Whole-body Vibration Exposure Experienced by Dumper Operators in Opencast Mining According to ISO 2631-1:1997 and ISO 2631-5:2004: A Case Study

The study characterizes whole-body vibration exposure (WBV) experienced by dumper operators in opencast mining in India.

Objective: Comparison of WBV risk of dumper operators as per ISO 2631-1 and ISO 2631-5 standard which are based on dominant axis RMS acceleration and estimated static compression dose (Sed), respectively.

Method: Field study was conducted for 26 dumper operators. Whole Body Vibration signals were recorded using the tri-axial seat pad accelerometer and WBV data logger.

Results: The results showed RMS in range 0.47-1.62 m/s², total vibration dose value (VDVT) 6.91-21.03 m/s^1.75, and Sed values 0.13-1.09 MPa for all 26 dumper operators. It was observed that 23% of dumper operators exposed to high health risk, 73% dumper operators exposed to moderate health risk, and minimal health risk was observed for only dumper operators as per ISO 2631-1:1997. While evaluation based on ISO 2631-5:2004 revealed, only one dumper with high health risk, 27% showed moderate health risk, however, 69% of dumper operators were exposed to minimal health risk.

Conclusion: The predicted health risk according to the ISO 2631-1 is higher as compared to ISO 2631-5. ISO 2631-1 methodology has the upper hand during the prediction of WBV health risk as compared to ISO 2631-5. The result showed that ISO 2631-1 methodology was more appropriate than ISO 2631-5 for WBV health risk analysis of dumper operators in Indian mines.