Safe Use and Redesign of Hydrostatic Weighing Equipment

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine critically the safe usage of equipment used for research tests on athletes and to propose improvements. The equipment examined in this study is a bought-in hydrostatic weighing unit which is used in a research environment. Hydrodensitometry is a technique which is widely used to assess body composition. It uses Archimedes Principle to calculate the body density of a subject and this gives a measure of body fat levels. Levels of body fat and muscle are used to assess body composition to optimize muscle mass and as a performance indicator within professional sport environments. Body fat levels are used as training guidance in many sports and optimal limits are set for different sporting applications. The safety of subjects while undergoing testing is paramount. The responsibilities of testers to their subjects, as well as to themselves and their co-workers, has grown in importance from both an ethical and safety stance. With a general increasing consciousness of safety, the user needs to be aware of their legal duties but also all testers have a moral obligation to their subjects to keep them safe from harm. This coupled with the increasing numbers of personal injury claims means that the researcher is required to demonstrate a reasonable level of care for the subject’s health and safety. Awareness of health and safety is an absolute requirement. The hydrostatic weighing equipment was examined in line with relevant European based legislation and safety requirements and these are discussed along with good practice for international testers. A full equipment and task risk assessment was carried out and hazards were identified. The main hazards found were slips and falls, exposure to chemicals, drowning and electrocution. The outcome from this study was in the short term, safe working procedures were needed with safety controls. These included a winch to remove subjects in an emergency, movement of an electronic display, chemical usage assessment and guidelines. In the long term, redesign of the equipment was necessary as, the hazards and risks were found to be significant. The redesigned equipment changed the orientation of the subject from vertical to horizontal position. The elements that were addressed were the access method into the hydrostatic system became less hazardous and adding a mechanism, which removes subjects from the water should they encounter difficulties during the testing. The redesign should also improve the accuracy and repeatability of the readings.