The effectiveness of ergonomic gloves to reduce hand-arm vibration exposure: A case study of grass mowers

Background: The use of vibrating power hand tools can lead to Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS). Objective: This quasi-experimental research aimed to determine the effectiveness of ergonomic gloves in reducing vibrations from lawn mowers. Methods: The research instruments were questionnaires. Additionally, this study used a hand and arm vibration meter (SVANTEK SV106A) to measure vibration levels. A repeated-measures design with three conditions (without gloves, with cotton gloves, and with ergonomically designed gloves) was employed in 15 participants. Data was analyzed with Repeated-measure ANOVA, and descriptive statistics. Results: Comparison of average daily vibration levels showed that A(8) vibration while using ergonomic gloves ( x̄  = 3.50 m/s ² ) was less than using cotton gloves ( x̄  = 4.89 m/s ² ), and bare hands ( x̄  = 5.23 m/s ² ) had statistically significant differences of p-value = 0.002 and p-value = 0.003, respectively. Notably, despite the reduction achieved with ergonomic gloves, the A(8) vibration exposure (3.50 m/s ² ) remained above the Exposure Action Value (EAV) of 2.5 m/s ² , emphasizing the need for supplementary administrative controls. Additionally, 80% of participants indicated a moderate level of satisfaction regarding the ergonomic gloves. Conclusion: This study demonstrated how agriculturalists and workers can utilize this low-cost, anti-vibration glove prototype constructed from cotton gloves stitched with NBR foam. Furthermore, manufacturing companies can utilize the findings of this study to conduct further research on designing affordable and highly accessible anti-vibration gloves.