Proposal of a Guide to Select Methods of Ergonomic Assessment in the Manufacturing Industry in México

Abstract

This paper presents the particular situation on the manufacturing industry in Mexico, a sector of the economy that provides important figures for the economy and that generates an important number of jobs, and the relevance of ergonomics in the health care of workers, in particular the Work Muscle Skeletal Disorders (WMSD). In recent years there has been an increase in the number these cases. In addition, the new legal regulations that require companies to identify and evaluate Ergonomics Risk Factors (ERF) have taken effect and it is needed take actions to minimize the risk of exposure to a WMSD. The paper presents a review of the ERF and the WMSD described in the literature as well as the proposal of a methodological guide to select the Ergonomic Assessment Methods (EAM) with greater application for the manufacturing industry, distinguishing two main activities; repetitive work and manual handling of loads. For each of these, the EAMs with the simplest application in two levels are suggested; the recommended EAM and at a second level the alternative EAMs to complement the evaluation. The guide is presented graphically and a brief description of each method and its scientific reference is provided.