The various types of welding workstation designs used in a rail component manufacturing system environment have drawn the attention of industrial engineers to the safety and efficiency of the workers during welding operations. Welding operations are carried out using several posture configurations, which have a negative physical ergonomic impact on the workers, especially in manual welding processes. This empirical research investigates the ergonomics conditions of welding workplaces with the aim of ascertaining the disorders that may be associated with working posture during welding operations among the South African population. Twenty-seven (27) welders were randomly selected, and data was collected using a structured questionnaire. The majority (67 percent of the welders) stated that they experience discomfort and pain whilst they carry out their task, which contradicts ergonomic guidelines for working posture. Forty-eight percent of the welding workers were frequently physically tired. Sixty-three (63) percent agree that they perform repetitive tasks, and a majority of 78% of welding workers reported neck discomfort as a result of tilting their neck posture for a longer period during welding operations. It was deduced that the correlation among risk factors associated with workstation design, repetitive tasks, contribute to the awkward posture adopted whilst welding, that, if retained for a long duration, could lead to musculoskeletal injuries, poor quality of work, and reduced productivity. Based on these results, in order to increase productivity, it was proposed to redesign the welding workstations and to prioritize interventional ergonomic programme to minimize the MSDs problems.
Assessment of Ergonomics Risk Experienced by Welding Workers in a Rail Component Manufacturing Organization
Lect.Notes Mechanical Engineering
International Conference on Flexible Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing ; 2022 ; Detroit, MI, USA June 19, 2022 - June 23, 2022
Flexible Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing: The Human-Data-Technology Nexus ; Chapter : 23 ; 227-236
2022-10-13
10 pages
Article/Chapter (Book)
Electronic Resource
English
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