Punnatut Wongsasan.. Injury and musculoskeletal problem reduction of roller cleaning workers a case study of a hygienic plastic film manufactuer. Master's Degree(Occupational Health and Safety). Mahidol University. Mahidol University Library and Knowledge Center. : Mahidol University, 2015.
Injury and musculoskeletal problem reduction of roller cleaning workers a case study of a hygienic plastic film manufactuer
Abstract:
The improper working conditions for cleaning a hot roller machine of 100 140 degrees Celsius, 400-600 rpm, using 99% methanol in a kneeling posture (#1), squatting posture (# 2) and then bent over close to the platform to clean the rollers. 100% of the workers experienced knee pain, 85.71% had wrist pain, 75% of their hands slipped on the roller machine, and 62.5% suffered from methanol exposure. Therefore, to prevent occupational hazards among workers, therefore, this study aimed to (1) study muscular problems and injury risks, (2) study elapsed cleaning time and the volumes of methanol used, and (3) to compare muscular problems and injuries, elapsed cleaning time, and methanol volume used before and after installing a cleaning machine. This was quasi-experimental design.There were eight male workers, aged 22-28 years old. Repeated REBA measurements were applied for posture #1, 96 times, for posture #2, 96 times, and (posture #3) after installing the cleaning tool, 96 times including abnormal index questionnaire, risk assessment pre- and post- instalment a new roller cleaning press, respectively. Before using a new roller cleaning tool, the REBA scores of posture #1 and #2 among workers were at high levels. After using a new tool, the scores for posture #3 were significantly reduced to a medium score level significantly (p < 0.05). For abnormal index, pre-instalment of the hot roller cleaning tool, the lowest, highest, and average score were 3.30, 3.50 and 3.30, respectively. For post- instalment of the hot roller cleaning tool, the lowest, highest and, average score of abnormal index were 1.00 ,2.00 and, 1.55, respectively. Elapsed cleaning time and methanol volumes were higher than pre-instalment the cleaning tool. The injury risk level before and after the experiment for hand being caught in the machine, pain knee pain, burns, and exposure to methanol were reduced. A roller cleaning tool would efficiently reduce muscular problems and injury risk, even it took a longer time and higher methanol volume to clean the hot roller.