In this study the Swedish version of the Demand—Decision Latitude—Social support model was used. A total of 40 administrative staff and 40 cleaners participated. Demands and decision latitude scores were significantly higher in the administrative staff than in the cleaners. Social support scores were not significantly different between the administrative group and the group of cleaners. Psychological demands and skill discretion differed between the two working groups. The administrative staff’s perception of higher work demand and better decision latitude may be based on their belief that they possess appropriate education, general knowledge and detailed information about their work. Both groups had similar social support scores; it may be that members of both groups felt that they work as a group or team where their proximity fostered this perception of group social support

Modern technologies are used to create competitive performance in industry, and highly specialized personnel are often needed to operate and maintain the technology. However, both the technology and the personnel are influenced by the environment in which the technologies are operated. In this paper we study how human performance is influenced by an Arctic environment in conjunction with a remote location. Based on a literature study, we map Arctic factors and study how they affect human performance in remote locations. The results show that operational and maintenance personnel may be significantly affected by the Arctic conditions. If not taken into consideration during the design phase, human and organizational performance may be significantly affected. Examples are discussed in relation to petroleum production in Arctic locations north of Norway

PurposeThis paper demonstrates three techniques to extract human factor information from specific railway maintenance tasks. It describes the techniques and shows how these tools can be applied to identify improvements in maintenance practices and workflow. Design/methodology/approachThree case studies were conducted on single group of technicians (N=19) at a railway maintenance workshop in Luleå, Sweden. Case study I examined the posture of the technicians while they were changing the brake shoes of freight wagons; the study employed the Standard Nordic Questionnaire and a videotape using the Ovako Working Posture Analysis System (OWAS). Case study II looked at maintenance repair times required to change the wheel axle on freight wagons at the workshop. A video filming method suggested by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work was used to measure actual maintenance time. Finally, case study III considered the technicians’ (N=19) perception of work demands, their control over the work and their social support while performing maintenance tasks (brake shoe and wheel axle maintenance); to this end, the case study used a demand control support questionnaire. FindingsIn the first case study, the Standard Nordic Questionnaire confirmed that technicians at this particular railway vehicle maintenance workshop suffer from back and shoulder pain. The Ovako Working Posture Analysis showed that 21% of the working time required to fit the brake wedge and cotter pin fits into two OWAS categories: category 3, where “change is required as soon as possible,” and category 4, where “change is required immediately”. Problems stem from poor workplace layout, incorrect posture and inaccessibility of tools and components. In the second study, the video analysis indicated that the working time to change the wheel axle of a freight wagon is greatly affected by poor workplace layout. The third case study showed that the technicians have lower “psychological demands” (mean=13), “higher control over work” (mean= 16) and “high social support” (mean= 22).Practical implicationsThe objective of this study was to apply knowledge about human factors to the functional relationships between maintenance personnel, tasks and the working environment to improve safety. If the workplace layout, working posture, maintenance manuals and accessibility of tools are poorly planned, maintenance performance can be adversely affected. The results of this study should assist maintenance management to design new policies and guidelines for improving the work environment.Originality/valueThree case studies were conducted at a railway maintenance workshop in Luleå, Sweden, to collect data on how human factors affect various railway maintenance tasks.

The railway sector is key to the continuous expansion of industrialized nations, but the sector's working conditions and human performance requirements are qualitatively different from other industries. Human error in railway maintenance is a subject which warrants serious attention so as to achieve and sustain a competitive advantage. This paper investigates the probability of human error during the maintenance process of disc brake assembly unit and wheel set of railway bogie under various error producing conditions in railway maintenance workshop in Luleå, Sweden. The objective is to evaluate human error probability so as to take measures to reduce the likelihood of errors occurring within a system and, thus, to improve the overall levels of safety. For this paper, a case study that explores the causes of maintenance error during disassembly, inspection, maintenance, assembly and installation was derived from brain storming sessions among subject matter experts (SMEs), i.e technicians, supervisors and academic experts. In our case study, the Human Error Assessment and Reduction Technique (HEART) was implemented to evaluate the probability of human error occurring throughout the completion of maintenance task. HEART is based upon the principle that every time a task is performed on the maintenance of a disc brake assembly unit and wheel set, there is a likelihood of failure and the probability of this is affected by one or more error producing condition, for instance, shortage of time, over-riding information, inexperience etc. This paper presents the need for interventions in the human factor elements of maintenance tasks performed on railway bogie. A number of factors directly or indirectly result in a decline in human performance, leading to errors in maintenance tasks. The probability of a technician committing an error during maintenance of the disc brake assembly unit and wheel set is found to be 0.20 and 0.039 respectively. It has been observed that error producing conditions such as time pressure, ability to detect and perceive problems, the existence of over-riding information, the need to make absolute decisions, and a mismatch between the operator and the designer's model are major contributors to human error.

This paper investigates the factors affecting human operators’ probability of failure when performing railway maintenance tasks. The objective is to understand the interaction of the various factors and to identify driving and dependent factors. The factors are identified through a survey of the literature and ranked using a Likert scale. The reliability of measures is pretested by applying Cronbach’s alpha coefficient to responses to the questionnaire given to maintenance personnel. An interpretive structural model is presented, and factors are classified using matrice d’impacts croises-multiplication appliquéà un classement (MICMAC). The research may help maintenance management understand the interaction of factors affecting human failure probability in railway maintenance and help management devise policies and guidelines for railway maintenance related tasks.

This paper illustrates and discusses problems with the implementation and use of ergonomic tools and techniques in the process of cleaning. Cleaning is an occupation with a high risk of developing work-related disorders. One high-strain task where recommended tools and techniques are difficult to apply is cleaning staircases. This study evaluated the muscular activity of cleaners while mopping staircases using two different mop handles and found that an easily adjustable mop handle can decrease a cleaner’s physical load. The results also show that the implementation and contextualization of the mop are of great importance for how a mop is used. A more holistic approach is needed to improve the benefits of good tools and techniques in cleaning work. More research is needed on how workplace organization can be improved to support the implementation of strategies to increase the health of professional cleaners.

The maintainability issue is critical for the successful and effective operation of any industry in the extreme cold climatic conditions as the working conditions are made very difficult by low temperature, ice, short period of daylight and lack of support facilities. The objective of this paper is to identify potential risk factors in cold conditions and to provide ergonomic guidelines to reduce risk factors and increase maintainability of industries deployed in cold climate

Research on human factors related to railway operation and maintenance has, to an extent, been the neglected branch of transport ergonomics. Despite the numerous reports of ergonomics programs in a variety of industries, no examples of implementing ergonomics interventions in the railway vehicle maintenance workshop have been reported.In this study, a maintenance process at a railway workshop was studied and analyzed with special reference to working posture and maintenance repair time. The working postures of two maintenance personnel were obtained and analyzed using OWAS (Ovako Working Posture Analysis System). From the results, it was clearly indicated that poor working posture was a frequent occurrence during the maintenance activities. It can be concluded that the introduction and implementation of ergonomics principles at the railway maintenance workshop must be considered in order to reduce the poor working postures, maintenance repair time and to improve maintainability and productivity.

The maintenance performance measurement is often faced with a lack in knowledge about the real function of the maintenance department within organizations, and consequently the absence of appropriate targets emanating from the global mission and vision. These facts bring about metrics not adapted to the real needs, which has a strong load of human factor and without a roadmap of the amount of data to be collected, their processing and use in decision making. This article proposes a model where qualitative and quantitative methods are combined in order to complement advantages and disadvantages of them both.

Due to confined space and poor illumination in the mine the maintenance activities are difficult to perform which in turn leads to increased down time, cost and injuries. This also influences the productivity of maintenance personnel owing to stresses generated due to increased psychological and physiological demand on them. However, the industry has paid much less attention to the design of the mining machine in initial phase itself with respect to maintainability parameters leading to low productivity, increased maintenance time and increased likelihood of accidents during maintenance and operation of such equipment. The objective of the paper is to present ergonomics factors such as; anthropometery, human sensory, physiological and psychological application in relation to maintainability design issues in mining in order to reduce occupational risk factors and improved maintainability of the mining equipments leading to increased productivity.