Assessment of musculoskeletal disorders in a manufacturing company using QEC and LUBAmethods and comparison of results

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are the most important causes of workers disabilities, increasing compensations and reducing productivity in developed and developing countries. This study was aimed to determine prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders and assessment of them by using QEC and LUBA methods and comparison of results in a manufacturing company in Iran.

This descriptive-analytical study was performed on 115 operators in 15 working stations by using QEC and LUBA methods. The prevalence of MSDs was obtained by using Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ). The data were analyzed by Spearman correlation coefficients.

According to findings of NMQ, 81.4 percent of operators at least in one of nine parts of musculoskeletal system have pain since 12 months ago. Assessment with QEC and LUBA revealed that 71.3 and 24.35 percent of operators respectively are in action level four.

According to the analysis, correlation between findings of NMQ and action levels in QEC is higher than LUBA action levels. Whereas LUBA just assess working postures, this method is not a suitable tool for evaluation of working stations that require repetitive carrying of loads, static posture and long time to do.