Ergonomics | Improvising Workstations | KTF Bangalore

Ankit.P.Bhandari | Ankur thankuriaB.Ftech (VII)

National Institute Of Fashion Technology, Bengaluru

Improvising Workstations

Ergonomics

National Institute Of Fashion Technology, Bengaluru | ERGONOMICS (BFT VII)

What is Ergonomics?

1. 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

2. Designing the work space to fit the body to reduce discomfort, fatigue, muscle tension and strain and eliminate or minimize intermittent and chronic pain and permanent disability.


Ergonomic principles

1. Use proper tools

2. Keep repetitive motions to a minimum

3. Avoid awkward postures

4. Use safe lifting procedures

5. Get proper rest


Objective

• Select a workstation in the industry of study and try and develop over it.

• A preferred selection would be to spot an inefficient of stressful workstation or workplace in the industry and them apply the ergonomic factors to it in order to find out as to it is feasible or not to improvise upon it.


Workstation-1: Thread sucking machine arrangement


Ergonomics Awareness Checklist

Priority Task How hard? How often? Score

5 Align to the machine mouth 3 4 12

4 Pull back the garment after specific time 1 4 4

3 Hold garment in place 1 4 4

1 Pick up garment 1 4 4

1 Drop the garment into finished bin 1 4 4

Priority: 5- more prioritised and 1 – less.


Contributing factors:

• Awkward posture ( neck bent backwards and awkward bending of back)

• Repetitive motions/task


Explaining the workstation from ergonomics point of view

1. Sitting/Standing: The workstation is a sitting workstation. There is no foot rail or foot rest given. Leg and feet have sufficient workspace. Poorly designed chair. Awkward posture and repetitive motion.

2. Arm rest : There is no armrest that is given to the operator.3. Lighting : Lighting in the workstation is sufficient.4. Body posture (head, neck, trunk): The operator needs to tilt

forward and bend his/her neck, every time he/she is aligning the garment on the machine mouth or while holding the garment in its place. Awkward posture-bending of back while inspecting the garment.


Explaining the workstation from ergonomics point of view

5. Body posture (arms and shoulders): The elbow makes 90 degrees angle with the arm while doing the operation. Upper arms and elbows are close to the body and a bit extended. Wrists and hands are also kept straight. Hands are slightly raised above the waist level.

6. Workstation table: Distance from eyes for an operator is 60 cm, when the operator’s feet is lying flat on the floor.

7. Environment : The relative humidity of the air is maintained between 30% and 60%. During hot season, KTF has maintained the ambient indoor temperature between 68° and 74° F (20° and 23.5° C). During cold season, the recommended temperature is between 73° and 78° F (23° and 26° C).


CHAIRS

Problems:

• Very poor chairs such as stacking chairs. • Chairs are not adjustable. • They provide no cushioning or back support• Edge of the seat constricts blood flow at the back of the

legs because of a large rounded hump or square edge.• one individual selects the chair and it does not fit all or

even most operators, and it is not right for all tasks


POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS:

• A stable 5-point base of support• Firm cushioning on the backrest and seat pan• Seat can be adjusted in height and tilt quickly and easily• Seat does not have a hump on the front edge;• Backrest can be adjusted in height and from front to

back

CHAIRS


POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS:

• The seat pan is large enough to support the operator but small enough so that he or she can use the backrest;

• The backrest does not interfere with the movement of the shoulder blades or arms;

• The chair can swivel when operators have to turn sideways frequently; and

• The chair has castors only where appropriate, and not where it makes operators slide away from their workstation.

CHAIRS


• Let operators try the chairs on a temporary basis and then let each operator select the chair that suits her or him best.

• Allow operators to select from various seat pan and backrest sizes and variable height adjustments.

• One chair cannot fit all workers.

CHAIRS


Work surface

• Inspectors work at a very rapid pace and do not take scheduled breaks.

• A non-existent or inappropriate work surface results in the worker using his or her lap as the work surface. This creates poor neck and back postures that are maintained for extended periods of time and increases stress on the legs and feet.

• Operators are not provided with a footrest to help relieve the stress on their legs and back while seated. Some are working in poorly lit areas, which can encourage poor posture and result in eyestrain.


POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

• Provide good quality anti-fatigue mats for inspectors

Work surface


POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

• The footrest should be independent and adjustable so that it can be placed in the most appropriate location.

Work surface


POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

• Give inspectors the option to use a stool and to alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day.

Work surface


Lighting

• At KTF lighting (lux value) for the inspection department was up to the standards i.e., ranging from 1000 to 2000 lux.

• Natural light available.


Industrial Ventilation

• In order to redirect and mix airflows from ventilation systems, KTF has used diffusers or blocks.

• Kept the airflow rates within three and six inches per second (7.5 and 15 centimetres per second). In fact, these airflow rates are barely noticeable or not noticeable at all.

• The relative humidity of the air is maintained between 30% and 60%.

• During hot season, KTF has maintained the ambient indoor temperature between 68° and 74° F (20° and 23.5° C).

• During cold season, the recommended temperature is between 73° and 78° F (23° and 26° C).


Workstation-2: Spreading/Cutting table


Ergonomics Awareness Checklist

Priority Task How hard? How often? Score

5 Spreading fabric 5 4 20

5 Cutting fabric 5 4 20

3 Loading of the fabric 3 4 12

2 Stacking cut pieces 2 4 8

Priority: 5- more prioritised and 1 – less.


Contributing factors

• Awkward posture (while spreading and cutting the fabric; repeated reaching, bending, holding of fixed positions, twisting)

• Visual effort; employees assume awkward postures or experience eye strain and fatigue because it is hard for them to see their work.

• Repetitive motions • Forceful exertions• Pressure points• Vibration(cutting machines)


Explaining the workstation from ergonomics point of view:

• Sitting/ Standing: The workstation is a standing workstation, where the worker stands on the ground. There is no foot rail or foot rest given. Leg and feet have sufficient workspace below the workstation. This leads to static neck posture.

• Arm rest : There is no armrest that is given to the operator.

• Lighting: Lighting in the workstation is sufficient.


Explaining the workstation from ergonomics point of view:

• Body posture (head, neck, trunk): The operator needs to tilt forward and bend his/her neck, every time he/she is matching lines with the pieces. The head and neck face forward while doing the operation, be it spreading, cutting or stacking finished pieces.

• Body posture (arms and shoulders): Fabric loading is done manually with the help of hands. While spreading the hands are completely stretched and while cutting the fabric, pressure points needed to be kept in mind.

• Environment : The relative humidity of the air is maintained between 30% and 60%. During hot season, KTF has maintained the ambient indoor temperature between 68° and 74° F (20° and 23.5° C). During cold season, the recommended temperature is between 73° and 78° F (23° and 26° C).


LOADING THE FABRIC

Problems:

Loading by hand: • Bolts of fabric lifted by hand are very heavy and

create a substantial risk of low back injury.


LOADING THE FABRIC

Possible solutions

Loading by hand:

• limiting the weight of the bolt,• using two people to lift the bolt,• using the turntable on the spreader to assist with lifting

one end of the bolt at a time,• Using hand-made bolt stands to assist with lifting to a tall

spreader


SPREADING THE FABRIC

Problems:

Spreading by hand: • Long reaches are required to cut across the width of

the fabric each time a layer is completed or flaws are removed from the fabric.


SPREADING THE FABRIC

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

Spreading by hand: • Use two people, one on each side of the table, who

cut towards each other. This reduces a lot of the reaching and poor postures when cutting across the width of the fabric.


CUTTING THE FABRIC

Problems:

Electric saws: • Excessive reaching with shoulders and back.• Poor wrist postures.• Hand or arm vibration and contact pressure on the

hand when stapling the pattern to the fabric or perforating the layers of fabric.


Extreme postures required when cutting with an

electric saw.

CUTTING THE FABRIC

Problems:


CUTTING THE FABRIC

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONSElectric saws: • Improve shoulder and back posture by setting the table

and saw at a good working height for the operator.• Extend the handle and cut from both sides of the table

to reduce excessive reaching.• Avoid poor wrist posture with an adjustable angle

handle.• Maintain saws and use a vibration-dampening handle to

reduce the amount of vibration.


CUTTING THE FABRIC

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONSElectric saws: • The best weights for holding down the pattern are small

and have handles on the top. Clamps are also good for holding the fabric in place.

• A pattern tacker is good for stapling the pattern to the fabric; it can be manipulated with one hand and causes less contact stress on the hand than an office type stapler.

• Adhesive spray can also be used to attach the pattern to the fabric.


CUTTING THE FABRIC

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

Electric saws: • A good waste-disposal method is to use a garbage pail firmly

attached to a dolly.• Place anti-fatigue mats the length of the table to reduce foot and

leg fatigue.• Follow other good safety practices such as properly adjusted

guards, chain-mail gloves for straight-blade saw operators, and regular maintenance on the blade to ensure it is sharp and lubricated to minimize the force required to push it through the fabric.


Small weight and clamp for

holding the pattern and

fabric in place

Pattern tacker


STACKING CUT PIECES

Problems: Piling cut fabric on to the floor requires a stooped posture. At KTF cut fabric is piled on to the floor instead of using carts. Sometimes cut pieces are piled underneath the cutting/spreading tables.


STACKING CUT PIECES

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

• Use of carts instead of storing underneath the tables or onto the floor.

• The best carts for this job have one shelf that is at the same height as the cutting table. The cut pieces can be slid off the table directly onto the cart with very little lifting by the operator.

• Carts with multiple shelves located close together are also good. This minimizes the operator’s range of lifting.

• Another type of cart has three shelves. Only the top two are used and the middle shelf slides out from either side to allow easier access to it.


Floor surface

Problems

Operators stand for extended periods of time on hard surfaces. Concrete floors can lead to fatigue in the legs, feet and back. Often no seating option or footrests are provided


Floor surface

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS• Provide standing operators with good quality anti-

fatigue mats that cover the entire working area.• Provide operators with a footrest and a sit-stand

stool to help relieve the stress on the feet, legs and back.

• Allow operators to rotate between sitting and standing work positions.

• Compression stockings can be used.


Compression stocking


Aisle spacing

• Aisle spacing for the cutting/spreading activity meets the ergonomic standards at KTF.

• Secondary aisle spacing is 3 feet and primary aisle spacing is 5 feet.


Conclusion

This project demonstrates that there is ample room for ergonomic improvements in the clothing industry. We need to continue to identify problems and, more importantly, implement solutions to reduce the risk of injuries in situations where we know problems exist.

Thank You--- Ankit , Ankur

Ergonomics | Improvising Workstations | KTF Bangalore

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