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Industrial Engineering & Manufacturing vocabulary · Ergonomics and Human Factors

Musculoskeletal disorder

Meaning in industrial engineering & manufacturing, with examples

nounCommon term

In industrial engineering & manufacturing, musculoskeletal disorder means: An injury or painful condition of the muscles, tendons, joints, nerves or back, often caused by repeated movements, heavy lifting or awkward postures at work. Shortened to MSD.

In Turkish: kas-iskelet sistemi rahatsızlığı, kas-iskelet sistemi hastalığı

How it is used

Usually used in the plural (MSDs). Examples include low back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome and tendinitis. Ergonomists assess the risk of musculoskeletal disorders with tools such as RULA, REBA or the NIOSH lifting equation, and redesign jobs to prevent them.

Example sentences

  1. Most of our lost-time injuries last year were musculoskeletal disorders from lifting boxes.

  2. Job rotation every two hours has reduced musculoskeletal disorders on the packing line.

Common collocations

  • work-related musculoskeletal disorders
  • risk of musculoskeletal disorders
  • prevent MSDs
  • repetitive strain injury
  • ergonomicsThe study and design of work so that it fits the human body and mind, reducing strain, injury and errors while improving comfort and performance.
  • manual handlingLifting, carrying, pushing, pulling or holding loads using the body rather than machines; one of the most common causes of back injuries at work.
  • anthropometryThe measurement of the human body, such as height, reach and hand size, used to design workstations, tools and equipment that fit the people who use them.
  • human factorsThe study of how people's abilities, limits and behavior affect their work with machines, systems and procedures, used to design work that reduces errors.

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