Ergonomic evaluation of winegrape trellis systems pruning operation

The winegrape industry suffers from high incidence rates of work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Pruning of dormant vines is a significant task, requiring long periods of highly repetitive and physically demanding work. The purpose of this study is to quantitatively evaluate five commonly used wi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of agricultural safety and health Vol. 12; no. 1; pp. 17 - 28
Main Authors Kato, A.E, Fathallah, F.A, Miles, J.A, Meyers, J.M, Faucett, J, Janowitz, I, Garcia, E.G
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.02.2006
Subjects
Adult
agricultural health and safety
Agricultural Workers' Diseases - epidemiology
Agricultural Workers' Diseases - prevention & control
Agriculture
back injuries
Biomechanical Phenomena
Cumulative Trauma Disorders - epidemiology
Cumulative Trauma Disorders - prevention & control
electrogoniometers
Electromyography
Ergonomics
Female
Hand - physiology
Humans
Low Back Pain - epidemiology
Low Back Pain - prevention & control
Male
musculoskeletal diseases
occupational diseases
plant care equipment
Posture
pruning
risk assessment
vineyard trellises
viticulture
Vitis
wine grapes
Wrist - physiology
wrist injuries
California
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ISSN1074-7583
DOI10.13031/2013.20199

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Summary:The winegrape industry suffers from high incidence rates of work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Pruning of dormant vines is a significant task, requiring long periods of highly repetitive and physically demanding work. The purpose of this study is to quantitatively evaluate five commonly used winegrape trellis systems with regard to the risk of developing musculoskeletal injuries to the wrist and lower back while pruning. Eleven subjects participated in this study. Subjects performed a simulated pruning task as wrist and trunk postures were gathered using electrogoniometers. The results showed significant postural differences among the trellis systems. Compared to the other systems, the VSP was determined to be the optimal system in terms of decreasing relative MSD risk. These results will assist vineyards in the selection process of suitable trellis systems that will include the worker health aspect in conjunction with other trellis-related parameters such as grape quality and productivity.
ISSN:1074-7583
DOI:10.13031/2013.20199