a study on occupational ergonomics in paper industry

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.1 ERGONOMICS

Ergonomics is a science concerned with the ‘fit’ between

people and their work. Its concerned with the fit between the

user,equipment and the environments It puts people first,

taking account of their capabilities and limitations.

Ergonomics aims to make sure that tasks, equipment,information

and the environment fit each worker. To assess the fit between

a person and their work, you have to consider a range of

factors, including:

The job/task being done:

The demands on the worker (activities, workload, work

pacing, shiftwork and

fatigue).

The equipment used (its design in terms of size, shape,

controls, displays, and

how appropriate it is for the task).

The information used (how it is presented, accessed, and

changed).

The physical environment (temperature, humidity,

lighting, noise, vibration).

The individual’s physical and psychological characteristics:

Body size and shape.

Fitness and strength.

Posture.

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The senses, especially vision, hearing and touch.

Mental abilities.

Personality.

Knowledge.

Training.

Experience.

The organisation and social environment:

Teamwork and team structure.

Supervision and leadership.

Supportive management.

Communications.

Resources

By assessing people’s abilities and limitations, their jobs,

equipment and working environment and the interaction between

them, it is possible to design safe, effective and productive

work systems. Ergonomics draws on many disciplines in its

study of humans and their environment including anthropometry,

biomechanics, mechanical engineering, industrial engineering,

industrial design, information design, kinesiology, physiology

and psychology

Ergonomics is also called ‘Human Factors Engineering’

Ergonomics looks at what kind of work you do , what tools

you use and your whole job environment. The aim is to find the

best fit between you and your job conditions. Examples of

ergonomic changes to your work may include

Adjusting the position of your mouse or computer keyboard

to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.

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Being sure that the height of your desk chair allows your

feet to rest flat on floor

Learning the right way to lift heavy objects to prevent

back injuries.

Using handle coating or special gloves to suppress

vibrations from power tools or dampen the vibrating tools

On the whole no matter what the job is , the goal is to make

sure that your safe, comfortable and less prone to work

related injuries.

1.1.2 WHAT IS INDUSTRIAL ERGONOMICS

Its the field of ergonomics focussed on the study of how

people use and interact with work equipment. Its used to

improve occupational efficiency and safety. Its related to

type of work tasks such as manufacture foundry, equipment

operators and so on.

There are infinite members of different work tasks to be

considered and to do industrial ergonomics a medical,

anatomical and engineering background is necessary to develop

and install a solution. In industrial ergonomics we are

dealing with someone’s injury or pain following by some

serious engineering thought and prototyping to develop a

solution.

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Testing

Retestin

Final

Prototyping

Figure 1 : Industrial Ergonomics

The most prominent area of industrial ergonomics is the

creation of safer and more effective workplace equipment and

procedures. Often its called as physical ergonomics.

1.1.3 HOW CAN ERGONOMICS AND HUMAN FACTORS IMPROVE HEALTH AND

SAFETY ?

Applying ergonomics to the workplace can

Reduce the potential for accidents

Reduce the potential for injury and ill health

Improve performance and productivity

Taking account of ergonomics and human factors can reduce

the likelihood of an accident. Ergonomics can also reduce the

potential for ill health at work such as aches, pains and

damage to the wrists , shoulders and back , noise induced

hearing loss and work related asthma. Its also a known fact

that many well known accidents might have been prevented if

ergonomics and human factors had been considered in designing

people’s jobs and the systems they worked in.

What kind of problems can ergonomics and human factors solve ?

Ergonomics is typically known for solving physical problems.

But ergonomics also deals with psychological and social

aspects of the person and their work.Some of the typical

ergonomic problems found in the workplace can be summarized as

follows:

Design of tasks related problems

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Manual handling of load related problems

Workstation layout related problems

Working day shifts related problems

These problems can lead to tiredness or exhaustion which can

increase the likelihood of accidents and ill health.

How can I check if there are ergonomic problems ?

Checking for ergonomic problems is part of normal risk

assessment process. This can be done by :

Talking to employees and seeking their views

Walking around your workplace to see if you can spot any

hazards

Reviewing any accidents or reports or ill health you have

had in the past

1.1.4 IMPORTANCE OF EMPLOYEE ERGONOMICS

Industries increasingly require higher production rates and

advances in technology to remain competitive and stay in

business. As a result jobs today can involve :

Frequent lifting . carrying and pushing or pulling loads

without help from other workers or devices

Working at a quicker pace of work such as faster assembly

line speeds and

Having tighter grip when using tools

Why is ergonomics so important today ?

Its because ergonomics have multi faceted , far reaching

effects on all phases of business. Even simple ergonomic

changes in workplace will have profound effects.

As such, may have as much of an impact on the social

revolution in manufacturing in this new century as did

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mechanical manufacturing on the industrial revolution in the

past century.

As seen, the implementation of the effective ergonomics

in the workplace will produce returns of significant magnitude

of the company. By selecting ergonomically designed equipment

and making sure it is used correctly management will be

rewarded with lower disability costs, insurance premiums,

lower absenteeism , increased productivity , fewer rejects and

a greater quality of work life, etc. All important components

to improve profitability and the ability to compete more

effectively.

Although the initial cost of providing equipment

specifically designed with ergonomics in mind may be slightly

higher than purchasing “standard” equipment it is clear that

the tangible and intangible results associated to paying

attention to ergonomics in workplace , will provide benefits

that far outweighs the initial equipment purchase cost. The

equipment purchase costs in reality , are very small and

easily justified from an overall financial “return on

investment” viewpoint.

1.1.5 MEANING

Ergonomics is the study of designing equipments and

devices that fit the human body, its movements and its

cognitive abilities. Ergonomics is employed to fulfil the

three main goals of health, productivity and good employee

morale. Its relevant in design of such things such as safe

furniture and easy-to-use interfaces to machines and

equipment. Proper ergonomic design is necessary to prevent

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repetitive strain injuries, which can develop over time and

can lead to long-term disability.

Ergonomics is sometimes defined as the science of fitting

the work to the user instead of forcing the user to fit the

work. However this is more a primary ergonomic principle

rather than a definition.

Also known as : Human Factors, Human engineering, Human

Factors Engineering

Examples :

Using proper posture and body mechanics , good placement

of computer equipment , comfortable handles and grips as well

as efficient layout of workplace appliances are all aspects of

ergonomics.

DEFINITION :

Ergonomics is defined as the science related to man and

his work, embodying the anatomic , physiologic, and

mechanical principles affecting the efficient use of

human energy.

The International Ergonomic Association has adopted this

technical definition : ergonomics (or human factors) is

the scientific discipline concerned with the

understanding of interactions among humans and other

elements of a system , and the profession that applies

theory , principles , data and methods to deign inorder

to optimize human well-being and overall system

performance.

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Ergonomics defined as the scientific study of the

relationship between man and his working environment.

CONCEPT OF ERGONOMICS :

Ergonomics or human factors is the scientific discipline

concerned with the understanding of the interactions among

humans and other elements of a system, and the profession that

applies theoretical principles , data and methods to design in

order to optimize human well being and overall system

performance. Practitioners of ergonomics, ergonomists

contribute the planning, design and evaluation of tasks,

jobs, products, organisations, environments and systems in

order to make them compatible with the needs, abilities and

limitations of people.

Human factors and ergonomics is the discipline that

focuses on the nature of human artefact interactions, viewed

from the unified perspective of the science , engineering

design technology and management of human-compatible systems.

The ILO defined ergonomics as , ‘The application of human

biological sciences in conjunction with engineering sciences

to the worker and his working environment, so as to obtain

maximum satisfaction of the work which at the same time

enhances productivity.’ An analysis of the ILO definition ,

therefore provides a more meaningful basis to understand

ergonomics .An ergonomist inorder to make work more

effective , tries to integrate the work system (which broadly

includes the tasks, working conditions, and working place)

with the capabilities and requirements of work. In this

process therefore he/she tries to ensure job satisfaction for8

the workers, which among other things increases their

productivity.

In all schemes of human activity ergonomics can be applied ,

be it in offices, factories, shops or airlines.Some of the

areas where ergonomics has been successfully applied are as

follows :

Design of equipment power and hand tools

Design of displays and warning systems

Design of furniture, seats, rests and steps for operators

Design of tools, jigs and fixtures

Plant layout

Improvement in working conditions and environment

Computation of relaxation allowances for workers

Selection, training, placement of personnel

Motivation of workers

In short , ergonomics concepts include

Tool design

Workstation design

Material handling limits

Visual and auditory task design

TYPES OF ERGONOMICS :

Physical ergonomics :

Physical ergonomics is concerned with human anatomical ,

anthropometric, physiological and biomechanic characteristics

as they relate to physical activity . The relevant topics

include working postures , material handling, repetitive

movements, work related musculoskeletal disorders, workplace

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layout, safety and health. Sources mainly used to collect are

injury and illness logs, medical records and job analysis

Cognitive ergonomics :

Cognitive ergonomics is concerned with mental processes ,

such as perception, memory, reasoning and motor response as

they affect interactions among humans and other elements of a

system. The relevant topics include mental workload, decision

making, skilled performance , human-computer interaction,

human reliability, work stress and training as these may

relate to human-system design.

Organizational ergonomics :

Organizational ergonomics is concerned with the

optimization of socio technical systems, including their

organizational structures , policies and processes. The

relevant topics include communication, crew resource

management, work design, design of working times , teamwork,

participatory design, community ergonomics , cooperative work,

new work paradigms, organizational culture, virtual

organizations, telework and quality management.

BENEFITS OF ERGONOMICS

Lower injury and accident rates

Improved reliability

Products that are easier to use

Systems and products that operate efficiently

Greater user comfort

Faster learning times10

Fewer errors

Easier maintenance

Improved aesthetics

A general increase in job satisfaction

Less absenteeism

Less labour turnover ( with less recruitment, training

time and down-time costs)

Improved competitiveness of products and services

Increase in productivity

PRINCIPLES OF ERGONOMICS

Principle 1 : Work in neutral postures

Principle 2 : Reduce excessive force

Principle 3 : Keep everything in easy reach

Principle 4 : Work at proper heights

Principle 5: Reduce excessive motions

Principle 6 : Minimise fatigue and static load

Principle 7 : Minimise pressure points

Principle 8 : Provide clearance

Principle 9 : Move , exercise and stretch

Principle 10 : Maintain a comfortable environment

THE VALUE OF ERGONOMICS

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ERGONOMICS :

Human-centered design ; the scientific discipline concerned

with design according to human and organizational needs

COST SAVINGS :

Reduction in workers’ compensation claims due to healthier

work environments and fewer injuries.

EMPLOYEE MORALE :

Organizations that invest in human capital that lead to

employees who feel valued and respected , resulting in higher

morale and lower turnover

PRODUCTIVITY AND QUALITY :

A properly fitted environment along with improved employee

morale , translated into greater productivity , higher quality

products and better services provided

PROFITS :

By lowering costs, reaping higher quality products and better

services , increased profits result.

ROI : Ergonomics = Cost savings + Employee morale +

Productivity and quality + Profits = Return on Investment.

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SCOPE OF ERGONOMICS :

The scope of ergonomics is extremely wide and is not

limited to any particular industry or application. Ergonomics

comes into everything which involves people. Work systems ,

sports and leisure, health and safety should all embody

ergonomics principles if well designed.

AIM OF ERGONOMICS :

The aim of ergonomics is to enhance and preserve human

health and satisfaction and to optimize the human performance

in a system perspective.

Ergonomics is concerned with both employees’ well-being and

organization well-being.

ERGONOMIC PROBLEMS :

Ergonomic problems can be caused both work associated and

non-work associated conditions can either individually or by

both interacting with each other.

There are many ways to determine which are the conditions

of workplace that can lead to ergonomic problems. The main

risk for ergonomic problems like Repetitive Strain Injury and

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome are the frequent repetitive motion

tasks , awkward posture, vibrations, forceful movements,

stress at workplace, poor workplace setup.

Symptoms of ergonomic problems :

1. Pain in wrists , forearms, elbows, neck or back followed

by discomfort

2. Aching or tingling

3. Dry, itchy or sore eyes

4. Loss of colour in affected regions

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5. Blurred or double vision

6. Cramping

7. Numbness or a burning sensation

8. Reduced grip strength in the hand

9. Swelling or stiffness in the wrist joints

10. Reduced range of motion in the shoulder , neck or

back

11. Weakness

12. Tension stress headaches and related ailments

The main causes of these problems are :

1. Awkward posture

2. Frequent repetitive motion tasks

3. Stress at workplace

4. Vibrations

5. Forceful movements

6. Poor workplace setup

7. Sitting in same posture for continuous long hours

8. Lower back support is inadequate

TYPES OF ERGONOMIC PROBLEMS :

1. Musculoskeletal Disorders

2. Ergonomic Problem –Eye

3. Repetitive Strain Injury

4. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

5. Other Ergonomic Problems

MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS (MSD):

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Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are conditions that

affect your body’s muscles, joints, tendons,ligaments, and

nerves. MSDs can develop over time or can occur immediately

due to overload.

Musculoskeletal disorders (abbreviation: MSD) is a term

that refers to soft tissue injuries that occur gradually over

time and can affect

muscles, tendons,

ligaments, joints and

nerves.  These injuries

can develop when the

same muscles are used

over long periods

without adequate

rest.

MSDs are degenerative diseases and inflammatory

conditions that cause pain and impair normal activities.They

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Figure 3 :

can affect many different parts of the body including upper

and lower back, neck, shoulders and extremities (arms, legs,

feet, and hands).MSDs can arise from a sudden exertion (e.g.,

lifting a heavy object), or they can arise from making the

same motions repeatedly repetitive strain, or from repeated

exposure to force, vibration, or awkward posture. Examples of

specific MSD disorders are carpal tunnel

syndrome, epicondylitis, and tendinitis. Abrasions,

contusions, and fractures that occur from sudden physical

contact with objects that might occur in an accident are not

considered MSDs.

 Remember, identifying problems at the early stage

significantly reduces the risk of developing a serious

musculoskeletal disorder.

MSD Signs and Symptoms Include:

1. Inflammation

2. Redness

3. Decreased range of motion.

4. Loss of function

5. Tingling

6. Numbness

7. Stiffness

8. Pain/tenderness

9. Muscle weakness

10. Fatigue

11. Decreased grip strength

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Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are associated

with these factors:

Work postures and movements.

Repetitiveness and pace of work.

Force of movements.

Vibration.

Temperature.

Lack of influence or control over one's job.

Increase pressure (e.g., to produce more).

Lack of or poor communication.

Monotonous tasks.

Perception of low support (e.g., manager or co-worker).

Certain workplace conditions, for example, the layout of

the workstation, the speed of work (especially in conveyor-

driven jobs), and the weight of the objects being handled

influence these factors. In other situations, the psychosocial

factors at the workplace may contribute to Work-related MSDs.

It is recommended that both physical and psychosocial factors

be addressed.

How are work postures and movements a risk for WMSDs?

Any body position can cause discomfort and fatigue if it

is maintained for long periods of time.  Standing, for

example, is a natural body posture, and by itself poses no

particular health hazards. However, working for long periods

in a standing position can cause sore feet, general muscular

fatigue, and low back pain. In addition, improper layout of

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work areas, and certain tasks can make workers use unnatural

standing positions.

Two aspects of body position can contribute to injuries.

The first relates to body position. When parts of the body are

near the extremes of their range of movements, stretching and

compression of tendons and nerves occur. The longer a fixed or

awkward body position is used, the more likely we are to

develop WMSDs. For example, working with the torso bent

forward (Figure 1), backward or twisted can place too much

stress on the low back. Other examples of stressful body

positions include reaching above shoulder level (Figure 2),

reaching behind the body (Figure 3), rotating the arms (Figure

4), bending the wrist forward, backward, or side to side

(Figure 5), and reaching forward too far out in front of the

body (Figure 6).

The second aspect that contributes to WMSDs is holding

the neck and the shoulders in a fixed position. To perform any

controlled movement with the arm, muscles in the shoulder and

the neck contract and stay contracted for as long as the task

requires.

The contracted muscles squeeze the blood vessels, which

restricts the flow of blood all the way down to the working

muscles of the hand.

However, this is where the blood is needed the most

because of the intense muscular effort. Two things happen as a

result. The neck/shoulder muscles become overtired even though

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there is little or no movement. At the same time, the reduced

blood supply to the rest of the arm accelerates fatigue in the

muscles that are moving, making them more prone to injury.

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Figure 4 : Bending forward Figure 5 : Reaching aboveshoulder level

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Figure 6 : Reaching behind the body Figure 7 : Rotating the arms

Figure 8 : Bending the wrist Figure 9 : Reaching forward

How does vibration encourage WMSDs?

Vibration affects tendons, muscles, joints and nerves.

Workers can be exposed to either whole body vibration or

localized vibration.

Whole body vibration is experienced by truck and bus

drivers for example. Localized vibration exposure can be

caused by power tools. Common symptoms are numbness of the

fingers, loss of touch and grip, and pain. In addition, the

worker may use more force and awkward body positions because

vibration hand tools are harder to control.

Exposure to too much vibration can also cause us to lose

the feeling in our hands and arms. As a result, we may

misjudge the amount of force we need to control the tools and

use too much which increases fatigue.

How does temperature affect WMSDs?

In general, when it is too cold, or when we touch cold

materials, our hands can become numb. With numbed hands, we

are more likely to misjudge the amount of force we need to do

our work and use too much. A cold environment also makes our

bodies less flexible. Every movement we make and every

position we hold takes a lot more work, and then WMSDs are

more likely to develop.

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When it is too hot and too humid, workers tire more

quickly and thereby may become more susceptible to injury.

REPETITIVE STRAIN INJURY (RSI) :

Repetitive strain injury (RSI) is a general term used to

describe the pain felt in muscles, nerves and tendons caused

by repetitive movement and overuse.It's also called work-

related upper limb disorder or non-specific upper limb

pain.The condition mostly affects parts of the upper body,

such as the forearm, elbow, wrist, hands, neck and shoulders.

The symptoms can vary, but often include:

pain or tenderness

stiffness

tingling or numbness

cramp

What causes RSI?

RSI is usually associated with doing a particular

activity repeatedly or for a long period of time. It often

occurs in people who work with computers or carry out

repetitive manual work.

Certain things are thought to increase the risk of RSI,

including:

doing a high-intensity activity for a long time

without rest

poor posture or activities that require you to work

in an awkward position

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stress

cold temperatures

How RSI is treated

The first step in treating RSI is usually to identify and

modify the task or activity that is causing the symptoms. If

necessary, you may need to stop doing the activity altogether.

RSI can be divided into two types. Type I is when the

pain is the result of a specific medical condition, such

as carpal tunnel syndrome or tennis elbow. Type II is when no

specific cause can be found and is often referred to as non-

specific upper limb pain.

How to prevent RSI

Employers have a legal duty to prevent work-related RSI

and make sure that the symptoms of anyone who already has the

condition do not get worse.Most employers will carry out a

risk assessment when you join a company to check your work

area is suitable and comfortable for you.

There are also things you can do to help reduce your risk

of RSI, such as maintaining a good posture at work, taking

regular breaks from long or repetitive tasks, and trying

relaxation techniques if you are stressed.

CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME (CTS) :

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a hand and arm condition that

causes numbness, tingling and other symptoms. Carpal tunnel

syndrome is caused by a pinched nerve in your wrist.A number

of factors can contribute to carpal tunnel syndrome, including

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the anatomy of your wrist, certain underlying health problems

and possibly patterns of hand use.

Bound by bones and ligaments, the carpal tunnel is a

narrow passageway located on the palm side of your wrist. This

tunnel protects a main nerve to your hand and the nine tendons

that bend your fingers. Compression of the nerve produces the

numbness, tingling and, eventually, hand weakness that

characterize carpal tunnel syndrome. Fortunately, for most

people who develop carpal tunnel syndrome, proper treatment

usually can relieve the tingling and numbness and restore

wrist and hand function.

Symptoms :

Carpal tunnel syndrome usually starts gradually with

numbness or tingling in your thumb, index and middle fingers

that comes and goes. This may be associated with discomfort in

your wrist and hand. Common carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms

include:

Tingling or numbness. You may experience tingling and

numbness in your fingers or hand, especially your thumb and

index, middle or ring fingers, but not your little finger.

This sensation often occurs while holding a steering wheel,

phone or newspaper or, commonly, waking you from sleeping.

The sensation may extend from your wrist up your arm.

Many people "shake out" their hands to try to relieve their

symptoms. As the disorder progresses, the numb feeling may

become constant.

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Weakness. You may experience weakness in your hand and a

tendency to drop objects. This may be due to the numbness in

your hand or weakness of the thumb's pinching muscles, which

are controlled by the median nerve.

ORGANIZATIONAL ERGONOMICS

Organizational ergonomics is a branch, or domain,

of ergonomics that focuses mainly on the optimization of what

are known as "sociotechnical" systems, or systems that include

people and stuff. The concept of a sociotechnical system does

include a number of abstract components that need to be

considered for optimization including culture, habits, human

capability, human-machine interfaces, production streamlining,

reliability, et al. Organizational ergonomics looks at the

components that make up a sociotechnical system as well as the

organizational structure and all policies and processes that

govern the system.

The dominant public view of ergonomics focuses only upon

the physical domain, and most ergonomic products and services

fall into this field. Meanwhile, with the evolution of the

automated workplace , the domains of cognitive and

organizational ergonomics are gradually gaining importance.

Organizational ergonomics, which combines elements of both the

physical and cognitive domains, comprises the newest of these

fields. 

Organizational ergonomics most often deals with the work

related subjects of: communication; teamwork; resource

management work design and elements of how people work

independently and together effectively; organizational25

culture; telecommuting and telework; matrix management; and

quality management.

THE FOCUS OF ORGANIZATIONAL ERGONOMICS 

Also sometimes known as macro-ergonomics,

organizational ergonomics focuses on optimizing socio-

technical systems and organizing structures, policies and

processes in order to maximize efficiency. This domain

addresses more subjective aspects of the workplace: 

Communication

Crew resources and management

Work schedule design

Teamwork

Participatory design

Cooperative work

New work paradigms

Quality management

Virtual organizations

Community ergonomics

AIM OF ORGANIZATIONAL ERGONOMICS 

The goal of organizational ergonomics is the

attainment of a fully harmonized work system that

ensures employee job satisfaction and commitment. It also

includes the study of technology’s consequences on human

relationships, processes, and institutions. Typical

interventions are as follows:

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Including workers in identifying and resolving ergonomic

issues. This is also known as participatory ergonomics 

Improving total system processes, such as manufacturing value

streams and managerial processes 

Successfully installing safety as an integral part of

the organizational culture.

APPLICATIONS OF ORGANIZATIONAL ERGONOMICS 

The most widespread application for organizational

ergonomics is in the introduction and integration of new

technology into the workplace. As companies implement new

technologies, they must consider several factors of those

tools:

Functions

Capabilities

Capacities

User-friendliness

Integration

The organizational branch of ergonomics is often overlooked

in the workplace because it concentrates on intangible

factors. While it may be more difficult to quantify the

effects of organizationally ergonomic interventions, employers

will reap benefits. These include greater employee

satisfaction and higher productivity.

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1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM :

The key issue in industrial ergonomics is to analyse the

workplace ergonomics of the organization which maximizes the

productivity and at the same time serves to improve the

employee morale. This study aims at analyzing factors

influencing ergonomics in Nithya packaging Pvt .Ltd. and to

find out the level of satisfaction of ergonomics among the

employees in the organization.

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1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

To assess the industrial ergonomics and its effect on

employees at Nithya Packaging

To find out the major causes for ergonomic problems

To know and understand employee feel towards their

work postures and repetitive body movements at work

To determine the level of satisfaction of ergonomics

among the employees in Nithya Packaging

To identify the morale level of employees in Nithya

Packaging

To suggest ways for improving the existing ergonomics

carried out in the organization.

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1.4 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS :

CORRELATION :HYPOTHESIS

Ho = There is no significant relationship between the

ergonomic effort and morale level of employees

H1= There is significant relationship between the

ergonomic effort and morale level of employees

T-TEST :HYPOTHESIS

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Ho = There is no significant difference between the

gender and opinion of the existing ergonomic effort taken

by the company.

H1 = There is no significant difference between the

gender and opinion of the existing ergonomic effort taken

by the company.

ONE WAY ANNOVA:HYPOTHESIS

Ho = There is no significant difference between the

stressed postures and designation of employees.

H1 = There is significant difference between the

stressed postures and designation of employees.

TWO WAY ANNOVA:HYPOTHESIS

Ho = There is no significant difference between the

morale level and salary, designation of employees.

H1 = There is significant difference between the morale

level and salary, designation of employees.

1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY :

The overall objective of the project is to identify the

difficulties of the employees at workplace, to determine the

safety measures of the employees and to examine the efficiency

level of employee morale at Nithya Packaging. Scope of the

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study is to improve their organization ergonomics and to

maximize the employee morale and thereby maximize productivity

with the help of this project

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1.6 LIMITATIONS OF STUDY

The focus of the study was to evaluate the industrialworkplace ergonomics at Nithya Packaging Private Limited.

Some of the limitations were :-

The success of the study largely depends on the response

of the respondents.

The responses given by the selected respondents may be

subjected to bias.

Getting permission from the Human Resource Department

and meeting the employees was difficult.

Since the time duration is short , it was not enough to

conduct elaborate study.

Some of the employees were reluctant in giving their

whole-hearted opinion due to the fear on their

management.

Evaluation was conducted on the employees’ reaction only

through questionnaire. Other experimental tests of

evaluation were not followed.

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1.7 MAIN STUDY – RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

INTRODUCTION :

Research methodology is a systematic way to solve a

problem. It is a science of studying how research is to be

carried out. Essentially, the procedures by which

researchers go about their work of describing, explaining

and predicting phenomena are called research methodology.

It is also de ned as the study of methods by whichfi

knowledge is gained. Its aim is to give the work plan of

research.

It is necessary for a researcher to design a methodology

for the problem chosen. One should note that even if the

method considered in two problems are same the methodology

may be different. It is important for the researcher to know

not only the research methods necessary for the research

under taken but also the methodology.34

MEANING OF RESEARCH :

It is an investigation of nding solutions to scienti cfi fi

and social problems through objective and systematic

analysis. It is a search for knowledge, that is, a

discovery of hidden truths. Here knowledge means

information about matters. The information might be

collected from di erent sources like experience, humanff

beings, books, journals, nature, etc. A research can lead

to new contributions to the existing knowledge. Only

through research is it possible to make progress in a eld.fi

Research is indeed civilization and determines the

economic, social and political development of a nation. The

results of scienti c research very often force a change infi

the philosophical view of problems which extend far beyond

the restricted domain of science itself.

Research is not con ned to science and technology only.fi

There are vast areas of research in other disciplines such

as languages, literature, history and sociology. Whatever

might be the subject, research has to be an active,

diligent and systematic process of inquiry in order to

discover, interpret or revise facts, events, behaviours and

theories. Applying the outcome of research for the

re nement of knowledge in other subjects, or in enhancingfi

the quality of human life also becomes a kind of research

and development.

RESEARCH DESIGN :

Plan your work and work your plan is the suggestion of

Napolean Hill. For a scienti c research one has to preparefi

35

a research design. It should indicate the various

approaches to be used in solving the research problem,

sources and information related to the problem and, time

frame and the cost budget. Essentially, the research design

creates the foundation of the entire research work. The

design will help perform the chosen task easily and in a

systematic way.

Once the research design is completed the actual work can

be initiated. The rst step in the actual work is to learnfi

the facts pertaining to the problem. Particularly,

theoretical methods, numerical techniques, experimental

techniques and other relevant data and tools necessary for

the present study have to be collected and learnt.

The research design undertaken for the study is

Descriptive one . A fact-finding investigation with adequate

interpretation. Its used when the researcher wants to

describe a specific behaviour. Its mostly qualitative in

nature.

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH :

Descriptive research involves three main

categories: observation, case studies, and surveys. Of these

I have chosen the survey method of descriptive research

because to gather information related to the interests,

preferences, and motivation of a target group of people

which would be relevant for my project The purpose of a

descriptive research is to examine a phenomenon that is

occurring at a specific place(s) and time. A descriptive

research is concerned with conditions, practices,36

structures, differences or relationships that exist,

opinions held, processes that are going on or trends that

are evident. Further the descriptive research can be further

considered as cross sectional and longitudinal study of

which I have chosen the cross sectional research for my

study

SAMPLING SIZE AND TECHNIQUE :

Selecting a particular group of target people from a wider

population is sampling.

Convenience sampling : technique was adopted . Here the

population data is selected based on the ease of access of

researcher. The population selected is readily

available.This type of sampling is suitable for pilot

study .Its also used for small scale quantitative research

to avoid time and money being wasted.

TYPE OF UNIVERSE : The first step in developing any sample

is clearly defining the set of objectives, technically

called universe, to be studies. Here the universe is the

employees of Nithya Packaging Private Limited.

Sampling Plan :

Due to enormity of cost and time involved in collecting

information from all the respondents, it becomes a

compulsion to schoose a sample of population. Sample plan

explains the sampling unit, sample size and sampling method.

Sampling Technique:

37

A sampling plan is a definite design for obtaining a sample

from the sampling frame. It refers to the techniques or the

procedure that the researcher would adopt in selecting some

sampling units from which inferences about the population is

drawn. Sampling design is determined before any data are

collected.

Sampling Method:

Sampling method followed by the investigator is Convenience

Sampling. In this method the researcher select those units

of the population in the sample, which appear convenient to

him or the management of the organization where he is

conducting research.

1.8 SAMPLE SIZE :It refers to the number of elements to be included in the

study. The total population is 175. In this study the sample

size was bounded to 80. A well-structured questionnaire was

framed in order to extract the required information from the

respondents. Questionnaire was collected through personal

interview.

1.9 GEOGRAPHICAL COVERAGE :

The study has been conducted at Nithya Packaging Pvt .Ltd.,

Thirukanchi village Villianur Commune, Puducherry. The study

has been undertaken for a period of 2 months.

1.10 FIELDWORK AND COLLECTION OF DATA :

38

The field work is done at Nithya Packaging Private

Limited , Puducherry.

Primary Data :

The data that is collected afresh for the first time and

thus happen to be original in character is called primary

data.The primary data was collected from the employees of

Nithya Packaging Private Limited, through a direct structured,

standard questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed and

the respondents were asked to fill the questionnaire.

Data Collection Method :

Survey method is considered the best method for data

collection and the tool used for data collection is

Questionnaire. Private individuals , research workers, private

and public organizations and even government are adopting

it .In this method a questionnaire is collected through

personal interview. A questionnaire consists of a number of

questions which involves both specific and general questions

related to industrial ergonomics.

Questionnaire Construction :

In constructing questionnaire , care was taken to

investigate the difficulties the respondent may face while

answering them. It was prepared keeping in view the objective

of the study. During the constructing care was taken to avoid

questions, which may lead to misinterpretation. The question

thus constructed was a structured one so as to collect all the

relevant information. The questions were arranged in a logical

order/sensible sequence. The questions were collected by

39

ordering them into different sections to make it clear to the

respondents about what they are answering. The questionnaire

consists of a variety of questions presented to the employees

for their response. A combination of yes/no , multiple choice

questions and likert 5 point scale questions were used to

collect data.

1.11DATA ANALYSIS & STATISTICAL TOOLS :

In this study data analysis is mainly done using five

important statistical tools like Percentage Method, One way

anova method, Two way anova method, Correlation method and

Independent Samples T-test for testing the reliability and

40

accuracy of the collected data. Each and every analysis of

data is interpreted by drawing inference for clear and easy

understanding to the readers.

Percentage Method :

The earliest method used in analysis is percentage

method.

No. of respondents for each

response

Percentage =

------------------------------------------------------ *

100

Total Number of

respondents 

Descriptive Statistics :

Minimum. The smallest value of a numeric variable.

Maximum. Mean and Sum. The mean, or arithmetic average,

is displayed by default.

Dispersion. Statistics that measure the spread or

variation in the data include the standard deviation,

variance, range, minimum, maximum, and standard error of

the mean.

Std. deviation. A measure of dispersion around the mean.

In a normal distribution, 68% of cases fall within one

standard deviation of the mean and 95% of cases fall

within two standard deviations. For example, if the mean

age is 45, with a standard deviation of 10, 95% of the

cases would be between 25 and 65 in a normal

distribution.41

Variance. A measure of dispersion around the mean, equal

to the sum of squared deviations from the mean divided by

one less than the number of cases. The variance is

measured in units that are the square of those of the

variable itself.

Range. The difference between the largest and smallest

values of a numeric variable, the maximum minus the

minimum.

Thelargestvalueofanumericvariable.

S.E. mean. A measure of how much the value of the mean

may vary from sample to sample taken from the same

distribution. It can be used to roughly compare the

observed mean to a hypothesized value (that is, you can

conclude the two values are different if the ratio of the

difference to the standard error is less than -2 or

greater than +2).

Correlation :

Correlation is a statistical technique that can show

whether and how strongly pairs of variables are related.

Allows an examination of the relationship between variables;

is there a relationship between these variables? Are they

positively or negatively related? A correlation coefficient of

0 means that there is no relationship between the variables, -

1 negative relationship, 1 positive relationship.

The most familiar measure of dependence between two

quantities is the Pearson product-moment correlation

coefficient, or "Pearson's correlation coefficient", commonly

called simply "the correlation coefficient". It is obtained by

42

dividing the covariance of the two variables by the product of

their standard deviations. Karl Pearson developed the

coefficient from a similar but slightly different idea

by Francis Galton.

The population correlation coefficient ρX,Y,

between two random variables X and Y with expected

values μX and μY and standard deviations σX and σY is defined

as:

where E is the expected value operator, cov means covariance,

and, corr a widely used alternative notation for the

correlation coefficient.

The Pearson correlation is defined only if both of the

standard deviations are finite and nonzero. It is a corollary

of the Cauchy–Schwarz inequality that the correlation cannot

exceed 1 in absolute value. The correlation coefficient is

symmetric: corr(X,Y) = corr(Y,X).

The Pearson correlation is +1 in the case of a perfect

direct (increasing) linear relationship (correlation), −1 in

the case of a perfect decreasing (inverse) linear relationship

(anticorrelation), and some value between −1 and 1 in all

other cases, indicating the degree of linear

dependence between the variables. As it approaches zero there

is less of a relationship (closer to uncorrelated). The closer

43

the coefficient is to either −1 or 1, the stronger the

correlation between the variables.

If the variables are independent, Pearson's correlation

coefficient is 0, but the converse is not true because the

correlation coefficient detects only linear dependencies

between two variables. For example, suppose the random

variable X is symmetrically distributed about zero, and Y = X2.

Then Y is completely determined by X, so that X and Y are

perfectly dependent, but their correlation is zero; they

are uncorrelated. However, in the special case

when X and Y are jointly normal, uncorrelatedness is

equivalent to independence.

ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE(ANOVA) :

Analysis of variance (ANOVA) is a collection

of statistical models used to analyze the differences between

group means and their associated procedures (such as

"variation" among and between groups), developed by R.A.

Fisher. In the ANOVA setting, the observed variance in a

particular variable is partitioned into components

attributable to different sources of variation. In its

simplest form, ANOVA provides a statistical test of whether or

not the means of several groups are equal, and therefore

generalizes the t-test to more than two groups.

ANOVA is used in the analysis of comparative experiments,

those in which only the difference in outcomes is of interest.

The statistical significance of the experiment is determined

by a ratio of two variances. This ratio is independent of

44

several possible alterations to the experimental observations:

Adding a constant to all observations does not alter

significance. Multiplying all observations by a constant does

not alter significance. So ANOVA statistical significance

results are independent of constant bias and scaling errors as

well as the units used in expressing observations.

1. ONE WAY ANOVA

2. TWO WAY ANOVA

ONE WAY ANOVA :

It has been termed as one-way as there is only one

category whose effect has been studied and balanced as the

same number of men has been assigned on each exercise. Thus

the basic idea is to test whether the samples are all alike or

not.

TWO WAY ANOVA : In statistics, the two-way analysis of

variance (ANOVA) is an extension of the one-way ANOVA that

examines the influence of two different categorical

independent variables on one dependent variable. The two-way

ANOVA can not only determine the main effect of contributions

of each independent variable but also identifies if there is

a significant interaction effect between them.

T-TEST :

A t-test helps you compare whether two groups have

different average values , “independent samples t-test”, the

most common form of t-test. The t-test’s statistical

45

significance and the t-test’s effect size are the two primary

outputs of the t-test. Statistical significance indicates

whether the difference between sample averages is likely to

represent an actual difference between populations (as in the

example above), and the effect size indicates whether that

difference is large enough to be practically meaningful.

The “One Sample T-Test” is similar to the “Independent

Samples T-Test” except it is used to compare one group’s

average value to a single number .The independent-samples t-

test (or independent t-test, for short) compares the means

between two unrelated groups on the same continuous, dependent

variable

The formula for calculating t for equal sized independent

samples is shown below :

46

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

I. AUTHOR : D.Battini , Year : 2000

LINKING ERGONOMICS EVALUATION AND ASSEMBLY SYSTEM DESIGN

PROBLEM IN A NEW INTEGRATED PROCEDURE :

Several published case studies demonstrate that

ergonomics considerations might lead to change the

workstations layout and task time values. Traditional

procedures take into account only task time analysis and

precedence relations, while human postures evaluation is often

not integrated in these techniques. Up to now many industrial

fields require a systematic approach to allow assembly system

design including ergonomics guidelines. The aim of this paper

is to investigate how ergonomics and assembly system

configurations are intimately related in practice, and to

develop a conceptual framework for the assembly system design,

in conjunction with ergonomics optimization of the work place.

An industrial case to illustrate the procedure application is

presented and advanced simulation software is used, as final

step, to validate the procedure and support the theoretical

framework.

II. AUTHOR : Jorgan Eklund , Year : 2001

47

A DEVELOPMENT QUALITY APPROACH FOR ERGONOMICS :

The relationships between the two disciplines quality and

ergonomics have been given increasing attention during the

last years. The aim of this paper is to elaborate on the

opportunities of improving ergonomics applications on the

basis of a quality development approach. Participation in

quality development concepts such as Continuous Improvement

has a good record and potential to contribute to improved

ergonomics. TQM is a proponent for process orientation. A

process is in fact a series of human work activities. High

qualityproducts and efficiency can only be obtained if each

employee gets the opportunity to perform and deliver good

quality to the next process. Quality production and survival

of quality concepts necessitate considerations to the

employees in the organisation. The introduction of ISO 9000

seems to give mixed results, both regarding organizational

performance and quality of work. The main issue deciding

whether the effects of quality concepts on health, safety and

working conditions will be positive or not seems to be the way

the quality concepts are practised and implemented. A

regulatory view restricts personnel involvement and produces

few benefits, while a development oriented approach instead

contributes to a positive outcome

III. AUTHOR : Majorkumar Govindaraju, Technical Information

Management Services, Inc.,Ohio, Arunkumar Pennathur,

University Of Texas At El Paso,Texas Usa, Anil Mital

University Of Cincinnati ,Ohio, Usa., Year : 2002

48

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT IN MANUFACTURING THROUGH HUMAN

PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT

In the increasingly competitive global economy, survival of

an industry depends on catering to customer needs by quickly

producing quality products and providing quality service at an

affordable price. In production, or in service, ergonomic

considerations have manifested themselves in two distinct, yet

related, domains. Focuses on the humans who contribute to

product manufacture/service. It is frequently advocated that

since humans are unreliable and less consistent, compared to

machines, they are primarily responsible for lowering product

and service quality. Ergonomic considerations, which,

ironically, can improve human performance, are paid lip

service during manufacturing system design. Compounding the

problem is the current inability of most ergonomists to make

ergonomic recommendations that do not run counter to the

productivity and quality goals of system designers. Addresses

these two issues by illustrating, through four case studies,

the relationship between quality and variables that affect

human performance

IV. AUTHOR : W.P. Neumann , Year : 2002

INITIATING AN ERGONOMIC PROCESS

Establishing a new ergonomics process in a company

poses a special challenge to the ergonomics practitioner. The

aim of this paper is to identify barriers and assists to the

initiation of an ergonomics process and to raise awareness of

these issues for both practitioners and researchers trying to

49

initiate ergonomics intervention activities. We report on

results from focus group sessions held with industrial

personnel focussing on the initiation of ergonomics processes.

Two cases of ergonomics process initiation are then presented

and interpreted in light of these findings. Critical aspects

for start up may include the point of entry into the

organisation as well as both the base of support for

ergonomics and the chain of authority in the organisation.

Awareness of these factors will allow a growth strategy to be

applied so that credibility, support, and activity expand from

small but visible first ergonomics initiatives. Gaining

support of top and middle managers is a key first objective.

V. AUTHOR : Jan Kaczmerak, Munchira Akita USA, Year : 1991

ERGONOMIC DESIGN OF MAN-MACHINE SYSTEMS

From the review of International design activity which is

limited to Japan and the USA (Munehira Akita, 1991), Its clear

that design is of increasing importance as an integral part of

modern ergonomics, whether micro or macro The word design is

prevalent among human factors engineering texts and is widely

used when conslderlng almost every problem. For example, one

might cite the following

I) the design of visual dlsplays for ease and speed of

integration,

ii) the design of knobs, control handles and pedals to match

human

performance,

50

iii) the design of visual and auditory equipment and

communication system to

ensure accurate communication,

iv) the design of visual display terminals and human computer

interface

systems to fit the user's physiological and cognitive

functions,

v) the design of homes, public and commercial buildings,

cities and their

environment to secure satisfactory Iife, welfare and

prosperity,

vi) the design of transport systems for safe and convenient

movement, and,

vii) the design for human-machine system organisations for

simple and effective

management

Thus any product/machine/equipment, no matter what its,

whatever its function, must be evaluated In terms of

maximising the interaction between the

product/machine/equipment and user to make

product/machine/equipment appropriate for human use. Generally

speaking ergonomics seeks to design elements from simple tools

to the work environment itself, that are best matched in terms

of the capabillties and limitations of human performances. The

human activities involved in the operation will be analysed

51

and assessed by the designer through task analysis but he or

she will also draw on data obtained from experimentation with

a potentia1 user Product specification should be matched to

user equipment (Jan Kaczmarek, 1979). In Japan almost all

products including modern high-tech products such as cameras,

audio-visual equipment, automobiles, personal computers are

designed 5 5 ergonomically The Japan lndustrial Design

Promotion Organisation (JIDPO) awards "Good Design" for

products with G-Marks, considering all aspects of design

including ergonomics (Munchira Akita, 1991)

The products that ergonomists have helped in the design

and development cover an enormous range (A.Chapanis, 1995)

such as tooth brushes, hammers, chairs, dental equipment,

telephones, keyboards, copiers, computer work stations,

automobiles, tractors, aircraft, military weapons systems,

nuclear power plants, off shore or drilling platforms, arr

traffic control systems and space vehicles

52

CHAPTER III

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF INDUSTRY

3.1 PROFILE OF THE INDIAN MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY :

Manufacturing is the production of merchandise for use or

sale using labor and machines, tools, chemical and biological

processing, or formulation. The term may refer to a range of

human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most

commonly applied to industrialproduction, in which raw

materials are transformed into finished goods on a large

scale. Such finished goods may be used for manufacturing

other, more complex products, such as aircraft, household

appliances or automobiles, or sold to wholesalers, who in turn

sell them to retailers, who then sell them to end users – the

"consumers". Manufacturing systems are concerned with the

conversion of physical inputs into physical outputs by using

workers, machines, and equipment.

Production systems are concerned with the modeling

and engineering management of converting inputs into outputs

using forecasting, inventory, production planning, and

scheduling. Operation systems are concerned with a broad view

of such conversions; they include strategic decisions such as

53

product design and development, quality policies, logistical

systems,facility location decisions, facility layout, human

resources , supply chain management, quality

control, reliability, and maintenance.

Operation systems are also concerned with efficiently

delivering quality products and services to customers in a

timely and cost-effective manner. Supply chain management

involves purchasing, storing, and distributing raw materials

and semifinished and finished products through a network of

suppliers, production facilities, and distributors.

Production, operation, and manufacturing systems are also

concerned with developing systems’ capabilities and utilizing

resources effectively to fulfill the needs of the customers.

Manufacturing takes turns under all types of economic

systems. In a free market economy, manufacturing is usually

directed toward the mass production of products for sale

toconsumers at a profit. In a collectivist economy,

manufacturing is more frequently directed by the state to

supply a centrally planned economy. In mixed market economies,

manufacturing occurs under some degree of

government regulation.

Modern manufacturing includes all intermediate processes

required for the production and integration of a product's

components. Some industries, such

as semiconductor andsteel manufacturers use the

term fabrication instead.

The manufacturing sector is closely connected

with engineering and industrial design.54

Industrial policy :

Economics of manufacturing :

According to some economists, manufacturing is a wealth-

producing sector of an economy, whereas a service sector tends

to be wealth-consuming. Emerging technologieshave provided

some new growth in advanced manufacturing employment

opportunities in the Manufacturing Belt in the United States.

Manufacturing provides important material support for

national infrastructure and for national defense.

On the other hand, most manufacturing may involve

significant social and environmental costs. The clean-up costs

of hazardous waste, for example, may outweigh the benefits of

a product that creates it. Hazardous materials may

expose workers to health risks. These costs are now well known

and there is effort to address them by improving efficiency,

reducing waste, using industrial symbiosis, and eliminating

harmful chemicals. The increased use of technologies such

as 3D printing also offer the potential to reduce the

environmental impact of producing finished goods

through distributed manufacturing.

The negative costs of manufacturing can also be addressed

legally. Developed countries regulate manufacturing activity

with labor laws and environmental laws. Across the globe,

manufacturers can be subject to regulations and pollution

taxes to offset the environmental costs of manufacturing

activities. Labor unions and craft guilds have played a

historic role in the negotiation of worker rights and wages.

55

Environment laws and labor protections that are available in

developed nations may not be available in the third

world. Tort lawand product liability impose additional costs

on manufacturing. These are significant dynamics in the on-

going process, occurring over the last few decades, of

manufacture-based industries relocating operations to

"developing-world" economies where the costs of production are

significantly lower than in "developed-world" economies.

Manufacturing and investment :

Surveys and analyses of trends and issues in manufacturing

and investment around the world focus on such things as:

the nature and sources of the considerable variations that

occur cross-nationally in levels of manufacturing and wider

industrial-economic growth;

competitiveness; and

attractiveness to foreign direct.

In addition to general overviews, researchers have examined

the features and factors affecting particular key aspects of

manufacturing development. They have compared production and

investment in a range of Western and non-Western countries and

presented case studies of growth and performance in important

individual industries and market-economic sectors.

56

3.2 PROFILE OF THE COMPANYNithya Packaging was started in the year 1996 and it has

been in the field for more than a decade. The main motive of

the company was to fulfill the customer’s satisfaction for

which we have implemented the FIVE PLY AUTOMATIC PLANT, FOUR

COLOR PRINTER SLOTTER AND AUTO FOLDER GLUER. The company is

renowned for its quality output. Every employee in our

organization made to understand, what total quality is and the

means to attain it.

Company Profile of M/s. Nithya Packaging Pvt Ltd., Pondicherry

57

Name of the Company : Nithya Packaging Private Ltd

Factory address : R.S. No. 258/1 & 2, IOC GasPlant Road,

Odiyampet Village, Villianur,

Pondicherry- 605 110

Phone: 0413-2667078 Fax: 2667079

Management : N. Gokulakrishnan - Managing Director

P. Thamodharan – Joint Managing Director R. Vijayaraman - Director

Person to be contacted : Mr. PARI - (GM) Mob: 9344289012

Manufacturing Activity : Printed Corrugated boxes and other Packing Matls

58

Nithya Packaging Pvt Ltd.-

(Paper Division)

No. 285/5, 1/1,Thirukanchi Village,

Villianur Commune,

Pondicherry - 605 110

Nithya Packaging Pvt Ltd(Unit I)-

R.S. No. 258/1&2,

IOC Gas Plant Road,

Odiampet Village,Villianur,

Pondicherry – 605110

Nithya Packaging Pvt Ltd (Unit II)

-

R.S. No.123/2, 124/1, Villup

Manufacturer of M.G. Kraft Paper

(150 TPD)

Manufacture of all types ofcorrugated

boxes with Multi - Color Printing

(5 ply Automatic Board Plant)

Manufacture of all types ofcorrugated

boxes with Multi-Color Printing

Manufacturers of all types ofcorrugated

boxes with Multi - ColorPrinting.

59

uram

Main Road, Thiruvandarkoil Village

Pondicherry – 605 102

Akshaya Packaging ,-

Sedarapet IndustrialEstate,

Sedarpet,

Pondicherry.

Ashwath Printers &Convertors, -

No. 258/1, IOC Road,

Odiyampet Village,Villiyanur,

Multi Color Offset Printing

QUALITY POLICY

We at Nithya Packaging Pvt. Ltd., committed to deliver

quality products to our customers, on time, every time.We

strive continually to improve the effectiveness of our quality

management system through meeting the customer requirements,

upgrading the skills of the employees through training.60

Group Concerns

 QUALITY OBJECTIVES

Improving Customer satisfaction index.

Improving On-time Delivery performance.

Reducing In- house rejection.

Reduction in Customer complaints.

Improving Employees Skills.

Plant Production and Storage Area:

Total Production Area in Square feet - 26,000 Sq.ft

Total Area of Storage Capacity in Square feet - 40,000 Sq.ft

Machinery Details:

1. Steam Heating Five Layer High Speed corrugator Line.

Machine Speed 200 Mt/ min; 80 Tons per Day

(Approximately) 1 No

Work Speed 150 -170M / min; 60 Tons per day.

(Approximately)

2. Topra MD 1228 Four Color Printer Slotter Die Cutter with

Stacker.

Machinery Speed 200 Pcs / minute

1 No

Work Speed 170 Pcs/min

Maximum Printing Area 1200 x 2760 mm

3. Topra AD 924 Two Color Printer Slotter & Auto Stacker.

61

Machinery Speed 300 Pcs/Minute

1 No

Work Speed 260 Pcs/Minute

4. Auto Folder Gluer, Stitcher with Auto Counting and

bundling

Machinery Speed 8000 Boxes / hr

2 Nos

Work Speed 7000 Boxes/hr

Installed Capacity of the plant - 2000 MT per Month

LIST OF MACHINERIES IN OPERATION AT OTHER UNITS- AKSHAYA,

ASHWATH PRINTERS & UNIT II:-

1. Five Color Offset Printing Machine

Facilities, Make (Planeta polygraph P – 57 Model)

- 1 No.

Machine Size: 1410 mm x 1010 mm biggest size in south

India.

2. High Speed 2 ply Corrugation Machine with Multi

changeable

Flutes (Broad, Medium, Narrow, Micro Flutes)

- 1 No

3. High Speed 2 ply Corrugation Machine – 62” -

2 Nos.

4. High Speed 2 ply Corrugation Machine – 52” -

2 Nos.

62

5. Board Pasting Machine - 9

Nos

6. Board Pressing Machine - 4

Nos

7. 4 Bar Rotary Creasing & Cutting Machine -

6 Nos

8. Eccentric Slotting Machine -

4 Nos

9. Eccentric Slotting (Partitions) Machine -2 Nos

10. Box Stitching Machine - 15Nos

11. Flexo Paper Printing Machine (Double Color) -1 No.

12. Flexo Paper Printing Machine (Single Color) -2 Nos.

13. Flexo Board Printing Machine (Single Color) -1 No

14. Board Punching Machine (Automatic Heavy Duty – 72’’)- 2 Nos.

15. Board Punching Machine (Die Cut & Partition) -2 Nos.

16. Semi-automatic Box Flap Gluing Machine -1 No.

17. IJIMA Automatic Punching Machine (Imported - High Speed)- 1 No.

63

18. Board Laminating Machine - 1No.

19. Board Varnishing Machine - 1No.

20. Automatic Folder Gluer (Mono Carton) -1 No.

QUALITY TESTING EQUIPMENTS:-

1. Bursting Strength Tester - 3

Nos.

2. GSM Manual Tester - 2

Nos.

3. GSM Tester (Electronic) - 2

Nos.

4. COBB Value Tester - 2

Nos.

5. Box Compression Tester - 2

Nos.

6. Moisture Tester - 2

Nos.

7. Crush Tester - 2

Nos.

8. Flute Caliper - 1

No.

Connected Power Load

64

(UNIT – I) – 500 KVA

ALTERNATE POWER SOURCE:-1. 500 KVA Diesel Genset - 1

No.

2. 165 KVA Diesel Genset - 1

No.

Bankers : Indian Bank, Main Branch, Pondicherry – 1

Details of Manpower:

Women - 22

Men - 75

Raw Material Handling Vehicle:

Forklift (3 Ton capacity) - 4 Nos.

Details of Own Transport:

1. Eicher 11.10 : 11

Trucks(Closed containers)

2. Eicher 10.90 : 10 Trucks (open

type)

3. Eicher 10.90 : 1Truck(Closed

Container)

4. AL Comet Lorry : 2 Nos.

5. AL Tarus Lorry : 1 Nos.

6. TATA Ace (Mini truck) : 2 Trucks

Other details :

65

Sales Tax : L.T (VAT) 3 % & Inter State (CST) 2%

against “C form”

Duty Applicable : Central Excise (Basic+Cess) 6%+2%

+1%

Industry Category : SSI- Registered

No of Shifts operated : General, if necessary two

shifts on demand

Built up Factory Area : (UNIT – II) - 40000 Sq Ft

(AKSHAYA- (UNIT – III)) - 10000 Sq Ft

Manufacturing Area : (UNIT – II) - 25000 Sq Ft

(AKSHAYA- (UNIT – III)) - 6000 Sq Ft

Storage Area : (UNIT – II) - 15000 Sq Ft

(AKSHAYA- (UNIT – III)) - 4000 Sq Ft

List of Major Customers:-

1. Hindustan Uni-Lever Limited

2. Clarion groups

3. Godrej Consumers Products Pvt ltd,

4. Marico Industries Limited – Pondy

5. Marico Industries Limited – Kanjikode

6. HCL Infosystems Limited.,Pondy

7. HNGIL- Pondicherry & Naidupet

8. Lenevo India Pvt ltd

9. The Supreme Industries

10. Jyothy Laboratories Limited

66

11. AGI Glass Factory, Hyderabad.

12. SNJ Distillers Pvt Limited, Chennai

13. SNJ Breweries Limited , Chennai

14. Livia Polymers,Tirchy.

15. Kals Breweries, Trichy.

16. ITC, Pondicherry

17. Nilkamal Plastics, Pondicherry

18. SKM Egg Exports, Erode

19. Natural Capsules Pvt ltd.,Pondicherry.

20. Swasthik Group of Companies, Pondicherry.

Competitive Advantage

1. In South India, Nithya Packaging is the only Industry in

packaging having the biggest size Five Colors Offset

Printer and Paper Mill within the same campus.

2. They have imported Four color Printer Slotter with die

punching, having printing capacity of 18000 boards/hr

3. They have Five Ply Automatic Board making Plant with

high speed with the Installed capacity of 2000 MT /

Month.

4. On-time delivery will be effected with the use of our

own transport facility- 30 goods vehicle.

5. Theirs is the only Packaging Division in and around

Pondicherry have Industries in three different

Industrial Estates.

6. They have the Imported Automatic Folder Gluer & Stitcher

with counting and strapping unit. Can do stitching 6000

Boxes/ hour & Gluing 8000 Boxes/hour.

67

ORGANIZATION CHART

68

Figure 10 : Organization Chart

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES :

We are leading Manufacturer for the Products which also

includes Full Telescoping Style & One Piece Folders since 2010

Full Telescoping Style

Print my box offers custom telescoping boxes, custom

telescoping boxes, cheap telescoping boxes, corrugated

telescoping boxes up to full color printing on quality

materials at a very reasonable price. In accordance with your

specifications, thoughts, ideas and contents, we will produce

custom made telescoping boxes.Full color printed software

boxes with yourartwork/ graphics.

 Typical applications:

Custom software boxes in all shapes and sizes,Matte or

high gloss UV finish,Made from card or corrugated stock,NO die

charges or set-up fees, free shipping, fast delivery.

69

Figure 11

One Piece Folders

One piece folders are often referred to “book folders” or

“iron cross mailers”. A one piece folder is similar to a five

panel folder, but the OPF is used for flat, squarish items. It

generally resembles a plus-sign or a cross, and the user folds

the flaps of the box up and around the item to be shipped.

 Typical applications: Shipping Books, Shipping Paintings,

Shipping Posters. Products Packed this way include printed

matter, Electrical Circuitry and of course Books.

Pads, Partitions, Internal

Partitions, Pads, and inner packaging pieces are used to

separate, cushion, suspend and fill irregular spaces within a

container. At our facility we produce these with and without

tooling.

70

Figure 12

Figure 13

 Typical applications:

Layer pads, Dividers, Slip Sheets, Poster Backings, Void Fill,

Structural Support, “Clamshell” Shipping Folders.

CHAPTER IV

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

TABLE 4.1 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR AGE

  NO OF

PERCENTAGE

71

OPINION RESPONDENTS

21-30 yrs 38 47.531-40 yrs 39 48.841-60 yrs 3 3.8Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.1 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR AGE

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

38 39

3

47.5 48.8

3.8

FrequencyPercent

21-30 31-40 41-60

AGE

F R E Q U E N C Y A N D P E R C E N T A G E

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table it is inferred that 47.5% of the

employees fall under the age group of 21-30yrs ,48.8% of the

employees fall under the age group of 31-40yrs and 3.8% of

employees fall under the age group of 41-60yrs.

TABLE 4.2 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR GENDER

72

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

female 11 13.8

male 69 86.3

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.2 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR GENDER

Frequency Percent0102030405060708090

100

11.0 13.8

69.0

86.3

femalemale

GENDER

F R E Q U E N C Y A N D P E R C E N T A G E

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 13.8% of employees

fall under the gender group “Female” and 86.3% of employees

fall under the gender group “Male”.

73

TABLE 4.3 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR MARITAL STATUS

OPINION

NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

married 51 63.8

unmarried

29 36.3

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.3 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR MARITAL STATUS

Frequency Percent0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

51.0

63.8

29.036.3

marriedunmarried

MARITAL STATUS

F R E Q U E N C Y A N D P E R C E N T A G E

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 63.8 % of the

employees are married and 36.3% of the employees are

unmarried.

74

75

TABLE 4.4 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR EXPERIENCE

  OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

1-3 yrs 11 13.8

3-5 yrs 48 60.0

7-9 yrs 18 22.5

10yrs and above

3 3.8

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.4 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR EXPERIENCE

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

11

48

18

3

13.8

60.0

22.5

3.8

FrequencyPercent

1-3 3-5 7-9 10 and above

F R E Q U E N C Y A N D P E R C E N T A G E

EXPERIENCE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 13.8% of the

employees have 1-3 yrs of experience , 60% of employees have

76

3-5 yrs of experience , 22.5% of employees have 7-9 yrs of

experience and 3.8% of employees have experience of 10 and

above years.

TABLE 4.5 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR SALARY

OPINIONNO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

10000-30000 11 13.8

31000-50000 40 50.0

51000-70000 26 32.5

71000 andabove

3 3.8

100.0Total 80

CHART 4.5 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR SALARY

77

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

11

40

26

3

13.8

50.0

32.5

3.8

FrequencyPercent

10000-30000 31000-50000 51000-70000 71000 and above

SALARY

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 13.8% of the

employees get income between Rs10000-30000, 50% of the

employees get income between Rs31000-50000,32.5% of the

employees get income between Rs 51000-70000 and 3.8% of the

employees get income of Rs71000 and above.

TABLE 4.6 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR DESIGNATION

  OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

operator 58 72.5

accountant 14 17.5HR manager 8 10.0

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.6 DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS BY THEIR DESIGNATION

78

01020304050607080

58

148

72.5

17.510.0

FrequencyPercent

operator accountant HR manager DESIGNATION

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 72.5 of the

employees are holding the designation “operator” , 17.5% of

the employees are holding the designation “accountant” and 10%

of the employees are holding the designation “HR manager”.

TABLE 4.7 : ANALYSIS OF THE MOST AFFECTED AREA IN PAST YEAR

  OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

no area 10 12.5

neck 13 16.3

shoulder 15 18.8

79

elbow 7 8.8

wrist/forearm 15 18.8

lower back 16 20.0

foot 4 5.0

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.7 : ANALYSIS OF THE MOST AFFECTED AREA IN PAST YEAR

0

5

10

15

20

25

10

1315

7

15 16

4

12.5

16.318.8

8.8

18.820.0

5.0

FrequencyPercent

Noarea neck shoulder elbow wrist lowback foot

AFFECTED AREA_PAST

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 12.5% of the

employees had no area affected ,16.3% of the employees were

affected in their neck region, 18.8% of the employees were

affected in their shoulder region,8.8% of the employees were

affected in their elbow region, 18.8% of the employees were

affected in their wrist/forearm region, 20% of the employees

were affected in their lower back region, 5% of the employees

were affected in their foot region in the past year.

80

TABLE 4.8 : ANALYSIS OF LIGHTING CONDITIONS CAUSINGDISCOMFORT

  OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

Strongly agree 37 46.3

agree 35 43.8undecided 1 1.3

disagree 7 8.8Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.8 : ANALYSIS OF LIGHTING CONDITIONS CAUSINGDISCOMFORT

05101520253035404550

37 35

17

46.3 43.8

1.3

8.8

FrequencyPercent

Strongly agree agree undecided disagree

LIGHTING CONDITIONS

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 46.8% of the

employees strongly agree, 43.8% of the employees agree, 1.3%

of the employees neither agree nor

81

disagree(undecided/neutral), 8.8% of the employees disagree

that the lighting conditions in the workplace are good.

TABLE 4.9 : ANALYSIS OF THERMAL CONDITIONS CAUSINGDISCOMFORT

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

Strongly agree 25 31.3

agree 30 37.5

undecided 17 21.3

disagree 8 10.0

Total 80 100.0

TABLE 4.9 : ANALYSIS OF THERMAL CONDITIONS CAUSINGDISCOMFORT

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

25

30

17

8

31.3

37.5

21.3

10.0

FrequencyPercent

Strongly agree agree undecided disagree THERMAL CONDITIONS

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

82

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 31.3% of the

employees strongly agree,37.5% of the employees agree ,21.3%

neither agree nor disagree(undecided/neutral),10% of the

employees disagree that the thermal conditions in workplace

are good.

TABLE 4.10 : ANALYSIS OF WORK DIMENSIONS CAUSING DISCOMFORT

  OPINION

NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

Strongly agree 2 2.5

undecided 2 2.5disagree 54 67.5Stronglydisagree

22 27.5

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.10 : ANALYSIS OF WORK DIMENSIONS CAUSING DISCOMFORT

83

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

2 2

54

22

2.5 2.5

67.5

27.5FrequencyPercent

Strongly agree undecided disagree Strongly disagree WORK DIMENSIONS

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 2.5% of the employees

strongly agree,2.5% neither agree nor

disagree(undecided/neutral),67.5% of the employees disagree,

27.5% of the employees strongly disagree that the workplace

dimensions(adjustability) are good.

TABLE 4.11 : ANALYSIS OF MOST AFFECTED AREA NOW

  OPINION

NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

neck 13 16.3shoulder 18 22.5elbow 7 8.8

wrist/forearm 16 20.0

84

lower back 16 20.0foot 10 12.5Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.11 : ANALYSIS OF MOST AFFECTED AREA NOW

0

5

10

15

20

25

13

18

7

16 16

10

16.3

22.5

8.8

20.0 20.0

12.5FrequencyPercent

neck shoulder elbow wrist/forearm lowback footAFFECTED AREA_NOW

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 16.3% of the

employees are affected in their neck region, 22.5% of the

employees are affected in their shoulder region,8.8% of the

employees are affected in their elbow region, 20% of the

employees are affected in their wrist/forearm region, 20% of

the employees are affected in their lower back region, 12.5%

of the employees are affected in their foot region in the now.

TABLE 4.12 : ANALYSIS OF STRESSED POSTURE EXPERINCED MOST

85

OPINION

NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

back bending 6 7.5kneeling down 36 45.0pulling load 3 3.8lifting boxes 3 3.8handling screw

devices5 6.3

handling drillingmachines

3 3.8

operating mouse 11 13.8talking on phoneswith neck bending

13 16.3

Total 80 100.0CHART 4.12 : ANALYSIS OF STRESSED POSTURE EXPERINCED MOST

05101520253035404550

6

36

3 3 5 3

11 137.5

45.0

3.8 3.86.3

3.8

13.816.3

Bb Kd Pl Lb Hsd Hdm Om tpnb

Bb - Back bendingKd - Kneeling downPl - Pulling loadLb - Lifting boxesHsd - Handling screw devicesHdm - Handling drilling machinesOm - Operating mouseTpnb - talking on phones with neck bending

STRESSED POSTURE EXPERIENCED

F R E Q U E N C Y

A N D

P E R C E N T A G E

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 7.5% of employees

are involved in back bending , 45% of employees are involved

in kneeling down,3.8% of employees are involved in pulling

load, 3.8% of employees are involved in lifting boxes , 6.3%

of employees are involved in handling screws,3.8% of employees

are involved in handling drilling machines, 13.8% of

86

employees are involved in operating mouse and 16.3% in

handling phone with neck bending activities respectively.

TABLE 4.13 : ANALYSIS OF DISCOMFORT TYPE EXPERIENCED MOST

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

Aching 23 28.8numbness 15 18.8

weakness 1 1.3 cramping

14 17.5

swelling 15 18.8

stiffness 12 15.0 Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.13 : ANALYSIS OF DISCOMFORT TYPE EXPERIENCED MOST

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

23

15

1

14 1512

28.8

18.8

1.3

17.5 18.815.0

FrequencyPercent

Aching Numbness Weakness Cramping Swelling Stiffness

DISCOMFORT TYPE EXPERIENCED

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

87

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 28.8% of the

employees are having aching problems, 18.8% of the employees

are having numbness problems, 1.3% of the employees are having

weakness problems, 17.5% of the employees are having cramping

problems, 18.8% of the employees are having swelling problems

and 15% of employees are having stiffness problems.

TABLE 4.14 : ANALYSIS OF TOOL CONVENIENCE-DESIGN CONDITIONS

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

yes 52 65.0

no 28 35.0Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.14 : ANALYSIS OF TOOL CONVENENCE-DESIGN CONDITIONS

Frequency Percent0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

52.0

65.0

28.035.0

tooldesign_good_yestooldesign_good_no

TOOL DESIGN CONDITIONS

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

88

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 65% of the

employees have said yes to good tool design conditions and 35%

of employees have said no to good tool design conditions.

TABLE 4.15 : ANALYSIS OF TOOL CONVENENCE-GRIP CONDITIONS

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

yes 27 33.8no 53 66.3

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.15 : ANALYSIS OF TOOL CONVENENCE-GRIP CONDITIONS

89

Frequency Percent0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

27.033.8

53.0

66.3

toolgrip_good_yestoolgrip_good_no

TOOL GRIP CONDITIONS

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 33.8% of the

employees have said yes to good tool design conditions and

66.3% of employees have said no to good tool grip conditions.

TABLE 4.16 : ANALYSIS OF TOOL CONVENIENCE-SAFETY CONDITIONS

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

yes 38 47.5no 42 52.5

Total 80 100.0

90

CHART 4.16 : ANALYSIS OF TOOL CONVENENCE-SAFETY CONDITIONS

Frequency Percent0

10

20

30

40

50

60

38.0

47.542.0

52.5

Toolsafety_good_yesToolsafety_good_no

TOOL SAFETY CONDITIONS

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 47.5% of the

employees have said yes to good tool design conditions and

52.5% of employees have said no to good tool safety

conditions.

TABLE 4.17 : ANALYSIS OF TOOL CONVENIENCE-WEIGHT CONDITIONS

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

91

yes 50 62.5no 30 37.5

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.17 : ANALYSIS OF TOOL CONVENIENCE-WEIGHT CONDITIONS

Frequency Percent0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

50.0

62.5

30.037.5

Toolweight_good_yesToolweight_good_no

TOOL WEIGHT CONDITIONS

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 62.5% of the

employees have said yes to good tool design conditions and 37.5%

of employees have said no to good tool weight conditions

92

TABLE 4.18 : OPINION OF RESPONDENTS ABOUT EXISTING REST BREAKS

OPINION

NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

yes 1 1.3

no 79 98.8

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.18 : OPINION OF RESPONDENTS ABOUT EXISTING REST BREAKS

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

1.0 1.3

79.0

98.8

FrequencyPercent

Yes NoEXISTING REST BREAKS OPINION

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that only 1.3% of the

employees are getting rest breaks and the remanining 98.8% of

the employees do not get any rest breaks

93

TABLE 4.19 : OPINION OF RESPONDENTS ABOUT LEISURE TIMEPROVISION

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

agree 15 18.8undecided 13 16.3Disagree 21 26.3Stronglydisagree

31 38.8

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.19 : OPINION OF RESPONDENTS ABOUT LEISURE TIMEPROVISION

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

1513

21

31

18.816.3

26.3

38.8

FrequencyPercent

Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree

LEISURE TIME PROVISION

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

94

From the above table its inferred that 18.8% of the employees

agree, 16.3% of the employees are neutral/undecided, 26.3% of

the employees disagree, 38.8% of the employees Strongly

disagree regarding the lesiure time they are getting in their

workplace.

TABLE 4.20 : OPINION OF RESPONDENTS ABOUT OCCASIONAL REST

BREAKS

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

agree 8 10.0 undecided 8 10.0

Disagree 32 40.0

Strongly disagree

32 40.0

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.20 : OPINION OF RESPONDENTS ABOUT OCCASIONAL RESTBREAKS

051015202530354045

8 8

32 32

10.0 10.0

40.0 40.0

FrequencyPercent

Agree Undecided Disagree Strongly DisagreeOCCASIONAL REST BREAKS

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

95

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 10% of the

employees agree, 10% of the employees are neutral/undecided,

40% of the employees disagree, 40% of the employees Strongly

disagree regarding the occasional rest breaks they are allowed

to take in their workplace.

TABLE 4.21 : OPINION OF RESPONDENTS ABOUT PERSONAL RELAXATION

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

Yes

14 17.5

no 66 82.5

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.21 : OPINION OF RESPONDENTS ABOUT PERSONAL RELAXATION

0102030405060708090

14.0 17.5

66.0

82.5

FrequencyPercent

Yes No

PERSONAL RELAXATION

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

96

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 17.5% of the

employees are able to indulge in personal relaxation actvities

and the remaining 82.5% of the employees are not able to

indulge in any personal relaxation activities.

TABLE 4.22 : RELATIONSHIP OF EMPLOYEES WITH MANAGEMENT FROMTHE RESPECT ASPECT

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

Strongly Agree 13 16.3agree 53 66.3

Disagree 14 17.5

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.22 : RELATIONSHIP OF EMPLOYEES WITH MANAGEMENT FROMTHE RESPECT ASPECT

97

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

13

53

1416.3

66.3

17.5

Frequency

Strongly Agree Agree Disagree RESPECT RELATIONSHIP

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that, 16.3% of the

employees Strongly agree, 66.3% of the employees agree,

17.5% of the employees disagree about good respect

relationship with management.

TABLE 4.23 : RELATIONSHIP OF EMPLOYEES WITH MANAGEMENT FROMTHE TRUST ASPECT

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

StronglyAgree

6 7.5

agree 44 55.0undecided 27 33.8

98

Disagree 3 3.8

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.23 : RELATIONSHIP OF EMPLOYEES WITH MANAGEMENT FROMTHE TRUST ASPECT

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

6

44

27

37.5

55.0

33.8

3.8

FrequencyPercent

Strongly agree Agree undecided Disagree

TRUST RELATIONSHIP

F R E Q U E N C Y A N D P E R C E N T A G E

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 7.5% of the

employees Strongly agree, 55% of the employees agree, 33.8%

of the employees are neutral/undecided , 3.8% of the

employees disagree about good trust respect relationship with

management.

TABLE 4.24 : RELATIONSHIP OF EMPLOYEES WITH MANAGEMENT FROMTHE SAFETY ASPECT

99

OPINION NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

agree 10 12.5

undecided 59 73.8Disagree 11 13.8

Total 80 100.0

CHART 4.24 : RELATIONSHIP OF EMPLOYEES WITH MANAGEMENT FROMTHE SAFETY ASPECT

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

10

59

1112.5

73.8

13.8

FrequencyPercent

Agree undecided Disagree

SAFETY RELATIONSHIP

FR EQ UE NC Y AN D PE RC EN TA GE

Source : Primary data

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 12.5% of the

employees agree, 73.8% of the employees are neutral/undecided

, 13.8% of the employees disagree about good safety

relationship with management.

100

TABLE 4.25 : ANALYSING THE RANGE OF THE EMPLOYEE MORALE USINGDISCRIPTIVE STATISTICS

NRANGE

MINIMUM MAXIMUM MEAN

STD.DEVIATI

ON

Moralelevel

80 7.00 4.00 11.00 7.5375

1.50899

ValidN

(listwise)

80

INFERENCE :

From the above table we infer that the range with respect

to the morale level of the employees was found to be 7 which

lies between the expected range of 3 to 15.So thereby we infer

that the morale level of employees in the firm is neither too

high nor too low but lies in between so its found that the

employee morale is nominal or moderate within the company.

101

I . ANALYSIS USING ANOVA

1-WAY ANOVA

FACTORS :

The factors taken for finding one way anova are designation and stressed posture of employees.

HYPOTHESIS:

Ho = There is no significant difference between the stressed postures and designation of employees.

H1 = There is significant difference between the stressed postures and designation of employees.

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that a one way anova

between groups analysis of variance was conducted to explore

the impact of designation on stressed postures. Participants

are divided into three groups according to designation (group

I = Operator, group II = Accountant, group III = HR Manager).

According to designation there was no statistically

significant difference at the P< 0.05 in stressed postures

scores for the three designation groups. Hence in this case H1

has been accepted and Ho has been rejected : F(2,77) =

108.637, p=0.000. Therefore its inferred from this that there

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TABLE 4.21 ANALYSIS USING ONE WAY ANOVA

is significant difference between the designation and

stressed postures .

2-WAY ANOVA

FACTORS :

The factors taken for finding two way anova aresalary,designation and morale level of employees.

HYPOTHESIS:

Ho = There is no significant difference between the moralelevel and salary, designation of employees.

H1 = There is significant difference between the morale leveland salary, designation of employees.

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TABLE 4.22 ANALYSIS USING TWO WAY ANOVA

INFERENCE :

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From the above table its inferred that a two way anova

between groups analysis of variance was conducted to explore

the impact of salary and designation on morale level.

Participants divided into four groups according to salary

(group I = 10000-30000 , group II = 31000-50000, group III =

51000-70000, group IV = 71000 and above) and into three groups

according to designation (group I = Operator, group II =

Accountant, group III = HR Manager). . According to

salary*designation value there was a statistically significant

difference at the P> 0.05 and hence in this case H1 has been

rejected and Ho has been accepted: F(3,2) = 1.44, p=0.718.

Therefore its inferred from this that there is no significant

difference between salary and designation and the morale level

of the employees.

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II . ANALYSIS USING T-TEST

T-TEST

FACTORS :

The factors taken for finding t-test are gender of employeesand ergonomic effort taken by company.

HYPOTHESIS:

Ho = There is no significant difference between the gender andopinion of the existing ergonomic effort taken by the company.

H1 = There is no significant difference between the gender andopinion of the existing ergonomic effort taken by the company.

TABLE 4.23 ANALYSIS USING T-TEST

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that a Independent T-

test was conducted to explore the impact of gender on the

opinion of existing ergonomic effort taken by the company.

Participants were divided into two groups (group I :female,

group II : male).From the Independent samples test table

obtained it has been inferred that P>0.05 hence in this case

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H1 is rejected and Ho is accepted and F = 2.844, p=0.096.

Therefore its inferred from this that there is no significant

difference between gender of employees and the existing

ergonomic effort taken by the company.

III . ANALYSIS USING CORRELATION

To know whether there is relationship between the existing ergonomic effort taken by the company and the morale level of the employees.

FACTORS :

The factors taken for finding correlation are ergonomic_effort and morale_level.

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that correlation

analysis is used to describe the strength and direction of the

linear relationship between two variables. The relationship

between the ergonomic effort taken by company and the morale

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TABLE 4.24 ANALYSIS USING CORRELATION

level of employees was investigated using Pearson product

moment correlation coefficient . Preliminary analysis were

performed to ensure more violation of assumption normality

and linearity , There was weak correlation between two

variables : r = 0.268, N = 80 , p < 0.05, in this case low

levels of ergonomic effort associated with low levels of

employee morale.

IV . ANALYSIS USING PERCENTAGE METHOD

To know what is the percentage of mostly experienced stressedpostures among employees of Nithya packaging private limited.

TABLE 4.25 : ANALYSIS USING PERCENTAGE METHOD

OPINIONNO OF

RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGEVALID

PERCENTAGECUMULATIVEPERCENTAGE

backbending 6 7.5 7.5 7.5

kneelingdown 36 45.0 45.0 52.5

pullingload 3 3.8 3.8 56.3

liftingboxes 3 3.8 3.8 60.0

handlingscrew

devices5 6.3 6.3 66.3

handling 3 3.8 3.8 70.0

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drillingmachinesoperating mouse 11 13.8 13.8 83.8

talkingon

phoneswithneck

bending

13 16.3 16.3 100.0

Total 80 100.0 100.0

INFERENCE :

From the above table its inferred that 45% of the

employees are involved in kneeling down activities , 13.8% of

the employees are involved in operating mouse and 16.3% of the

employees are involved in talking on phones with neck bending

type of activities which falls under the category of stressed

workplace postures

CHAPTER V

5.1 FINDINGS OF THE STUDY

12.5% of the employees had no area affected ,16.3% of the

employees were affected in their neck region, 18.8% of

the employees were affected in their shoulder region,8.8%

of the employees were affected in their elbow region,

18.8% of the employees were affected in their

wrist/forearm region, 20% of the employees were affected

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in their lower back region, 5% of the employees were

affected in their foot region in the past year.

46.8% of the employees strongly agree,43.8% of the

employees agree ,1.3% neither agree nor

disagree(undecided/neutral),8.8% of the employees

disagree that the lighting conditions in workplace are

good.

31.3% of the employees strongly agree,37.5% of the

employees agree ,21.3% neither agree nor

disagree(undecided/neutral),10% of the employees disagree

that the thermal conditions in workplace are good.

2.5% of the employees strongly agree,2.5% neither agree

nor disagree(undecided/neutral),67.5% of the employees

disagree, 27.5% of the employees strongly disagree that

the workplace dimensions(adjustability) are good

16.3% of the employees are affected in their neck region,

22.5% of the employees are affected in their shoulder

region,8.8% of the employees are affected in their elbow

region, 20% of the employees are affected in their

wrist/forearm region, 20% of the employees are affected

in their lower back region, 12.5% of the employees are

affected in their foot region in the now.

7.5% of employees are involved in back bending , 45% of

employees are involved in kneeling down,3.8% of employees

are involved in pulling load, 3.8% of employees are

involved in lifting boxes , 6.3% of employees are

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involved in handling screws,3.8% of employees are

involved in handling drilling machines, 13.8% of

employees are involved in operating mouse and 16.3% in

handling phone with neck bending activities respectively.

28.8% of the employees are having aching problems, 18.8%

of the employees are having numbness problems, 1.3% of

the employees are having weakness problems, 17.5% of the

employees are having cramping problems, 18.8% of the

employees are having swelling problems and 15% of

employees are having stiffness problems.

65% of the employees have said yes to good tool design

conditions and 35% of employees have said no to good tool

design conditions.

33.8% of the employees have said yes to good tool design

conditions and 66.3% of employees have said no to good

tool design conditions.

47.5% of the employees have said yes to good tool design

conditions and 52.5% of employees have said no to good

tool design conditions.

62.5% of the employees have said yes to good tool design

conditions and 37.5% of employees have said no to good

tool design conditions.

1.3% of the employees are getting rest breaks and the

remanining 98.8% of the employees do not get any rest

breaks.

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18.8% of the employees agree, 16.3% of the employees are

neutral/undecided, 26.3% of the employees disagree, 38.8%

of the employees Strongly disagree regarding the lesiure

time they are getting in their workplace.

10% of the employees agree, 10% of the employees are

neutral/undecided, 40% of the employees disagree, 40% of

the employees Strongly disagree regarding the occasional

rest breaks they are allowed to take in their workplace

17.5% of the employees are able to indulge in persona

relaxation acticvities and the remaining 82.5% of the

employees are not able to indulge in any personal

relaxation activities.

16.3% of the employees Strongly agree, 66.3% of the

employees agree, 17.5% of the employees disagree about

good respect relationship with management.

7.5% of the employees Strongly agree, 55% of the

employees agree, 33.8% of the employees are

neutral/undecided , 3.8% of the employees disagree about

good trust respect relationship with management.

12.5% of the employees agree, 73.8% of the employees

are neutral/undecided , 13.8% of the employees disagree

about good safety relationship with management.

Using descriptive statistics the range with respect to

the morale level of the employees was found to be 7 which

lies between the expected range of 3 to 15.So thereby we

infer that the morale level of employees in the firm is

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neither too high nor too low but lies in between so its

found that the employee morale is nominal or moderate

within the company.

By using one way anova it was found there was no

statistically significant difference between the

designation and stressed postures.

By using two way anova it was found that there was

statistically significant difference. between the

salary,designation and the morale level of employees.

By using Independent samples T-test it was found that

there is a significant difference between gender of

employees and the existing ergonomic effort taken by the

company.

It is also found that the analysis of correlation r =

0.268 , hence there is weak relationship between the

ergonomic effort taken at Nithya packaging private

limited and the morale level of employees in the same

company.

By using Percentage analysis method it has been clearly

found that 45% of the employees are involved in kneeling

down,13.8% of the employees are involved in operating

mouse and 16.3% of the employees are involved in talking

on phones with neck bending type of activities .Hence

these are the mostly experienced stressed postures of the

employees at Nithya Packaging Private Limited

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5.2 SUGGESTIONS

Minor alterations can be made in the existing ergonomicsystem so that the work can be made easier and safer. Sayfor example most of the employees in the firm havereported that they do not get leisure time or rest breakshence it would sound more beneficial if rest breaks arescheduled properly to employees as per their job type.

Also it would be good to train the employees to involvein personal relaxation exercises periodically which wouldserve as a useful measure for removing their work relatedstress at home and health related stress at work. Thistype of exercise guidance can be provided by well knownorganisations like OSHA(Occupational Health and SafetyAssociation).

By doing so the morale level of employees can be found tobe improved to a considerable better level and thereexists better relationship of employees with management.

Other suggestions to improve the existing ergonomicefforts of the firm can be summarized as follows :

WITH REGARDS TO STRESSED POSTURES EXPERIENCED

Stressed postures

Ergonomic solutions

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1.BACK BENDING

2.LIFTING BOXES

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Tools with extension handle can reduce back bending

Solution 1

Solution 2

Solution 3

Solution 1 : It indicates the usage of lever below the load

containers so that on adjusting the lever the load can be

easily brought to the reach of the worker.

Solution 2 : It indicates the usage of load with grip handles

so that accidental injuries caused due to poor grip during the

lifting operation can be avoided

Solution 3 : It indicates the usage of vacuum hoist which

helps the worker to lift even heavy loads easily .

Solution 4 : Purchase backsaver lift tables available online

to reduce lifting injuries

Stressed postures

Ergonomic Solutions

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Solution 4

3.PULLING LOAD

WITH REGARDS TO TOOLS USED AT WORK AND THE STRESS THEY CREATE WITH ERGONOMIC SOLUTIONS

Stressed postures

Ergonomic solutions

4.HANDLING PLIERS/SCREW DEVICES

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Instead of pulling loads canbe pushed with carts with wheels attached but it must be ensured that the room

Working continuously with the pliers as shownin the left-hand picturecan create a lot of stress on the wrist. By using pliers with an

5.HANDLING DRILLERS/VIBRATING DEVICES

6.OPERATING MOUSE

7.TALKING ON PHONES

Besides implementing the above mentioned ergonomic

solutions its always better to set up a separate team to

periodically update on the performance of employees after

implementing ergonomics.

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Inorder to reduce the stress caused due to vibrating tools ,the better solution is that the vibrating tools can be dampened.Use a 3M ergonomic mouse to reduce stress caused due to continuous mouse

Employees may be given more social support in order to

feel more safe and secured in their workplace.

Existing ergonomic facility should be improved for good

and comfortable work postures.

Organization has to concentrate on reducing the

repetitive motion task causing awkward posture and

sitting in the same posture which causes ergonomic

problem.

With regards to tool convenience small alterations has to

be made to improve the comfort level and convenient grip

of hand tools.

It is always better to organise an ergonomic program in

workplace considering the 10 main principles of

ergonomics which had been briefly outlined as follows

Most employees have given neutral opinion regarding the

safety relationship of employees with management ,hence

the organisation must take special measures such as first

aid activities, Machine handling handbook to make them

understand that the company does care for them.

By implementing the above mentioned activities a better

relationship is maintained between the employees and the

management and further by frequently conducting meetings

among the employees and staff useful information can be

gathered regarding the needs of employees to make their

work and workplace more comfortable.

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In general it has been analysed that workers find

difficulty in acheiving their goals and perform their

work mainly because of various ergonomics problems which

leads to discomforts of various types. Hence its

suggested to the management to maintain efficient and

good ergonomics which in turn will increase the morale of

employees and their workplace health and safety.

5.3 CONCLUSION

The present study was carried out to find the

relationship between existing ergonomic effort taken by

Nithya packaging Private Limited and the morale level of

employees in the same organisation and it has been found that

there is weak positive correlation between the ergonomic

effort and morale level . Hence its found that ergonomics

implemented at Nithya Packaging Private Limited

influences/increases the morale level only to certain extent.

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It is also found that the employees at Nithya Packaging

Private limited are satisfied with the lighting and thermal

conditions in their workplace but not with their workplace

dimensions. Also its a considerable truth that the employees

are completely satisfied with the tool design and weight

conditions but not with the grip and safety conditions of hand

tools which can be improved by considering the ergonomic

solutions suggested above. The employees can be given more

social support and awareness about industrial ergonomics in

order to make them feel more secured and the policies can be

updated and ergonomic principles can be effectively

implemented for further improvements in employee health at

workplace.

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