Ergonomics: Workplace Risk Assessment Strategies

Workplace injuries due to repetitive motion cost employers an estimated $2.8 billion in 2002, according to the latest data from the Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index.

If that figure isn't enough to convince you of the importance of developing an ergonomics component in your safety program, consider that repetitive motion was the fourth-leading cause of on-the-job injuries in 2002 and 2001, according to the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety.

In what will be the first in a continuing series on ergonomics, Occupationalhazards.com asked ergonomics expert Paul Adams, Ph.D., PE, CSP, CPE, a senior consultant with Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Applied Safety and Ergonomics Inc., to provide an introduction to the risks associated with repetitive motion and to offer an overview of some risk assessment strategies. Adams' background includes 6 years as the safety engineering and ergonomics leader for Toledo, Ohio-based fiberglass materials maker Owens-Corning.

For starters, Adams breaks all injuries into two categories: acute trauma and cumulative trauma. (Via Occupational Hazards)