Design of Ergonomic Equipment for Carrying Horticultural Plants to Reduce Musculoskeletal Syndrome]

Abstract

Horticulture is the activity of cultivating garden plants in the form of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and ornamental plants. This cultivation is carried out starting from nurseries to mass distribution. Conveyance is one of the plant transference equipment in order to support the process. Based on the preliminary study, the transference of plants is still done manually by lifting one by one box weighing 9-10 kg with a limited capacity. This condition affects ineffectiveness and discomfort work process, namely pain in the right shoulder (29%), left upper arm and right upper arm (71%), left forearm and right forearm (100%), right wrist (57%), and right hand (43%). Thus, it is important to modify the conveyance to make it more ergonomic. Redesigning the conveyance using ergonomic principles is the purpose of the research. Quality Function Deployment (QFD) method is used to determine the design specifications of the proposed device to suit the user’s needs. The survey was used to identify attributes of design required by the users. Statistical analysis was done to test a hypothesis. Result of this study shows that the conveyance design developed is valid to suit the user’s need at a significance level of 5%, namely comfortable, easy to use, strong, and effective. The redesigned conveyance can reduce the risk of musculoskeletal syndrome by 60% from high risk to low risk. Thus, the developed design is more comfortable and more effective in use.