The European Assembly Worksheet

Assembly tasks are most common in industrialised countries. Even in highly automated and mechanised branches like the automotive, high or uniform load situations are common and result in high physical workload. In industrialised countries almost one-third of the total sick leave is due to musculo-skeletal complaints and disorders, which might result from poor ergonomic design. In order to tackle that problem, the European Assembly Worksheet (EAWS) as a screening tool for physical workload was developed. The EAWS grants load points for unfavourable physical workload and due to the total score assigns a traffic light risk scheme to work situations. In the recent years, the EAWS was checked for compliance with existing internationally accepted methods and legal European requirements. In the companies involved, the EAWS serves as an ergonomic screening tool. It links corrective (shop floor) and proactive (Tech center) ergonomics, points out ergonomic problems and offers design solutions to overcome them.