Current Situation and Problems of Hand-Transmitted Vibration Measurement and Monitoring Equipment and Benefits of Wearable Sensors for Everyday Monitoring

Employers who expose their workforce to hazardous vibration from mechanized tools need to develop an understanding of the health risk their employees face as a consequence. ISO 5349-2 was developed as an international standard to define how vibration exposure should be measured to quantify the risk to the individual. The authors would contend that the standard does not facilitate the economic collection of data across a range of tool users on a routine basis. In this paper, the Current Situation of Monitoring equipment for Hand-Transmitted Vibration Measurement is summarized with a review of the equipment's functionality. The paper then examines evidence from a time in motion study of a group of skilled operators repeatedly performing a single task to highlight the broad variability in monitored exposure levels relative to that expected. The authors conclude with the benefits the wearable sensor offers as a practical everyday assessment relative to existing methodologies.