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\nStudying workers\u2019 sizes and shapes and how they perform tasks can prevent injury on the job. CDC offers manufacturers, employers, and others important resources and research findings for improving the workspaces, machines, vehicles, and personal protective equipment of workers.
\nEngineering anthropometry (an?thro-pom\u00b4?-tre) is the science of defining a person\u2019s physical measures, such as their size and shape. CDC\u2019s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducts engineering anthropometric research to prevent work-related injuries and deaths by studying how work spaces and equipment fit today\u2019s diverse worker population. This includes the fit of tools, machines, vehicles, and personal protective equipment (PPE).
\nBefore NIOSH began anthropometry research in the early 2000s, anthropometric data from the surveys of military personnel collected in the 1950s and 1970s were used. These decades-old data do not represent the sizes and body types of today\u2019s workers who are much more diverse in age, gender, and ethnicity.
\nResearch has shown that there are unique shapes and sizes for specific occupations.1 For example, research has shown that truck drivers are heavier than the average U.S. population,2 and that firefighters have larger upper bodies than the rest of the population.3 These findings support the need for redesigned tools, machines, vehicles, and PPE to keep our workforce safe and healthy.
\nThe differences in the body sizes and shapes of today\u2019s workers compared to past data, as well as limited availability of proper fitting PPE, can contribute to worker injuries and deaths. However, engineering anthropometric research has great potential to support worker safety and health for:
\nUsing anthropometric data to design tools, machines, vehicles, and PPE that better fit today\u2019s workers is an important part of CDC\u2019s Prevention through Design (PtD) program, which promotes ways to minimize hazards and risks at worksites. A few examples of PtD are CDC\u2019s research on head-and-face anthropometry and 3-dimensional (3D) head models of industrial workers, which were incorporated into technical specifications of the International Organization for Standardization\u2019s (ISO) standards for testing new respirator facepieces and have been used by many manufacturers to improve respirator and eye protection designs.
\nMost recently, researchers at CDC developed and published the first-ever federal summary of truck driver anthropometry data and have a number of firefighter anthropometry publications for use in equipment and work space design. The data from this research was provided to truck manufacturers and fire service partners. Truck manufacturers are currently using the data to redesign truck cabs, while fire service partners are redesigning seat belts, seats, gloves, self- contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) carrying straps, and protective clothes.
\nIn addition to truck drivers and firefighters, CDC has studied construction workers, farmers, and meat processing workers. Researchers have examined equipment as well, such as farm tractor-cab layout and fall-arrest harness systems. CDC also recently finished data collection on emergency medical service workers and is gearing up to collect data on law enforcement officers.
\nSome of CDC\u2019s studies and research on engineering anthropometry include:
\nEngineering Anthropometry
\nFirefighters
\nHarnesses
\n \nRespirators
\nTruck Drivers
\nMost of CDC\u2019s research on workers\u2019 physical measures takes place in the Anthropometry Labs. The Morgantown, WV and Pittsburgh, PA labs were developed in 1995 and 2001 respectively, and they are two of only several in the world with advanced technologies for collecting highly accurate anthropometric data.
\nComputer-generated human models are available for analysis through 3D digital scanning. The lab is equipped with a:
\nThese scanning devices produce high resolution scans within seconds.
\nMobile anthropometry lab that travels around the country collecting worker body dimension information.
\nIn addition to the onsite Anthropometry Lab, CDC has a Mobile Anthropometry Lab that includes a body, foot, hand, and head scanner all inside a 30-foot long trailer. This lab on wheels allows researchers to study hard to reach workers across the nation. The Mobile Anthropometry Lab has traveled across the U.S. making stops in Boise, ID; Ft. Worth, TX; New Haven, CT; Phoenix, AZ; Minneapolis, MN; Richmond, VA; and Tallahassee, FL.
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