This case study highlights the steps involved in a participatory intervention to reduce occupational risks for boiler assemblers and how it was adopted into the company’s prevention culture.

Workers at manufacturing plants are often required to lift, carry and drag heavy loads. This involves repeatedly using the same body parts and puts workers at risk of MSDs. This case study looks at an intervention to improve equipment and working conditions at a large PVC manufacturing plant in...

Servizi Italia Spa, a provider of laundry and sterilisation services to the healthcare sector, introduced novel operating methods and changes in its work sites to prevent MSDs. Workers were videoed while wearing Wi-Fi sensors to digitally visualise and analyse their movements to identify their MSD...

The type of physical effort required from maintenance workers at the Italian yarn company Zegna Baruffa Lane Borgosesia increased the risk of MSDs. A participatory ergonomics intervention involving training to prevent MSDs was carried out, which improved the safety of 40 employees working with the...

In Linexert, in Haute-Saône, Personeni joinery specializes in the design of windows and doors in wood, PVC and aluminum. Previously engaged in a process of improving working conditions, it recently acquired equipment aimed at preventing the risks associated with carrying loads. The door and window...

For the past three years, Assa Abloy, a manufacturer of keys, locks and cylinders, has been using collaborative robots, or cobots, to reduce the risk of MSDs at certain production stations. By eliminating the most repetitive gestures, the cohabitation between operators and robots is proving fruitful...

This discussion paper looks at the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in the construction sector in the EU and in Italy in particular and at the tasks that put workers at risk, such as manual lifting and awkward postures.