Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 225 Hazard: ERGONOMIC

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause serious physical harm to employees, in that employees were required to perform tasks involving ergonomic risk factors (including, but not limited to, repetitive motions, force and awkward postures) resulting in stressors that had caused, were causing, or were likely to cause cumulative trauma disorder(s): a) Department 13, Station 9 where one employee was perform- ing frame to shell (operation #294) and apply glue to frame (operation #512). The evaluation of these tasks indicates that the employee is exposed ergonomic stressors including: repetition, hand/wrist contact with sharp edges, force applied with fingers, with both hands, from one shoulder, from both shoulders, by twisting and by bending, bending to see work, bending to reach work, bending to reach objects, stretching to reach objects, reach shoulders forward, elbow flexion and extension, hand/wrist extension, flexion, pinch, radial deviation, ulnar deviation and rotation, finger push, abduction, palm pinch and finger press, and pinch and pistol grip which are causing or likely to cause cumulative trauma disorders. The employer did not implement an effective control strategy to reduce or eliminate such disorders. The injury and illness records for 1989, 1990, and 1991 document a pattern of cumulative trauma disorders associated with this operation. While ultimate responsibility for correct- ing the hazard rests with the employer, given his superior knowledge of the operation, feasible and acceptable abate- ment methods to correct this hazard include, but are not limited to, the following: ABATEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS: OPERATION 294/512 1) Increase work space to reduce congestion. 2) Arrange machinery and work table to avoid retracing steps during the operation. 3) Design press to align and push frame to shell with powered assist (instituting the same principles as "fit" machine in Department 73). OR 4) Design combination jig and automatic clamping device to eliminate use of the hand-wrist-arm-shoulder complex while attaching frame to shell. 5) Provide employees with specially designed gloves for this operation with padding in the heel of the hand area to provide cushion, with the fingers removed to facilitate manual dexterity. 6) Provide adjustable height work table. 7) Provide fatigue mat or use appropriate footwear. 8) Reduce number of repetetive motions tasks per operator. 9) Provide sit/stand/lean option. 10) Position parts (e.g. lower insert and frame stacks) to reduce reaching. 11) Maintain stack heights below shoulder level. 12) Automate folding of the lining to eliminate forceful exertions and deviation of the hand/wrist. SEE ABATEMENT NOTE: "ERGONOMICS MANAGEMENT PROGRAM"