Date of Graduation

5-2018

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Industrial Engineering

Advisor/Mentor

Pierson, Harry

Committee Member/Reader

Rainwater, Chase E.

Abstract

Industrial spraying tasks prove to be some of the most dull, dirty, and dangerous jobs in the modern day. Although it is a ripe area for automation, justification methods do not typically account for the potential improvements in the ergonomics of a task from automating it. In addition, there is a gap in the ergonomics literature in formal methodologies to comprehensively evaluate an industrial spraying task ergonomically, including all relevant musculoskeletal elements. This research focuses on first developing a formal, comprehensive methodology for ergonomically evaluating industrial spraying tasks and attaining a final classification of the ergonomic ranking of the task. Then, this research shifts to applying this methodology in a case study format to an industrial spraying task at a manufacturing plant, and the results will be analyzed. Specifically, this research will then focus on how the results of the ergonomic analysis can be used to drive the justification and design of potential automated solutions to improve the ergonomics of the task for the worker. This analysis will show how ergonomics can be a viable and measurable factor in justifying automated solutions to industrial spraying tasks.

Keywords

Industrial Engineering; Industrial Spraying; Automation Justification; Ergonomics

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