Assessment of low-cost intervention (foam rubber) among wood carvers exposed to hand-arm vibration and noise

Despite having diversified products, some part of Indian handicrafts is still untapped with lack of awareness about new traditions. This interventional study is first of its kind to investigate the occupational use of carving hand tool that contributes to the development of hand-arm vibration (HAV) and noise. Reductions in HAV were evaluated using low-cost foam rubber as damping intervention on the tool handle. Sound pressure levels under actual work conditions were measured. The exposure was monitored from twenty experienced wood carvers. We used system usability scale as a basis to analyse the usability of foam rubber on bare handle. The daily vibration exposure indicated reduction by around 20% when compared to conventional handle. Mean equivalent sound pressure level (Lex, 8 h) was quite high (93.17 dB (A)), exceeding the exposure limit. The intervention was effective in curtailing frequency-weighted acceleration in dominant axes, but, deficient in reducing peak values during the field testing. The damping intervention showed a positive effect on usability ratings. The other contribution of the study is to propose the insight to develop a hand tool that could prevail over HAV to a greater extent. The implementation of hearing conservation programmes and practice of personal protective equipment’s have been suggested.

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Opracowanie rekordu w ramach umowy 509/P-DUN/2018 ze środków MNiSW przeznaczonych na działalność upowszechniającą naukę (2019).