Factors Affecting Material-Cart Handling in the Roofing Industry: Evidence for Administrative Controls

Zhenyu Zhang, Ken-Yu Lin and Jia-Hua Lin
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Zhenyu Zhang: College of Built Environments, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105, USA
Ken-Yu Lin: Department of Construction Management, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
Jia-Hua Lin: Safety and Health Assessment and Research for Prevention (SHARP), Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, Olympia, WA 98501, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 4, 1-19

Abstract: Material-cart handling can be strenuous and lead to overexertion injuries. The aim of this study is to produce a thorough understanding of how the cart condition, tire type, physical environment-related factors, and load interact to influence the ergonomics and productivity of cart handling. Eighteen roofing carts with different conditions, tires, and loads were tested by one subject on three laboratory tracks: one L-shaped, one with ramps within constrained spaces, and one with obstacles within constrained spaces. A multiple linear regression analysis was performed to quantify the main and interaction effects of the factors of interest on the cart operations. The research findings confirm that using aged carts increases the injury risk by as much as 30.5% and decreases productivity by 35.4%. Our study also highlights the necessity of keeping an open space for cart operation; the travel distance from a cart to a ramp/obstacle should be greater than 61 cm. Finally, the results suggest the at-risk thresholds for different ramp slopes and obstacle heights, and the safe load capacities for the various working circumstances that are common on construction sites. The evidence created in this study can be translated into administrative controls for cart handling to reduce overexertion injuries and enhance performance.

Keywords: overexertion in pulling and pushing; material cart handling; roof construction; ergonomic risk factors; administrative control (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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