Reduction of Ergonomic Risk Factors in Brick Units through Workstation, Task and Tool Analysis Checklist

Owning to poor socioeconomic conditions factory workers are compel to carry out a considerable number of manual, rigorous tasks in brick factories and facing the various health problems because of repetitiveness, high frequency of action, excessive force, awkward posture, insufficient recovery time, use of mechanical tools, and exposure to high temperature. Space limitation requires workers to use much uncomfortable posture like standing, stooping, squatting, stretching, reaching, bending and twisting during the activities. The main aim of this study was to identify the specific ergonomic risk factors in the workplace facing by male and female workers during raw brick making activities and to analyze the causes of pain/discomfort related to workstation, hand tool and task analysis. For this purpose twenty male and twenty female workers from raw brick making unit were randomly selected and a detailed ergonomic risk factors were analyzed with the help of NIOSH checklist. In result it was found that more than 60 percent (33 percent male & 27 percent female) of the total respondents reported that the floor surface was free of obstacles and flat and there was no preventive maintenance programme for the mechanical aids, tools and other equipments. Total 25 percent respondents wherein 10 percent males and 15 percent females reported that they kept pulling and pulling forces minimal and total 75 percent male and female respondents did not agree with the same. Nearly 88 percent respondents wherein 45 percent males and 42.5 percent females said that the repetitive motions were avoided by taking sufficient pauses while doing the task. Total 75 percent respondents said that the tool handles were designed not to dig into the palm of the hand, in which 40 percent were the males and 35 percent were the female workers. On the whole, it was found that all respondents from the selected unit said that the employees have not been trained for the proper use of hand tool techniques, when and how to report the problems with tools and in proper tool maintenance technique and no one respondents were satisfied with this statement.