Hour-by-hour: New study identifies high-risk periods of the workday that are more prone to employee injuries
A study released by the Oregon State University on February 10, 2021, found that workers are most likely to suffer traumatic injuries during the first four hours of their shift.
Common injuries in construction include falls, work-related musculoskeletal disorders, joint inflammation, tendonitis, pinched nerves, and wounds sustained after being struck by objects.
During the workday, workers were most likely to sustain an injury during the fourth hour of work. The hourly injury rate decreased after that but increased slightly at the end of an eight-hour shift.
While injuries were less frequent after the fourth hour of work, injuries reported at that time tended to be more severe. Based on the data, Yang speculated that most construction workers take a mid-shift rest or meal break and experience some restorative benefits. Still, if they are unable to, they may risk a more severe injury.
Use these facts to help monitor your employees and keep them safe. Remember to give adequate breaks and always keep an eye on your employees for signs of fatigue.
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| Most industrial refrigeration systems today are operating with anhydrous ammonia as a primary refrigerant. Due to the hazards associated with ammonia, maintaining the mechanical integrity of its piping systems, vessels and other components that are constructed of carbon steel are critical to avoid accidental releases due to external corrosion. As part of the Mechanical Integrity of a system, visual inspections of corrosion, pitting, or combination of the two shall be done. Uninsulated piping and vessels are required at intervals of no more than annually, as well as insulated piping and vessels visual inspections of damage and/or moisture in the insulation. Once the visual inspections are conducted and areas are found to be in question, IIAR 6-2019 states; “Where pitting, surface damage, general corrosion, or a combination thereof, is suspected to have materially reduced the piping or vessels wall thickness, the remaining wall thickness shall be measured using appropriate techniques”. There are many Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) techniques used in the industry to determine wall thickness of piping and vessels such as X-Ray, Eddy Current, Magnetic Particle to name a few, all having different associated costs. One of the most common techniques due to cost and effectiveness is Ultrasonic Testing utilizing pulse echo. With this technique, inspectors introduce sounds into a material and measure the echoes (or sound reflections) produced by imperfections on the surface of the material as they are returned to a receiver. To be committed to providing a safe and healthy workplace for employees as well as the public, it is vital to the Mechanical Integrity of any system that a program be in place to continually monitor the piping systems and vessels through visual and NDT. Non-Destructive Testing is a service that HCG specializes in. Please reach out to HCG for assistance with NDT. |
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