Ergonomic Research: Review and Needs in Southern Forest Harvesting

A review of a representative portion of the ergonomics literature related to forest harvesting is presented. Particular attention is given to the implications of the literature to forest harvesting activities in the southern United States. The review is divided into three general topic areas: equipment design and maintenance, work physiology, and heat stress. The discussion of each topic area is presented in three sections. The first section describes the importance of the topic to forest harvesting, the second section reviews the available literature, and the third section suggests research that appears needed with respect to the topic area and southern forest harvesting. The review indicates that the majority of ergonomic research related to forest harvesting has been conducted with worker populations and harvesting conditions that are dissimilar to those found in much of the United States, especially in the South. This situation means that most of the data generated by the research has not been readily available or directly applicable to U.S. logging conditions. It is concluded that there is a need for ergonomic research specifically directed toward southern U.S. harvesting including: 1) evaluation of commonly used harvesting equipment, 2) assessment of workers’ heart rate, blood pressure, and energy expenditure levels during harvesting activities, and 3) development of an activity guide containing recommended work-rest cycles for different harvesting activities under various thermal environment conditions.

You must be logged in to download any documents. Please login (login accounts are free) or learn how to Become a Member