Quick Links
Customer Centres
New jackhammer support arm protects workers from injury
Imagine
taking a 30-pound jackhammer and holding it above your head to remove
unwanted concrete. Now imagine doing that eight hours a day. If you think
you'd get tired and be prone to injury, you're right.
According to Don Nelson, WCB's manager of Industry and Labour
Services, it's almost impossible to do that sort of work without enduring
some sort of soft-tissue injury. And the statistics back him up. From
1997 to 2001, claim costs related to jackhammer work totalled almost $1
million.
That's why, two years ago, the construction industry approached the WCB,
looking for a solution. A WCB-sponsored musculoskeletal injury assessment
indicated changes were necessary for the safe use of this equipment in
the elevated position. As a result, the WCB's Research Secretariat provided
a $30,000 grant to BCIT to design a device that would reduce stress and
fatigue on a worker.
View
webcast of new jackhammer solution.