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The investigation of the
ergonomic aspects of the noise caused by agricultural
tractors used in Turkish forestry
Kenan Melemez* and Metin Tunay
Bartin
University, Forestry Faculty, 74100, Bartin, Turkey.
*Corresponding author. E-mail:
kmelemez@hotmail.com.
Tel: 90 378 223 5168. Fax: 90 378 227 7421.
Accepted 30 November, 2009 |
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Agricultural tractors in various types and dimensions are
generally used in forest depots in Turkey for loading and
stacking the forest products. In recent years, using
machines for loading forest products has increased more and
more due to the high productivity obtained from the machines
and hardships in finding skilled workers. However, the risks
accompanying these developments threaten the health of the
operators working in loading machines. This study was
applied on machines (145) working in loading and stacking
operations in forest depots within the borders of the
Western Black Sea Region. In the region, tractors on which
loading equipment is mounted (85%) and original loading
machines (15%) are used for loading and stacking operations.
The average noise level that the operators were exposed to
during the operations was above the hazard limit; for
tractors without cabins on which the loading equipment is
mounted, it was 93.5 dB (A) and with a noise level of 77.7
dB(A), it was below the warning limit for tractors with
original cabins. In the operation, machines older than 20
years and/or machines with broken static and dynamic
structures should be replaced. Instead of tractors with
mounted loading equipment that are intensively used in the
region and easily purchased due to their low cost, the use
of original loading machines should be encouraged. In order
to minimize the noise carried to the operators, the use of
tractors with original cabins should be increased. While
choosing places for forest depots, steeply sloped areas
should be avoided, and the roughness of the ground should be
reduced by covering the ground of existing depots with
stabilized material.
Key
words:
Ergonomics, forestry, loading tractors, noise.
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