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Congress of the International Ergonomics Association

IEA 2018: Proceedings of the 20th Congress of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA 2018) pp 203–212Cite as

Theoretical Requirements and Real Benefit of Cold Protective Clothing for Order-Pickers in Deep Cold

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Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 819))

Abstract

In a deep-cold working environment with variable physiological stress and considering individual thermoregulatory capacities, cold protective clothing must maintain the users’ body core and skin surface temperature on an acceptable level. In order to evaluate the cold protective clothing used, physiological effects of order-picking in a cold store (−24 ℃) were examined. 60 subjects (Ss) participated in the study, classified in 4 groups with 15 Ss each (younger/older males, younger/older females). The Ss had to work under predetermined, realistic working conditions with modified working phases with a duration of 80, 100, and 120 min, separated by identical warming-up breaks of 20 min. Additionally, 128 professional order-pickers employed in deep cold-storage depots had been systematically interviewed with regard to different topics of the cold protective clothing. The results show that the cold protective suit appears to protect sufficiently, whereby it should be noted that the insulation value is 2 times higher than required by an international standard. However, there is a need for improvements of the cold insulating boots and gloves to enable preventive occupational health and safety. In addition, a complete revision of the standards which are based on theoretical deliberations and assumptions is strongly recommended.

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Acknowledgement

This research project was financially supported by the “German Research Foundation” (Grant no. STR 392/5-1 and KL 2067/1-2).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ergonomics Division, University of Siegen, Paul-Bonatz-Str. 9-11, 57068, Siegen, Germany

    Sandra Groos, Mario Penzkofer, Helmut Strasser & Karsten Kluth

Authors
  1. Sandra Groos
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  2. Mario Penzkofer
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  3. Helmut Strasser
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  4. Karsten Kluth
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sandra Groos .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of the Republic of San Marino, San Marino, San Marino

    Sebastiano Bagnara

  2. Centre for Clinical Risk Management and Patient Safety, Tuscany Region, Florence, Italy

    Riccardo Tartaglia

  3. Centre for Clinical Risk Management and Patient Safety, Tuscany Region, Florence, Italy

    Sara Albolino

  4. Fraunhofer FKIE, Bonn, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany

    Thomas Alexander

  5. International Ergonomics Association, Tokyo, Japan

    Yushi Fujita

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Groos, S., Penzkofer, M., Strasser, H., Kluth, K. (2019). Theoretical Requirements and Real Benefit of Cold Protective Clothing for Order-Pickers in Deep Cold. In: Bagnara, S., Tartaglia, R., Albolino, S., Alexander, T., Fujita, Y. (eds) Proceedings of the 20th Congress of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA 2018). IEA 2018. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 819. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-96089-0_23

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