The contributions of human factors and ergonomics to a sustainable minerals industry

Horberry, Tim; Burgess-Limerick, Robin; Fuller, Ruth

doi:10.1080/00140139.2012.718800

Cited by 22 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…The maintenance and repair and bagging audits, particularly, are examples of relatively simple semi-quantitative tools that can be used to allow mine safety personnel to perform risk assessments of manual tasks as advocated by Horberry, Burgess-Limerick, and Fuller (2013). A unique aspect of the audits is that recommendations are made for each audit item where a deficiency is noted, and the electronic version provides a tailored report with only those recommendations relevant to the particular site.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of ergonomics audits for bagging, haul truck and maintenance and repair operations in mining

et al. 2017

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The development and testing of ergonomics and safety audits for small and bulk bag filling, haul truck and maintenance and repair operations in coal preparation and mineral processing plants found at surface mine sites is described. The content for the audits was derived from diverse sources of information on ergonomics and safety deficiencies including: analysis of injury, illness and fatality data and reports; task analysis; empirical laboratory studies of particular tasks; field studies and observations at mine sites; and maintenance records. These diverse sources of information were utilised to establish construct validity of the modular audits that were developed for use by mine safety personnel. User and interrater reliability testing was carried out prior to finalising the audits. The audits can be implemented using downloadable paper versions or with a free mobile NIOSH-developed Android application called ErgoMine. Practitioner Summary The methodology used to develop ergonomics audits for three types of mining operations is described. Various sources of audit content are compared and contrasted to serve as a guide for developing ergonomics audits for other occupational contexts.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of ergonomics audits for bagging, haul truck and maintenance and repair operations in mining

et al. 2017

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“…Effective risk management strategies have been identified as the keystone for accident prevention in the mining industry (Department of Natural Resources and Mines, 2017; International Council on Mining & Metals, 2019). The mining industry applies a suite of risk management strategies that are often categorized as "the hierarchy of controls" (Horberry, Burgess-Limerick, & Fuller, 2013). More recently, stakeholders including regulators in the mining industry have advocated for an approach that recognizes the centrality of humans in the design, implementation and operation of critical controls (Mason, 2016).…”

Section: Rationalementioning

confidence: 99%

Organizational Factors and Risk Management in the Mining Industry

Nyoni¹,

Pillay²,

Rubin³

et al. 2019

IJOOES

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Organizational factors are considered part of the broader human factors domain and have long been suspected to have a significant influence on individual and group behavior in the workplace, although there is little research on their influence in mining workplaces. This paper provides an update of a systematic literature review (SLR), reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis: The PRISMA Statement 2009. The SLR examined the relationship between organizational factors and residual risk management in the context of accident causation in mining. Six electronic databases were searched for peer-reviewed studies published between 1980 and 2018. Following eligibility criteria, 28 studies were selected for quality assessment and reviewed. The results of the SLR included the identification of several organizational factors that are common in the mining industry, as well as the existence of a conceptual relationship between organizational factors, residual risk management and accident causation. In particular, the review found that about two-thirds of the eligible articles acknowledged a linkage between organizational factors and accident causation. The SLR also identified several research gaps associated with the lack of empirical research around the relationship between organizational factors, residual risk and accident causation. More importantly, the review found no empirical studies that utilized the term residual risk thus implying a gap and inconsistency in risk taxonomy in the mining industry. In light of these gaps, further research is recommended to examine the nature and extent of the influence of organizational factors on residual risk management, with particular focus on examining the influence of organizational factors on the functioning and effectiveness of risk controls. It is envisaged that by improving the efficacy of risk controls, mining companies can ultimately improve their safety performance and make it more sustainable.

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“…Some field studies have attempted to ensure similar vibration across subjects by using the same route, same vehicle and similar velocity [29] while other studies have used repeated tests along a test circuit [22,30,31]; however, these efforts are unlikely to have exactly the same vibration exposure in all of the trials due to the extreme sensitivity of the vibration exposure to factors such as vehicle velocity. In addition, the costs of collecting field data such as whole-body vibration and electromyography are large [32], and the fundamental nature of the mining industry can make it difficult to perform field research [33]. In contrast, controlled studies can be performed in laboratory environments to uncouple the relative contribution of these interrelated factors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Research Using Virtual Reality: Mobile Machinery Safety in the 21st Century

et al. 2013

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Whole-body vibration is a significant health risk for between 4% and 7% of the work force in North America. In addition, many factors compound the health risks of heavy machinery operators. For example, twisted trunk and neck postures stiffen the spine and increase the transmission of vibration to the head. Similarly, workers adopt awkward postures in order to gain appropriate lines of sight for machine operations. Although the relative contribution of these various issues can be evaluated in field studies and models, we propose that virtual reality is a powerful medium for investigating issues related to health and safety in mining machine operators. We have collected field data of posture and vibration, as well as visual environment, for a forklift operating in a warehouse. This paper describes the process and outcome of this field data collection, and provides a discussion on the next steps to develop and test the virtual reality model to enable laboratory testing. Our ongoing studies will evaluate the interplay between posture and vibration under conditions replicating routine heavy machinery operations, such as underground mining.

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The contributions of human factors and ergonomics to a sustainable minerals industry

Cited by 22 publications

References 12 publications

Development of ergonomics audits for bagging, haul truck and maintenance and repair operations in mining

Development of ergonomics audits for bagging, haul truck and maintenance and repair operations in mining

Organizational Factors and Risk Management in the Mining Industry

Research Using Virtual Reality: Mobile Machinery Safety in the 21st Century

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