Abstract
Industrial ergonomics in manufacturing settings is often neglected during the design phase of work cells. An employee at an air filter manufacturer suffered soft tissue injuries to their shoulder due to the incompatibility between her stature and the production table’s height. The improved ergonomics will increase the enterprises’ competitiveness and employees’ satisfaction index in the production department. Through a systematic literature review conducted with tools such as VOSviewer and CiteSpace, the authors identified high-impact research studies and incorporate their findings into the proposed solution. The recommendations from employees and the safety evaluator are also compared against other commercially available solutions and they are compared based on effectiveness, cost, and viability. It is recommended that height-adjustable swivel shop stools with backrests be made available to the employee to eliminate height incompatibility, the need to twist their body to retrieve die cuts air filter frames, and the need to stand for extended periods. Adjusting the shop floor layout such that all materials required at this work cell are all within easy reach of the assembler eliminates the potential for cumulative trauma disorder caused by throwing die cuts toward the downstream process. Following initial adoption, the safety evaluator should investigate further to validate the changes made before widespread adoption in the production department.
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Appendices
Appendix A: Ergonomics Report
Appendix B: Selected Products From December 2021
2.1 Work Stool
Codnor Height Adjustable Lab stool, $63.99.
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https://www.wayfair.com/furniture/pdp/orren-ellis-codnor-height-adjustable-lab-stool-w003045331.html
Height Adjustable Industrial/Shop Stool, $299.99.
24 in. H x 16 in. W x 16 in. D Adjustable Shop Stool with Casters, $184.48.
Masterforce Premium Shop Stool, $99.99.
2.2 Anti-fatigue Mat
Office Fitness Ninjas’ Best Standing Desk Mats for 2021, starting at $16.00.
New York Times’ The Best Standing Desk Mats, starting at $28.00.
2.3 Work Platform
Factory Supply Adjustable Work Platform, starting at $210.24.
Grainger Work Platforms, starting at $45.46.
2.4 Conveyor
A-Lined Belt Conveyors, starting at $1,570.00.
FloStor Hytrol Conveyor, starting at $1,980.00.
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Lee, S.C., Duffy, V.G. (2022). Improving the Ergonomics and Preventing Soft Tissue Injuries at an Air Filter Assembly Work Cell. In: Duffy, V.G., Rau, PL.P. (eds) HCI International 2022 – Late Breaking Papers: Ergonomics and Product Design. HCII 2022. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 13522. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-21704-3_17
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