This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Working Smart 1: Too Heavy or Extreme Force

• Is your workgroup stuck in the stone ages or has your workgroup made the evolutionary leap to the ‘tool age’?

• If there are tasks that you do which belong in a Strongman competition, maybe this year is the year to work smarter.

• Any time you find yourself struggling with something too heavy or too hard, the first thing to do is ask ‘why?’. Someone has probably encountered your problem and solved it before (often within your company). In some cases, not handling (and re-handling) the item by hand is the solution. Ask around and see if items can be delivered to the location where they’re needed, or if they can be handled using equipment (e.g. forklift, pallet jack etc.).
• If eliminating the heavy work isn’t an option, look for a mechanical assist. If you work in one area, installing overhead cranes, jib cranes, or a hoist are easy ways to take heavy loads off of the body.

• When dealing with heavy items or high forces, consider changing how the work is done. Carrying can be changed to pushing/pulling on a cart; pulling in an awkward position can be changed using pulleys or winches. 

 
• Looking for the right tool to reduce stress on the body should be an ongoing process. Advances in battery powered handheld tools (e.g. drills, torque wrenches) now allow us to use much smaller tools and in some cases allow for the use of hand tools in compact spaces where it wasn’t possible even a year ago.

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Working Smart 2: Not Enough Hands

• Do you ever find yourself in a situation where you are trying to balance getting the job done quickly vs. getting the job done safely?

• Maybe it’s carrying a bulky item from one location to another only to forget about the door that you have to open or a flight of stairs you need to go down. Sometimes it’s a heavy piece of material that you are working on that could really use an extra set of hands. And sometimes…it may be that we think we are a mythical character in a red suit that can carry a world’s worth of toys at one time.

• One of the most important things to recognize when we get spread too thin is that musculoskeletal risk is only one of the hazards. Rushing and trying to do too much can easily result in slips, trips and falls or hand injuries (crushes, pinches, and cuts).

• For tasks where you find yourself trying to hold onto something with one hand and reaching and working with the other, look at solutions like pipe stands, saw horses or height adjustable carts or tables. These can all provide stable support and will allow you to focus on the work at hand.

• If you find yourself contorting your body to hold and manipulate a piece of equipment while working on it with the other hand, look at solutions like simple jigs or devices that can rotate and hold your equipment in place while you work on it.

• Recognize these hazards by thinking ahead. Remember - being proactive is one of the central themes of ergonomics.

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Working Smart 4: To Much Repetition

• If your job in this year reminded you of a hamster on a wheel, your body probably feels like it has been worked over like a punching bag.

• Remember that even if you don’t have control over changing the work that you do, you do control your body.

• Learning to use good work habits at work is as essential a skill as any of the technical training that you learned for your job. You may be an expert at managing the controls of your tools or equipment at work but how much do you know about how to take care of your own musculoskeletal system?

• Warming up, taking frequent microbreaks and rest breaks, and working with a neutral spine are a few of the basics that help to keep your musculoskeletal system from overloading and developing discomfort. The good thing is that while you can’t control a lot of your work you do control your posture and when you give your muscles a break. 

 
• As you look back – how would you rate yourself on managing the stress on your body on a scale from 1 to 10 (1 – failure; 10 – A++)?

• Consider what you plan to do to in the future to turn work into something that strengthens...not hurts.

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Working Smart 3: Too High or Too Low

• One of the most common MSI hazards is the combination of heavy work at high or low levels.

• If you find that your shoulder or knees creak or groan when reaching high or low, what are you going to do about it?

• Take a second and third look at your work and ask yourself some simple questions:

o Why is this task organized this way?
o Are there any other ways to handle this material?
o Is there any way to lower this task (to below shoulder level)?
o Is there any way to raise this task (to above knee level)?
• The solutions for difficult tasks in this category are usually straight forward but they require that the user take the time to get the tool and use it.
o The easiest solutions are standing platforms, stair ladders (can be short or tall)
o More complex solutions can include scaffolding, or motorized lifts (e.g. Skyjack or JLG style lifts). Often, one of these type of solutions will provide solutions to work that is marginal plus open up opportunities to service other areas that are dangerous to access.
o In some cases, changing how you handle material can eliminate stress on the body. Consider storing items on pallets or in containers that can be handled by forklifts or other lifting equipment (e.g. motorized pallet lifter)
o If you do have to store items at high and low levels, make sure that you store the heaviest between knee and shoulder and place the lightest down low or overhead.
o If you do have to work at lower levels, at a minimum, make sure you have knee pads and where possible, consider investing in stools or creepers to take stress off of your knees.

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Safe Lifting - Easy as 1-2-3

Lifting is a part of many jobs. So much so that we sometimes don’t question what we are lifting or how we are ‘getting the job done’.

Unfortunately, many injuries occur when we fail to be mindful of the work at hand. 

It’s important to recognize that safe lifting has as much to do about personal awareness on the job as it does physical strength. Remember, lots of strong workers injure their back every day.

The following is a tool to identify safe lifting tasks and recognize tasks that could be improved.