Advanced Ergonomics

Unit VII Assignment

This assignment involves completing a series of four exercises, and the purpose is for you to practice assessing workplace stressors, evaluating the regulatory environment, and evaluating controls within a workplace.

Exercise 1:  Questionnaire and Interview Skills

For this exercise, place yourself in the shoes of someone who has been tasked to improve the workstation of an administrative assistant, like Beth. To practice your questionnaire and interview skills, develop a set of 10 questions that will allow you to learn more about the employee and her workstation in order to prevent any further ergonomics injuries.

Exercise 2:  OSHA, FMCSA, and Controls

Prior to departing the truck terminal and after the walk-around inspection, Ben, the truck driver, has identified a problem, one that could lead to more dangerous problems for him while he is driving. He reports the problem to the terminal manager, who, afterward, informs Ben that the truck load must go out today and he must take his rig to make the delivery. After discussing this with the mechanic, Ben is told by the terminal manager that the repairs will be done upon his return and after the shipment has been delivered. In a 200-word essay, explain why Ben should not make the delivery with the problematic truck by addressing the OSHA guidelines and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association (FMCSA) guidelines to defend your assertions. This question might require you to research the guidelines prior to formulating a response. Also, briefly address how the pressure from the manager impacts Ben’s ability to successfully perform his job—what are the emotional and psychological implications from the manager’s actions?

Exercise 3:  Quality Control and Inspection

This exercise involves evaluating quality control and inspections, which apply to basically all occupational incidents. This is an opportunity for you to select an incident that interests you. In the online library or from a major credible news source on the Internet, locate a current news story or article where some sort of failure occurred. The incident should not be more than three years old. The purpose of this exercise is to specifically highlight the failure of the quality-control-and-inspection system. Also, how would you have prevented this incident (the failure) from occurring by using the proper quality-control-and-inspection system? Your response should be at least 200 words, while also containing the appropriate references and in-text citations.

Exercise 4:  Recommending a Preventative Maintenance Program

Since managers and executives are so busy, it is not always easy for them to identify how spending money will actually save money. This exercise involves drafting a statement to your management team in order to persuade them to invest in a preventative maintenance program. Highlight an example of preventative maintenance in your current work environment. First, estimate the cost of the preventative maintenance and then compare it to the cost of not fixing the problem along with the other problems that might occur because of it. With at least 200 words, prepare a statement to the management staff of your company to persuade them to proceed with the expenditure of the money in a preventative mode.

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Discuss the interrelationship among safety, quality, and production in a work area. Is one more important than the others? Explain.

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