Emerging issues of occupational safety and health (OSH) in floating solar photovoltaic projects (FSPV) have rarely been addressed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The current scoping review has been planned to demonstrate OSH issues experienced by the workers engaged in the installation and maintenance of FSPV projects and existing ergonomics design interventions in the solar photovoltaic industry with a focus on the FSPV sector. Methods: A literature review was conducted from four major electronic databases (Science Direct, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Scopus) using predefined keywords and following the PRISMA framework for the period 1965-2020. A total of 49 studies under five headings, namely a) overview of key reasons for the emergence of floating solar photovoltaic projects, b) occupational risks of workers engaged in the solar PV industry/FSPV sector, c) occupational risks in workplaces/occupations similar to floating solar photovoltaics projects, d) availability of training modules and occupational standards, and e) design interventions/approaches in the solar PV industry/floating photovoltaics sector were analyzed. Results: It emerged that workers are exposed to multifarious occupational risk factors such as heat, solar radiation, ergonomic risks, electrocution, fire, hazardous substances, adverse weather conditions, and psychosocial factors. These risks have not been adequately addressed with required interventions in the FSPV sector. Intervention opportunities include designing innovative tools, lowering of loads, redesigning workplace layouts, introducing job aids, automation, task rotation, job enlargement, design of training modules, OSH standards and changes in work organization/shift, etc. Conclusion:This review is a first-of-its-kind effort to highlight the contextual risk factors in the emerging FSPV sector and the need for addressing them through ergonomics design interventions for successfully achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

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A large number of workers are entering the rapidly growing solar photovoltaic industry. The emerging occupational safety and health risks faced by the workers have rarely been measured and aptly addressed. Moreover, there is a lack of cross-cultural studies on solar photovoltaic workers engaged across different countries. This study was planned to measure the occupational safety and health risks, socio-demographic parameters, study the cross-cultural aspects and develop design concepts for risk mitigation. Field studies were conducted in solar installations in Saudi Arabia and India. Socio-demographic data and risk perception scores for eighteen different occupational safety and health risks were obtained from the workers (n = 135). In addition, discomfort glare was also measured. Design concepts were developed following the hierarchy of controls matrix and the bow-tie analysis method using the prevention through design approach. Heat stress, electrocution, solar radiation, and fire/electric flash were found in the high and very high risk categories. This is a first-of-its-kind cross-cultural study in the solar photovoltaic industry which measures the occupational safety and health risks and develops design concepts for mitigation of risks. This study will be beneficial to solar project developers, safety professionals, ergonomists, industrial designers and policy makers.

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