidelines.  As always, remember it is best to measure that actual push/pull force and compare to such tools as Liberty Mutual Push/Pull tables.

Q: ­The lift and turn tables can be very expensive. Are there specific guidelines for when we need to put one in? Or a way to justify it?­

Cost justification can be made by looking at time savings.  If our employees are not “wasting motion” they are probably saving time, resulting in higher productivity.  There are many tools that can help measure that, one is Humantech’s STEP analysis.  You can also use the NIOSH lifting equation to evaluate the acceptability of the lifting or lowering task.

Q: What are your ­thoughts on back belts?

Back belts do not help eliminate the exposure to the MMH risk.  The solutions that we focus on will help reduce or eliminate one side of the ergonomics ‘fire triangle’ force, frequency, or posture.

Q: ­Who manufactured the three carts you showed (trash dumper, etc.)?­

Powered lift and turn cart – Southworth Products

Six-wheeled electric cart and trash dumper – ERGOdynamics

Q: ­A lot of this seems geared toward a fixed site.  We are a water utility. Our guys are in the street then move on.  Can some of this lift assist stuff be more portable?  ­

Consider a portable work platform dolly.  Our clients have had good success with using the Mule Lift Truck.

Q: ­Groups who work in remote sites often suffer shoulder injuries due to repetitive movements, has there ever been research that speaks to elevator lifts for extended heights > 40 steps for the average 15 gal buckets?­

We aren’t aware of any research addressing this issue specifically for handling 15 gallon buckets.  My gut inclination is that there are probably several issues involved (heart rate, WMDS, trip/fall hazards) in this work task and multiple analyses would be needed to provide a clear picture of the risk to the worker.

Q: ­We use 48 lb motor and orders range from 5 to 50 pieces. What out of the applications you showed today would be recommended from getting these from pallets to workbenches with or without carts?­

Many of the lift assist devices can accomplish this task.  You may have to work with the manufacturer to engineer an appropriate end effector for you specific application. We have had good luck with ball roller tables and stabilizing clamps mounted to hand truck.  The Equipois mobile cart we showed during the webinar seems like a good fit for your needs.  Here is a link to an online summary of the solution, which shows a sample configuration, a video, and rough costs.  

Q:  What are some vendors for pneumatic lift tables?

Southworth Products offers a pneumatic lift table.  The tables can range in capacity, reaching up to 4,000 lb.

Q:  What is the approximate cost of the dolly assister I see on the steps?  How heavy is it?  I’m thinking about lifting it in and out of a truck.

You can find lightweight dollies for between $100 – $200 through suppliers like Northern Tool and Equipment  or find stair climber that bolt on to existing dollies from Uline or Magliner.  There are many other vendors for these products.

Product Name:

Dem Truk – Versatile Equipment Cart

Description:

Dem Truk has developed a unique versatile equipment cart, designed to help easily load, unload and transport equipment in and out of vans/trucks.With its detachable platform design and fully collapsible undercarriage frame, the Dem Truk can easily fit into restricted spaces often encountered inside fleet service vehicles.

Ergonomic Benefits and Features:              

• The platform slides out and detaches from the undercarriage frame allowing operators to store the platform along with the product in the van/truck, thereby reducing multiple double handling and reducing extended reach postures. The same platform at a delivery location can slide back onto the frame.
•  The platform of the cart provides 8″ of vertical adjustability to promote the operator hand working height between 38″ and 49″ above the standing surface, the optimal material handling comfort zone.
•  Locking casters on the cart allows for stable and safe transfer.

Potential Limitations:

• Alignment of the platform while sliding back on the frame may be challenging as it slides on and off narrow metal guide rails.
• The collapsible undercarriage frame weighs between 29 lbs and 42 lbs

Applications:

• Equipment Delivery and Sales
• Healthcare
• Hospitality
• Vending and Service Industry

Humantech does not endorse any of the products or companies featured in the reviews. All images are property of the vendor and used for illustrative reference only.

There are many different tools designed to assess ergonomic risk in workplace environments (including Humantech’s BRIEF™ Survey and BEST™ assessment).  The website of Dr. Thomas Bernard provides the full spectrum of publically available risk assessment tools.  Dr. Bernard, professor and chair of the Environmental and Occupational Health Department at the University of South Florida, wrote the book on ergonomics—literally.  He is a co-author of Kodak’s Ergonomic Design for People at Work, and considered one of the leading resources for ergonomics.  His website is a great resource to bookmark.

Description:

The LiteLift™ trash bag was invented in an effort to reduce injury by enabling workers to carry disposable loads safely. This product differs from a traditional trash bag by having a handle on the bottom of the bag. The LiteLift™ enables workers to grasp bags more securely by using a power grip, while evenly distributing the load and keeping it close to the body.

Ergonomic Benefits and Features:

• Enables the worker to keep the load close and centered to the body
• Reduces forceful hand/wrist exertions while material handling
• Reduces possible obstructions of the lower limbs while carrying the bag

Potential Limitations:

• Handle is only at one end of the bag
• If the bag is overloaded, the handle could tear

Applications:

• Any industry that disposes or transports materials manually using bags

Humantech does not endorse any of the products or companies featured in the reviews. All images are property of the vendor and used for illustrative reference only.

by Jennie Gober, AEP

Before saying anything more on this product, I must fully disclose something.  While I feel very strongly that this product would be very useful in most any industry, I was actually doing research for my own selfish purposes.  We are in the middle of remodeling our house, and this toolbox is something that I was very excited to see!

Image courtesy of eastwood.com

Now that I’ve said that, I want to share this collapsible rolling toolbox that I came across.  I have seen a countless number of maintenance personnel who are required to take handfuls of tools to maintenance locations.  More often than not, they wind up either manually carrying the tools they need (juggling may be a more accurate word), placing them into a bag or bucket, or rolling their giant toolbox hundreds of feet around their facility.  I’ve been to one company who uses metal “milk buckets” to carry their tools in – these buckets full of tools weighed up to 40 lb!

This rolling toolbox is an excellent solution for those maintenance personnel who don’t need to bring their entire toolbox, but still need a variety of tools to perform a task.  This toolbox enables them to easily roll the box to the location, and it even elevates so that they can reach their tools while maintaining neutral postures.

If you’re looking for a way to make your maintenance person’s life a bit easier, this may be a great solution!

Ergopoint Office Suite, designed by Humantech, empowers employees to set up their workstations properly, identifies equipment needs, and gives administrators the tools to manage improvements effectively and efficiently. And our affordable, single-user version, Ergopoint for Me, places these tools within the reach of individual users, whether they’re working out of a home office or at a desk in their small business. Try it Wednesday!