By MALLORY GRUBEN
A crude contraption made with PVC pipe, a small vise, a simple clamp, and a roll of duct tape helped one manufacturer reduce the risk of carpal tunnel. The $30 solution is one of several ergonomic “success stories” in the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries’ (L&I) Ergonomics Ideas Bank. The Ideas Bank is a searchable database with ideas for keeping workers safe from strains, sprains, and repetitive motion injuries. Every idea is vetted by L&I’s team of expert ergonomists.
The Ideas Bank is one of few resources of its kind in the nation and the only one on the West Coast that L&I ergonomist Rick Goggins knows of. The Labor Press spoke with Goggins recently and explored the database to round up five ideas for improving safety at your workplace:
- Use carts to move heavy loads. Carrying heavy objects is one of the most common ergonomics hazards, but using a cart reduces the strain on a workers’ body, Goggins said. The Ideas Bank suggests 26 different kinds of carts, including ones with tilting, rotating, or spring-loaded raising to make specific tasks easier.
- Lift from waist height. Repeatedly bending down to lift up items on the floor can cause neck and back injuries. A pallet lift or adjustable height cart can bring the items to waist height first, making the job less risky, Goggins said. Workers also should organize workspaces or storage areas to put items at easy-to-reach heights to limit or prevent bending.
- Use tools with hand grips or pneumatic power. Workers are more likely to develop tendonitis or carpal tunnel syndrome if they must forcefully grip or pinch tools. Adding a padded grip to a tool handle makes holding tools more comfortable by increasing the diameter of the handle or easing the pressure from otherwise hard materials. Pneumatic tools reduce the amount of manual force needed to operate a tool.
- Unleash your inner inventor. If an ergonomic tool doesn’t already exist for your specific task, make your own. In the earlier example with the $30 contraption, a medical device manufacturer wanted a tool to help workers to strip coating off wires with a razor blade without having to pinch the blade — a risk for painful joint pressure. So workers used a vise and clamp to hold a razor blade; added PVC pipe to create a lever on the vise that reduced the hand force needed to close it; and used duct tape to make a track to run wire through. Goggins also recommends looking for ideas outside of your industry. For example, librarians and construction workers both lift heavy objects, so what one sector recommends to prevent injuries could spark a creative solution in the other.
- Ask your state’s workplace safety agency for a consultation L&I and Oregon OSHA both offer free ergonomic consultations by request, so your employer can request a visit to get ideas specific to your workplace.
Looking for more ergonomics ideas? Access the L&I Ergonomics Ideas Bank here. The database is searchable by industry, hazard, content type, and keyword, though Goggins recommends starting with an industry or hazard first, because the keyword search can be finicky.
