Reduction of Musculoskeletal and Other Workplace Injuries
There are roughly 2.5 million janitorial jobs in the United States alone. In the janitorial profession, many tasks present safety challenges. For example, repetitive motions of cleaning high to low surfaces have the potential of turning into long-term injuries and freshly-cleaned wet floors can create fall risks. At Discovery Robotics, we are working to keep janitors safe. Our innovative technologies tackle the risky tasks of cleaning.
The National Safety Council cites three main causes of work-related injuries; overexertion, contact with work equipment, and falls. Repetitive motion injuries are one of the leading overexertion injuries. Consistent and repetitive tasks, such as pushing a vacuum forward and backward across the body, cause stress and strain on body parts, over time repetitive motion injuries and some musculoskeletal disorders can develop. This typically occurs without much strenuous effort or heavy lifting, over a long period of time. In 2017, the most typical body part damaged in a repetitive motion injury was the back, and these workers were unable to work for an average of thirteen days. In the janitorial industry specifically, over 61% of injuries were musculoskeletal disorders.
The other main category of work-related injuries is slips, trips, and falls. In the commercial floor cleaning sector, the main contributor to this category is fall risk on wet or debris-covered flooring. Larger debris and fine sediment alike can create hazardous walking surfaces. Workers who have tripped or fallen on the job typically suffer from sprains, strains, and muscle and ligament tears.
How does Discovery Robotics reduce these workplace injuries? The FX250, our autonomous commercial floor cleaner, takes on repetitive cleaning work, reducing the stress and strain on janitorial staff. With its long-lasting, lithium-ion battery system and interchangeable tool system, the FX250 powers an approach to floor cleaning that helps reduce overexertion and musculoskeletal injuries in janitorial staff. With the FX250’s newly improved caster assembly and cutting-edge sensor suite, it can navigate any obstacle without risk of error.
Discovery Robotics continues to design and improve on solutions to promote efficiency and safety in the workplace. “We believe robotics and automation will make huge contributions toward eliminating serious injury and death on the job by the year 2050. We’re delighted that Discovery Robotics is a founding member of the Work to Zero 2050 movement,” said Kent McElhattan, President and CEO, and former Chairman of the National Safety Council. For questions or more information, please contact us at info@discovery-robotics.com.