Grant: Collaborative Research and Development Grants

This research seeks to improve the productivity, safety and health of masons by using advanced analytical techniques and tools to analyze masonry work systems. A masonry work system is defined as the combination of people, processes, tools, equipment and materials used on a construction site to put a masonry design in place. Such systems have experienced a surge in innovation due to advances in materials, design and automation. Masons, who remain at the center of these systems, are subject to the extreme physical demands of masonry. Under normal work conditions those demands can result in significant musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). Such disorders are expensive to treat, disrupt lives, and often result in departure of workers from the industry. Analysis of worker musculoskeletal stresses and of productivity has become radically easier and less expensive to conduct in work-site environments through advances in: (1) IMU (inertial motion unit) suits and data analysis systems, (2) video recording and machine vision systems, and (3) wearable heart rate monitors. Using these tools, twenty masons were each recorded building a standard wall made of fifty 15kg concrete masonry units, resulting in a database that will serve to initiate analytical studies to objectively identify and quantify desirable and undesirable mason actions in terms of productivity, safety, and health, within a variety of environments and masonry work systems. To do this, a unique collaboration among the Canadian Concrete Masonry Producers Association, the Canadian Masonry Design Center, and two engineering departments has been established. Results of this collaborative and multidisciplinary research effort should substantially impact the productivity, safety and health of masons in Canada, thus ensuring the health of the industry. Broader scientific contributions will include improved tools and analytical techniques for assessing the human impact of future construction work systems.