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ERGONOMICS GUIDELINES FORMANUAL HANDLING2nd EDITION (2010)
Reprinted August 2
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ERGONOMICS GUIDELINES FOR MANUAL HANDLING
Ergonomics is the
science o studying
people at work andthen designing tasks,
jobs, inormation,
tools, equipment,
acilities and the
working environment
so people can be
sae and healthy,
efective, productive
and comortable.
(Ergonomics Design
Guidelines, Auburn
Engineers, Inc., 1998)
INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Stages o cumulative MSIs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Why is manual handling a problem? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Defnition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
How to use this document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Manual handling checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
MSI PREVENTION: FINDING A SOLUTION
The commitment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Engineering out o the problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Providing education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Potential solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Forceul exertion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
P o s t u r e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 0
Repetition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 3
APPENDIX A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 4
APPENDIX B. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 6
APPENDIX C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 7
Blank manual handling checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
AcknowledgmentSpecial thanks to the Canadian Centre or Occupational Health and Saetyand to WorkSae Western Australia or granting permission to use theirgraphic images.
Also, we thank all the New Brunswick employers and employees who providedeedback during the pilot phase o this document.
DisclaimerThis document represents best practices to prevent manual handling injuriesand other business losses due to manual handling. Inormation containedin this document may change over time as new research and studies aredone in the eld o ergonomics. This document is not designed to replace aproessional ergonomics analysis.
ISO 11228 is not a regulatory requirement.WorkSaeNB, 2010
TABLE OFCONTENTS
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ERGONOMICS GUIDELINES FOR MANUAL HANDLING
INTRODUCTIONAs part o its ergonomics strategy, WorkSaeNB has developedErgonomicsGuidelines or Manual Handling. This booklet is designed to be used by allindustries, and to help Joint Health and Saety Committees, supervisors andmanagement prevent musculoskeletal injury.
A musculoskeletal injury (MSI) is an injury or disorder o the muscles,tendons, ligaments, joints, nerves, blood vessels or related sot tissue arisingrom exposure to risk actors such as awkward postures, repetitive motionsand orceul exertions. The injury can be acute or cumulative.
Stages o cumulative MSIs:
Stage 1: Mild discomort, present while working, but disappears when
not working. Does not aect work perormance or daily living tasks.Completely reversible.
Stage 2: Pain is present while working and continues when not working.Begins to aect daily living tasks. Employees sometimes take non-prescription pain medications. Completely reversible.
Stage 3: Pain is present all the time. Employees seek medical attention.May not be able to complete simple daily tasks. May not be completelyreversible to reach ull recovery. Employee participates in the workplaceaccommodation process.
In the early stage, employees should communicate the increasing pain to
their immediate supervisor. This is a great opportunity to prevent the MSIrom occurring.
The Discomort
Surveyound in
Appendix A is a
great tool to help
employees report
early signs andsymptoms o MSI
to their supervisor.
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Why is manual handling a problem?Across Canada, many workplaces are experiencing an increase in the numbero MSIs. New Brunswick statistics or 2007 reveal that MSIs account or 38%o all long-term claim costs. Approximately 70% o all MSIs are injuries to the
back and shoulders.In New Brunswick, the ollowing section oGeneral Regulation 91-191applies to handling an object or material:
91-191 Section 52
Where the health or saety o an employee handling an object or materialmay be endangered, an employer shall ensure that
(a) Adequate and appropriate equipment is provided to the employee andis used by the employee or liting and moving the object or material, and
(b) The employee is instructed as to the appropriate method o liting andmoving objects and material.
DefnitionManual material handling includes any tasks which require a person to lit,lower, push, pull, hold or carry any object or material.
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How to use this document
Step 1
The rst part o this document involves using a checklist to identiy high-risk
manual handling tasks. This identication process emphasizes liting, lowering,pushing and pulling activities by assessing the ollowing actors:
Forceul exertion
Awkward posture
Repetitive motion
When quantiying the level o exposure or these primary risk actors you willneed to consider measuring peak orce, sustained orce, weight o object,cumulative weight handled, various joints angles, duration o exposure,requency, working height, workstation dimensions aecting body position,
productivity, etc.The process o identiying risk actors and quantiying the level o exposure willrequire intensive work upront, but will provide tremendous benets in termso nding solutions that address the root cause o the problem.
I you are not sure where to start, simply select a task that has any o theollowing characteristics:
Task requires high physical exertions while perorming manualhandling activities.
Employee has a score greater than ve on theDiscomort Survey.
Employee has had an MSI in the past while perorming the task in the past.
Step 2
The second part involves using the potential solutions section to develop anaction plan with detailed solutions to eliminate or reduce the high-risk manualhandling tasks. For each Yes answer on the checklist, consult the potentialsolutions or examples o ways to reduce the risk o injury. Use these examplesas a starting point or brainstorming and developing your own action plan.
Advise and involve the employee when completing the checklist or the taskyou have identied. To improve to improve the accuracy and consistency oyour results, be sure to evaluate the most strenuous and physically-demandingportion o the task. Each Yes answer indicates a risk o an MSI or asub-optimal condition. Include all meaningul comments or each itemand answer NA i the question does not apply.
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MANUAL HANDLING CHECKLIST
Remember tocheck or a Physical
Demands Analysis
or Task Inormation
Sheet. They can
help you fll the
checklist easily.
Initial pushing
and pulling orces
can be measured
with a special
gauge, which takes
all the variables
into account(weight, riction,
acceleration).
Task #1 Task #2 Task #3
Forceful exertions Check only if Yes Yes Yes
1. Is the weight o the objectlited more than 25 kg male/15 kg emale?
2. Is the initial pushing or pullingorce exerted more than320 N male/220 N emale?(10 newtons ~ 1 kg)
3. Is the sustained pushing or
pulling orce exerted more than230 N male/130 N emale?
4. Does the worker handle atotal cumulative weightexceeding 10,000 kg per day?
Posture Check only if Yes Yes Yes
5. Are objects handled belowmid-thigh height orcing theworker to bend their back?
6. Does the worker twist theirtrunk during the handlingprocess?
7. Are objects handled aboveshoulder height?
8. Does the worker reach behindor ully across the body withtheir shoulders?
Repetition Check only if Yes Yes Yes
9. Does the worker perormthe same task or more thanone hour consecutively?(no job rotation and notusing dierent muscle groupsthroughout the day)
Completed by: ____________________________________ Date: _____________________
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MSI PREVENTION:FINDING A SOLUTION
The commitmentOver the years, we have learned that the commitment and involvement othe entire workplace, rom top management to line employees, are essentialelements o a successul health and saety program.
Management should have the knowledge to assume their leadership role.This includes:
A visible involvement.
A health and saety policy (signed by senior management).
Well-dened roles and responsibilities or all parties (employees,supervisors, JHSC, human resources, etc.).
A plan to provide the necessary education to all parties.
A process that ensures all parties are accountable or their responsibilities.
Engineering out o the problemThe design o the job itsel (work and rest schedules, job rotation, productionrate), the object being handled (weight, size, shape, handle) andthe workstation (dimensions, layout, adjustability) have a direct impacton the primary risk actors. To prevent MSIs, you have to consider modiyingall these aspects.
When implementing solutions to reduce the risk o injury, additional benetscan be measured to justiy your investment, such as: productivity increase,improved quality, less rework, lower turnover rate, reduced training costsand improved morale.
Providing educationEducation is a key step to preventing MSIs. Employees should have a basicunderstanding o body mechanics, be able to recognize high-risk tasks andbe able to identiy the early signs and symptoms o an MSI. Employees shouldensure that symptoms, near misses, hazards, incidents and accidents arereported to their supervisor so that necessary action can be taken. Managementmust document this inormation.
Please check
www.worksafenb.ca
or more inormation
Some workplaces
include some saety
criteria in
the perormance
appraisal process or
their employees
Keep in mind that
employees are a great
source o creativity!
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Potential SolutionsThe ollowing sections provide examples o how to reduce or eliminate the risko manual handling injuries, but they do not encompass all solutions. Any onesolution may not eliminate all the risks o injury. Again, choose the solution
that best applies to your situation and use it as a starting point to improve yourwork environment.
Forceul exertionOne commonly used standard to determine a sae liting limit is the ISOStandard 11228 Part 1: Liting. This standard has a reerence mass or two-handed liting under ideal conditions o:
25 kg or 95% o males.
15 kg or 99% o emales.
Ideal conditions are dened as:
Standing symmetrically, unrestricted and upright.
Trunk is upright and not rotated.
Horizontal distance to object less than 25 cm.
Height o grip less than 25 cm above knuckle height.
Firm grip on the object (neutral wrist posture).
Liting duration o less than one hour per day.
Frequency o liting less than or equal to 0.2 lits per minute.
Favourable environmental conditions.
Liting under non-ideal conditions decreases the sae liting limit.
The ISO Standard 11228 Part 2 is used to determine two-handed pushing andpulling limits (see ollowing table):
Recommend force for90% male population
Recommend force for90% female population
PUSHING: Two-handed initial 340 N 220 N
PUSHING: Two-handed sustained 230 N 130 N
PULLING: Two-handed initial 320 N 230 N
PULLING: Two-handed sustained 240 N 140 N
The above table is or a requency o one-eighth hour, a handle height o 95 cmor males and o 89 cm or emales, and a push distance o 2 m.
10 newtons ~ 1 kg
ISO 11228-1
and 11228-2 are
not regulatory
requirements.
Pushing or pulling
under non-ideal
conditions reduces
the sae pushing
and pulling limit.
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These ISO standards are based on well-recognized scientic research. Whileall the details and specications are not listed in this booklet, do not hesitateto consult ISO (www.iso.org) or your regional ergonomics consultant or
more inormation. I you have any doubt while identiying the risk actors ormeasuring the level o exposure, you should consult or hire a proessionalergonomist.
Another commonly used book to assess various manual handling tasks isA Guide to Manual Materials Handling, by A. Mital, A.S. Nicholson andM.M. Ayoub. This book covers liting, pushing, pulling, carrying and othercommon tasks such as one-hand liting, one-hand pushing, teamliting and manual handling in unusual postures.
Consider implementing the ollowing solutions to reduce the risk o injury:
Provide mechanical aids such as conveyors, foor cranes, carts, balancingmechanisms, vacuum hoists, turntables, tilt tables, hooks, automaticpushers, wheels, etc.
Minimize the total cumulative weight handled each day.
Change rom liting to pushing or rom pushing to rolling.
Introduce team liting.
Modiy the object (change the shape, change the size, use lighter containers,divide into smaller units, move the centre o gravity closer to the employee,create handles, improve casters, etc.).
Provide education in proper body mechanics, in proper selection o
clothing and ootwear, in use o personal protective equipment, etc. Develop a work procedure, provide training and have everyone sign o.
As an approximate
guide, the capability
o a two-person team
is two-thirds the sum
o their individualcapabilities.
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PostureIn general, tasks should be designed to allow employees to work close to theirneutral joint posture. For the back, when possible, you should avoid requentlyfexing and avoid twisting while perorming manual handling activities.
For the shoulder, when possible, you should avoid reaching requently aboveshoulder height and avoid reaching behind or ully across your body.
The workstation design will have a major eect on the working postures.Ideally, a workstation should be designed to t a wide range o employees(smallest, tallest, average). Increasing the workstation adjustability is a greatway to t everyone.
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Object characteristics (size, shape, handle) can also aect posture duringthe handling process. Handles should be designed to keep wrists in a neutralposture, to provide a power grip, and to minimize contact stresses. Consider
implementing the ollowing solutions to reduce the risk o injury: Use proper body mechanics turn by moving the eet rather than twisting
the upper body.
Use storage techniques wall brackets, shelving, gravity eed to reduceholding, carrying, liting, etc.
Minimize the number o times the load is lited below mid-thigh height orabove shoulder height.
Add posture variety by introducing job rotation or job enlargement.
Add posture variety by using a ootrest or a sit-stand device.
Provide anti-atigue matting or shoe inserts or workers who stand orlong periods.
Adjust the height o the workstation to the workers optimal working height.
Add lighting to improve the employees ability to see objects.
Use mirrors and other visual aids to help an employee manoeuvre saelyaround corners and other obstacles.
Implement a warm-up and stretch program.
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RepetitionIdeally, workers should use dierent muscle groups and vary their posture(sitting, standing, walking) as oten as possible. The physical intensity othe work should also vary, especially or liting tasks.
In general, increasing the frequency of the task (the number of times the task isperformed per minute) or the duration of the task increases the risk of injury.
Consider implementing the ollowing solutions to reducethe risk o injury:
Introduce proper task rotation or job enlargement.
Introduce short and requent work-rest cycles.
Introduce task-specic exercises.
Reduce the pace o the task or the pace o the machineor eeder.
I requency is very high, provide mechanical aids orautomate the task.
A tilt work surface can eliminatereaching and bending.
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BIBLIOGRAPHYThis document is based on inormation collected rom the ollowing sources:
Auburn Engineers Inc.Design For Ergonomics. Auburn, 1997.
Bridger, R.S.Introduction to Ergonomics. McGraw-Hill, 1995.
International Organization or Standardization. International StandardISO 11228-1.Ergonomics - Part 1: Liting and Carrying. 1st ed.Geneva, 2003.
International Organization or Standardization. International StandardISO 11228-2.Ergonomics - Manual Handling - Part 2: Pushing andPulling. 1st ed. Geneva, 2005.
Kroemer, K.H.E., and E. Granjean.Fitting the Task to the Human.
5th
ed. Bristol: Taylor & Francis Inc., 1997.Kroemer, Karl, et al.Ergonomics -How to Design or Ease and Efciency.
Englewood Clis, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1994.
Mital, A., A.S. Nicholson, and M.M. Ayoub.A Guide to Manual MaterialsHandling. 2nd ed. Washington: Taylor & Francis Inc., 1997.
Occupational Health and Saety Authority. Code o Practice or ManualHandling (Occupational Overuse Syndrome). Melbourne: Law Press,1995.
Victorian WorkCover Authority.Regulations and Code o Practice: ManualHandling. Australian Government Publishing Service, 1996.
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ERGONOMICS GUIDELINES FOR MANUAL HANDLING
DISCOMFORT SURVEY
Name: _______________________________________Date:_______________
Job title: ____________________________________________ Male Female
Job description: ____________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
1.How many years or months have you been working in this particular jobor set o tasks?
______ years ______ months
2.Please indicate all the body part(s) where discomort occurred duringthe last six months:
Body part
Rate your physical discomfort usingthe scale below:0 = no discomort10 = worst imaginable discomort
Tasks that usually cause discomfort
Neck 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Let shoulder 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Right shoulder 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Let elbow 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Right elbow 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Let wrist/hand 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Right wrist/hand 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Back 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Let knee 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Right knee 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Legs 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
APPENDIX A
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3.Which body part rated on the previous page represents the one in which youeel the most discomort?
____________________________________________________________
4. For the body part in which you eel the most discomort, check all the wordsthat best describe your discomort:
Aching Numbness (asleep) Stiness
Burning Pain Tenderness
Cramping Redness Tingling
Loss o Colour Swelling Weakness
5.Have you sought or received medical assistance, treatment(chiropractor, physiotherapy, amily doctor, etc.) or other or thisspecic body part?
Yes___ No___ I yes, please speciy:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
6.Have there been any changes made to your job, workstation or activities thatyou must perorm to do your work?
I yes, please speciy:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What do you think could improve your job?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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CASE STUDY
Case Study: Back injury while pushing carts
John, a new employee at the grocery store, hurt his back in the parking loton March 2 at 8 p.m.
John had worked outside all day.
He was pushing and turning 12 empty carts out o the corral when he eltpain in his lower back.
It was noted that the snow was very slushy that day, especially in and aroundthe corral.
When asked, John wasnt aware o any procedure or handling empty carts.John had previously reported to his supervisor that it was dicult to pushcarts in the snow, even worse with damaged casters.
Investigation
Always involve the worker while completing the checklist (interview).
Complete your accident causation analysis sheet as usual.
For an MSI, proceed with this booklet by completing the checklist,brainstorming potential solutions and creating a detailed action plan basedon all the information gathered.
See example below:
Action items Time Frames Person Responsible
Order and test a mechanical cart pusher (build business case) One month Store manager
Repair damaged car ts One month Maintenance
Contact head oce to see i they can alter car t design toimprove how they ft together, which would improvethe overall manoeuvrability
Two weeks Store manager
Develop a policy and procedure on the maximum numbero carts to be handled by one person
Two weeks Supervisor
Train employees on new procedure and have themsign o on it
One month Supervisor
Improve snow removal and develop acceptable guidelines ornext years contactor
One month Store manager
Educate employees on proper warm-up and stretches(contact local physiotherapy clinic)
One month Supervisor
Discomort Survey yearly to get eedback rom employees andidentiy uture problems
Done Supervisor
Add an MSI education component to the employeeorientation session
One month Human resources
APPENDIX B
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APPENDIX CREGIONAL OFFICESFor more inormation, contact the ergonomics consultant in your region:
NORTHWESTPhone: 506 475-2550
Fax: 506 475-2568
NORTHEAST
Phone: 506 547-7300
Fax: 506 547-7311
SOUTHWESTPhone: 506 632-2200
Fax: 506 738-4206
SOUTHEAST
Phone: 506 867-0525
Fax: 506 859-6911
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MANUAL HANDLING CHECKLIST
Task #1 Task #2 Task #3
Forceful exertions Check only if Yes Yes Yes
1. Is the weight o the objectlited more than 25 kg male/15 kg emale?
2. Is the initial pushing or pullingorce exerted more than320 N male/220 N emale?(10 newtons ~ 1 kg)
3. Is the sustained pushing orpulling orce exerted more than
230 N male/130 N emale?
4. Does the worker handle atotal cumulative weightexceeding 10,000 kg per day?
Posture Check only if Yes Yes Yes
5. Are objects handled belowmid-thigh height orcing theworker to bend their back?
6. Does the worker twist theirtrunk during the handlingprocess?
7. Are objects handled aboveshoulder height?
8. Does the worker reach behindor ully across the body withtheir shoulders?
Repetition Check only if Yes Yes Yes
9. Does the worker perormthe same task or more thanone hour consecutively?(no job rotation and notusing dierent muscle groupsthroughout the day)
Completed by: _________________________________________ Date: ________________________