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Does team lifting increase the variability in peak lumbar compression in ironworkers?

Issue title: IEA 2012: 18th World congress on Ergonomics - Designing a sustainable future

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Faber, Gert; ; | Visser, Steven | Van der Molen, Henk F.; | Kuijer, P.Paul F.M. | Hoozemans, Marco J.M.; | Van Dieën, Jaap H. | Frings-Dresen, Monique H.W.

Affiliations: Research Institute MOVE, Faculty of Human Movement Sciences, VU University, Van der Boechorststraat 9, 1081 BT, Amsterdam, The Netherlands | Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, 665 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA | Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety, 71 Frankland Road, Hopkinton, MA 01748, USA | Coronel Institute of Occupational Health, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, PO Box 22700, 1100 DE Amsterdam, the Netherlands | Arbouw, Ceintuurbaan 2, 3847 LG Harderwijk, the Netherlands | EXPres, Faculty of Human Movement Sciences, VU University, Van der Boechorststraat 9, 1081 BT, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Note: [] Corresponding author. E-mail: gertfaber.sci@gmail.com, Tel no.: +1-617-384-8768

Keywords: team lifting, spinal loading, occupational biomechanics, low back pain/injury, construction work

DOI: 10.3233/WOR-2012-0714-4171

Journal: Work, vol. 41, no. Supplement 1, pp. 4171-4173, 2012

Published: 2012
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Abstract

Ironworkers frequently perform heavy lifting tasks in teams of two or four workers. Team lifting could potentially lead to a higher variation in peak lumbar compression forces than lifts performed by one worker, resulting in higher maximal peak lumbar compression forces. This study compared single-worker lifts (25-kg, iron bar) to two-worker lifts (50-kg, two iron bars) and to four-worker lifts (100-kg, iron lattice). Inverse dynamics was used to calculate peak lumbar compression forces. To assess the variability in peak lumbar loading, all three lifting tasks were performed six times. Results showed that the variability in peak lumbar loading was somewhat higher in the team lifts compared to the single-worker lifts. However, despite this increased variability, team lifts did not result in larger maximum peak lumbar compression forces. Therefore, it was concluded that, from a biomechanical point of view, team lifting does not result in an additional risk for low back complaints in ironworkers.

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