ERGONOMIC GUIDELINES FOR THE PREVENTION OF DISCOMFORT OF STATIC POSTURES BASED ON ENDURANCE DATA

This communication aims to show why guidelines to prevent discomfort o f static postures can be based on endurance data, and to give insight in the aim and scope of a recent 'work-rest model for static postures' (WR model). The paper is a response to a recent paper of Mathiassen a nd Winkel (1992) who questioned the usefulness of discomfort and endur ance data, and of the WR model for developing guidelines for static po stures. It is concluded that discomfort can be considered as an indepe ndent evaluation variable for working postures, anchored in European l egislation. Discomfort can be predicted from the 'remaining endurance capacity' (REC) because of a known relationship between the REC and di scomfort as measured with the Borg rating scale. The WR model estimate s at group level the mean REC of a static posture with or without an e xternal force during and immediately after a work-rest schedule. The W R model is meant to assist practitioners in the assessment and optimiz ation of static postures (and external forces) and work-rest schedules in order to avoid high levels of discomfort.