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David Rempel, MD
University of California, San Francisco
San Francisco, CA
Ph: 510-665-3653
Email: rempel@itsa.ucsf.edu
ENR names Rempel as one of the "25 Newsmakers of 2010"
David Rempel
Physician Pressed for a Solution for Easing Shoulder Pain of Overhead Drilling
This physician and professor found a way to cut down on the strain it takes to drill overhead holes with a new type of power tool that is just as efficient as traditional ones.
In Year 1, David Rempel, MD, head of the UCSF ergonomics program, led his team of researchers in developing and testing a rock drill support tool that reduces force and vibration to the drillers' hands, arms, shoulders, and body while increasing speed and quality of work. Workers on highway and bridge construction use a hand-held, air-powered rock drill that weighs up to 60 lbs., which they must position and hold in place while drilling into concrete, often to a depth beyond 12 inches. This places tremendous force on the body. During the first year of the grant, the team built a prototype rock drill support for testing at commercial construction sites where rod-and-dowel drilling is done. They did preliminary testing and refinement of the prototype design to ensure it was robust enough to do the job. They networked with contractors doing rod-and-dowel work to gain permission to test the prototype on their construction projects. These projects include building/structure retrofits, in addition to highway and bridge work. Perhaps most important, they understood the California regulatory environment, which requires dust control for drilling into concrete, and responded by partnering with Dustcontrol Inc., to develop a system to capture the silica dust generated during drilling. While formal data collection begins in Year 2 of the project, we believe the system dramatically reduces ergonomic loads and silica exposure to the driller.
Research Team & Partners: University of California at Berkeley Ergonomics Program; California Department of Public Health – Occupational Health Branch; Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA); RM Harris; PCL Construction; Cahill Contractors; Alten Construction; WebCor
Builders; AGC-California; DustControl Inc., and Atlas-Copco.
Abstract:
Laborers and other construction workers who repair and retrofit highways and bridges are at risk for upper extremity and back injuries associated with concrete drilling. Some of these projects require drilling 5,000 to 50,000 1” diameter holes 12” or deeper. The work is done manually with 30 to 80 lb air powered drills and is usually done overhead or horizontally. The primary objective of this research proposal is to collaboratively develop drill support systems for concrete drilling on highway and bridge construction that will reduce construction worker body fatigue and pain, decrease risk for musculoskeletal disorders, and decrease hand vibration while maintaining or improving productivity. There are nine logically connected specific aims to accomplish this objective. These include focus groups (N=16) to identify problem tasks and review solutions; design, build and field test (N=15) a prototype drill support system; design of a final drill support system; field testing (N=40) with evaluation of hand vibration, arm and head postures, usability and productivity; cost-benefit analysis; dissemination; and evaluation. The project should ultimately lead to the dissemination of new methods for concrete drilling and the widespread use of drill support systems. The project has the potential to decrease soft tissue injuries to the arms, shoulders and back, and decrease risk for hand arm vibration syndrome.
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