Ergonomic Approaches to Reduce the Risk of a Manual Material Handling Task in a Brazilian Poultry Slaughterhouse

This case study aimed to analyze the ergonomic risk of a manual material handling task and the effects of simulated interventions to reduce risks. The task of picking up boxes on the conveyor belt and putting them on the trolley of the freezing tunnel sector was selected intentionally. Two Brazilian poultry slaughterhouse workers positioned four boxes (7–18 kg) on each of the 11 shelves for 453 min daily. The vertical (0.25–1.75 m) and horizontal distances (0.45 m) and grip quality (poor) were collected. International Standards and the Variable Lift Index (VLI) software were employed. The average mass handled per worker was 11.7 kg (<25 kg), however, the results recommended weight limits of 2.1–5.5 kg for different heights. The cumulative mass lifted was 35,333 kg/worker/day (limit-10 tons), and 2,849 boxes/worker/day, consequently, the lifting frequency was 6.3/min, and VLI was 4.99 (very high). Performing job rotation with eight workers, ideal vertical area and box weights of 7–8 kg, VLI was 0.80.