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Case Study

Improving ergonomics at our Barnard Castle site

We have taken several initiatives to reduce ergonomic risks at our Barnard Castle site in northern England in 2004. The site won first place for safety in our 2004 internal Environment, Health and Safety awards for excellence.

The Ergonomic Improvement Team (EIT) was formed at the site in 2001 to combat increasing lost time illnesses and injuries related to musculoskeletal disorders such as repetitive strain injury. It includes 13 employees from a range of different departments across the site.

Ergonomics are considered in the design of new equipment - we conduct risk assessments and discomfort surveys, and consult trained local ergonomic experts.

We encourage employees to be aware of ergonomics and have seen a 160% increase in ergonomic hazards reported. The EIT has produced two ergonomics manuals for employees, an awareness training package and completed 80 improvement projects in a three year period (2002-2004) including the ones described below.

Warehouse employees operating very narrow aisle (VNA) hi-racker trucks complained of sore backs and wrists. The trucks were more than ten years old, so we decided to buy a new fleet at a total cost of £347,000 ($635,000), primarily to improve operator comfort. The trucks have better controls that require less effort to manoeuvre, have more headroom to allow drivers to sit or stand comfortably, and fully adjustable seats designed to provide good back support. They are also more efficient and use less energy to operate.

We consulted employees when purchasing and installing a new isolator (to be used for the biological testing of products) in order to identify and minimise ergonomic risks. Responding to their comments, we modified the design of the isolator to minimise the amount of bending, twisting and stretching necessary to operate it.

In 2003, the site achieved its best ever EHS performance, with 3.4 million hours worked without a lost time injury or illness. The model developed at Barnard Castle is being rolled out across other GSK sites.