The use of personal protective clothing and devices in the cold environment

• Main Author: Abeysekera, John
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: Luleå tekniska universitet 1992
• Subjects: Production Engineering; Human Work Science and Ergonomics; Produktionsteknik; arbetsvetenskap och ergonomi; Arctic; Kalla; Luleå
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:ltu:diva-22118

In the use of personal protective devices (ppd) in the cold environment the wearability problems become more aggravated as the ppd must be worn over the cold protective clothing. Research in the area of human factors of ppd in cold environment has been scarce in the past. The lack of adequate user needs in currently used ppd in the cold environment, has resulted in discomfort, injury, non-use, and performance decrement among outdoor workers, particularly in the extreme cold regions, viz. Arctic countries. A preliminary study on the 'state of the art' was carried out on the use of ppd in cold environment which consisted of a literature survey, questionnaire survey among outdoor workers and information search through visits to relevant research institutions, discussions with researchers and participation in Conferences. The literature search carried out in 6 data bases revealed useful information about specific areas where wearability problems exist in ppd as well as some methods to be employed in research. The results of the questionnaire survey carried out in the Luleå region confirm that workers confront many inadequacies in the use of ppd in the cold climate. From the findings of this preliminary study three important kinds of ppd viz. safety gloves, safety shoes and safety helmets are discussed in this report. Human factors research for ppd in the cold environment with a view for improvement of wearability and use seem urgent. Då personlig skyddsutrustning (Personal Protective Devices, ppd) används i kallt klimat blir problemen med användarvänlighet mer påtagliga eftersom ppd måste bäras utanpå skyddskläder mot kyla. Forskningen inom området ergonomiska aspekter på ppd i kallt klimat har på senare tid varit bristfällig. Den ppd som idag används i kallt klimat uppfyller inte kraven på användarvänlighet vilket har resulterat i obekväma kläder, skador, oanvändbara kläder samt ett minskat användande av ppd bland utomhusarbetare, speciellt i extremt kalla områden såsom artiska länder. En preliminär studie ...