Faculty Publications

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3

Ergonomic Assessment of Musculoskeletal Disorders Among Surface Mine Workers in India
(Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH, 2021) Jeripotula, S.K.; Mangalpady, M.; Raj, G.R.
Injuries due to work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are not uncommon in heavy industry like mining. Researchers acknowledged that occupational exposure to ergonomic risk factors is the chief causative factor in the development of WMSDs. The aim of this study was to perform an ergonomic assessment of musculoskeletal disorders among surface mine workers in India. Standardized Nordic Questionnaire was used to collect subjective response from 500 workers. A stratified random sampling method according to surface mining work activity type was used to obtain the sample. Data was collected by means of a structured questionnaire, and the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze data using descriptive and inferential statistical methods. A response rate of 85% was obtained out of 500 targeted groups. The WMSDs prevalence for the 12-month period was estimated to be 44.23%. The mean and standard deviation of workers’ age were 41.31and 8.927, respectively. The study has shown that the operators of dumpers, dozers, and graders along with electricians were found to be the most susceptible to develop WMSD problems. Among the most affected body parts, back disorder reported the highest. Further, it was found that working with static posture over the longer duration has a significant association with the lower back disorder (with p = 0.020) and bouncing and jarring has also significantly associated with the lower back disorder (with p = 0.023). Similarly, a significant association was found between repetitive work and neck pain (with p = 0.016). The study depicted a significant association between ergonomic hazards and WMSDs, like working with prolonged static posture, bouncing and jarring, and repetitive work. © 2020, Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration Inc.
Musculoskeletal Disorder Risk in the Upper Extremities of Mobile Mining Equipment Operators Exposed to Hand-Transmitted Vibrations in Underground Metal Mines: a Case–Control Study
(Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH, 2022) Sridhar, S.; Raj, M.G.; Mangalpady, M.
Hand-transmitted vibration (HTV) exposure is associated with various health risks for operators of mobile mining equipment (MME). The case–control research was conducted to determine the musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) risks associated with exposure to HTVs in the exposed (case) and non-exposed (control) groups. HTV readings were measured at the interface between the hand and the steering device using the SV 105B triaxial hand accelerometer connected to the SV106 human vibration analyzer involving 40 MME operators in accordance with ISO 5349:2001 guidelines. A questionnaire survey was also carried out among both the study groups using Cornell Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire. The European Union's 2002/44/E.C. was used to assess the health risks posed to the MME operators. Twenty-eight out of the 40 MMEs were generating HTVs exceeding the stipulated daily limits of vibration, putting 70% of the operators at increased risk for developing MSDs. The case group was found to have an elevated risk of exposure with odds ratio (OR) 7.56 (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.159, 49.39) and OR 12.80 (95% CI, 2.436, 67.285) times more likely than the control group to suffer discomfort in the left shoulder and left wrist, respectively, indicating increased risk of exposure to HTV. Additionally, cases had elevated risk associated with exposure to tobacco, OR 9.35(95% CI, 1.856, 47.129) compared to those who did not use tobacco. MSDs were more prevalent in the case group compared to the control group. This observation was validated by the field investigations and the responses of MME operators to the questionnaires. © 2022, Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration Inc.
Fuzzy Logic-Based Rapid Upper Limb Assessment: A Novel Approach to Evaluate the Postural Risk of Dumper Operators
(Springer, 2023) Kar, M.B.; Mangalpady, M.; Kunar, B.M.
It is proved that the accuracy of the standard Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) method for evaluating the risk of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) is often poor. In this paper, a fuzzy logic-based RULA system was developed to address this issue using the MATLAB software package. To evaluate the developed system, 15 dumper operators working in the surface iron ore mine were randomly selected. Video footage of their driving postures was recorded while they were performing different job cycles, such as loading, full-load travel, unloading, and empty travel. The video footage was examined to identify the most frequent driving postures. From this posture, the range of motion of both the axial and appendicular body parts was measured. The measured data were used as input parameter for the fuzzy model to calculate the fuzzy RULA score. The result revealed that 20% of the driving postures adopted by the dumper operators correspond to the medium risk of WRMSDs. Furthermore, the interquartile range of the fuzzy RULA score during dynamic operations was found to be small. This indicates that the fuzzy RULA score remained consistent throughout the dynamic operations. In contrast, the interquartile range exhibited large magnitude in the static operations, thus indicating a greater level of variation in fuzzy RULA score. The correlation test and Bland–Altman analysis were performed to compare the standard and fuzzy RULA scores. This analysis proved that the fuzzy logic-based method is a reliable alternative to the standard method for assessing RULA scores among dumper operators. © 2023, The Institution of Engineers (India).

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