Assessment of whole-body vibration exposure of mining truck drivers

Synopsis Whole-body vibration (WBV) exposure measurements taken from 105 truck drivers employed in 19 mines and other workplaces were evaluated with the criteria prescribed in EU 2002/44/EC directive, BS 6841 (1987), ISO 2631-1 (1997). and ISO 2631-5 (2004) standards. The highest vibration acceleration was measured on the vertical Z-axis. The highest WBV exposure occurred in the RETURN, HAUL, and SPOT phases while the lowest exposure took place in the LOAD and WAIT phases. Crest factors on all axes were generally greater than nine, yet strong correlation coefficients were achieved in VDV-eVDV analyses. Driver seats generally dampened the vibration along the Z-axis but exacerbated it along X and Y axes. The dominant frequency for the X and Y-axes rose up to 40 Hz while it ranged between 1 Hz and 2.5 Hz along the Z-axis. While the probability of an adverse health effect was higher with BS 6841 (1987) and ISO 2631-1 (1997) standards, it was low according to EU 2002/44/EC and ISO 2631-5 (2004). The 91 t, 100 t, and 170 t capacity trucks produced lower vibration magnitudes. Drivers were exposed to approximately equivalent levels of WBV acceleration and dose in contractor-type trucks and mining trucks. Rear-dump trucks exposed their drivers to a slightly higher level of vibration than bottom-dump trucks. Underground trucks exposed their drivers to a significantly higher level of vibration than mining trucks. Both driver age and driver experience were inversely proportional to vibration acceleration and dose. Conversely, there was a positive relationship between the truck service years and the WBV acceleration and dose to which drivers were exposed to. Loads of blocky material exposed drivers to higher vibration acceleration and dose levels than non-blocky material.