Abstract
Heat stress is a well-known occupational health disorder and since Trinidad is a tropical island in the Caribbean, there is a serious risk to heat stress illness occurring when workers operate in adverse thermal working environments. This paper aims at illustrating the prevalence of work-related heat stress within a cement manufacturing facility in Trinidad. Using the Threshold Limit Value (TLV) Standard, it was found that 10 out of 11 work stations exceeded the recommended time to perform the given task. The study of heat stress experienced by workers was linked to the subjective heat related symptoms as identified using a questionnaire. On average, kiln workers experienced a greater number of symptoms than mill workers with the most common symptoms to both groups being dehydration, fatigue and headaches. The study showed that symptoms increased with the age and body mass index (BMI) of the participants.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
ACGIH. (2012). TLV’s and BEI’s. Edited by The American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists. Cincinnati: Signiture Publications.
Adelakun, A., Schwartz, E., & Blais, L. (1999). Occupational heat exposure. Applied Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, 14(3), 153–154.
Bernard, T. (2012). Occupational heat stress. Occupational Ergonomics, 737–764 (CRC Press).
Bernard, T., Dukes-Dobos F., Ramsey, J. (1994). Evaluation and control of hot working environments. Part II-the Scientific bases Guide. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 119–138.
Chen, M.-L., Chen, C. J., Yeh, W. Y., Huang, J. W., & Mao, I. F. (2003). Heat stress evaluation and worker fatigue in a steel plant. AIHA Journal number, 64(3), 352-352.
DiCorleto, R. D., Coles, G., Firth, I. (2002). Documentation of heat stress standard developed for use in the Australian environment. In Tullamarine Institute of Occupation Hygienists.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). (1993). A Guide to Heat Stress in Agriculture. EPA: Washington DC.
Glazer, J. (2005). Management of heatstroke and heat exhaustion. American Family Physician, 71(11), 2133–2140.
Hancock, P., & Vasmatazidis, I. (2003). Effects of heat stress on cognitive performance: the current state of knowledge. International Journal of Hyperthermia, 19(3), 355–372.
Hartley, C., & Waterhouse, P. (2003). Health and Safety: Hazardous Agents, Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) Services Limited.
Havenith, G., Coenen, J. M. L., Kistemaker, & Kenney, L. (1988). Relevance of individual characteristics for human heat stress response is dependent on exercise intensity and climate type. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology, 77(3), 231–241.
Hunt, A., (2011). Heat strain, hydration status, and symptoms of heat illness in surface mine workers. Ph.D. thesis.
OSHA. Heat Stress (1999). http://www.osha.gov/dts/osta/otm/otm_iii/otm_iii_4.html#2.
Parsons, K. (2005). Ergonomics assessment of thermal environments. Evaluation of Human Work (3rd ed., pp. 643–661). Boca Raton: CRC Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this paper
Cite this paper
Lewis, W.G., Rodriguez, R. (2016). Heat Stress in the Workplace: A Case Study of a Cement Manufacturing Facility in Trinidad. In: Mandal, D.K., Syan, C.S. (eds) CAD/CAM, Robotics and Factories of the Future. Lecture Notes in Mechanical Engineering. Springer, New Delhi. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-2740-3_42
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-2740-3_42
Publisher Name: Springer, New Delhi
Print ISBN: 978-81-322-2738-0
Online ISBN: 978-81-322-2740-3
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)