Editorial: ROPS Are Not Homemade.

Safety professionals should speak up when secondary school teachers and FFA advisors consider fabricating and installing low-cost rollover protective structures (ROPS) as service learning projects for ag education students or as a service to the farm community. These projects are often motivated by the desire to address the continued occurrence of tractor rollovers, which are the most frequent cause of farm-related fatalities (NIOSH, 2018). These projects have also been made feasible by the availability of online plans for ROPS fabrication, including plans from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) that are designed for specific makes and models of tractors.

Extraction Force Prediction for Male Entrapment Victims with Different Body Types Submerged below the Grain Surface.

One contributor to agriculture's high death rate is confined space fatalities caused by entrapment in grain. Over 1,000 grain-related fatalities have been documented by researchers in 43 states, and states with the largest grain storage capacities have been shown to experience a proportionally larger number of suffocation fatalities. Several researchers have measured extraction forces in specific conditions, but a reference standard is needed for estimating the extraction forces for grain suffocation victims in common conditions.

Barriers and Motivators for Tractor ROPS Retrofitting in Iowa.

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach conducted an assessment of Iowa farm operators' perceptions of the barriers and motivators when considering retrofitting tractors with rollover protective structures (ROPS). A statewide sample of approximately 2,000 farm operators was surveyed in the 2017 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll. A series of questions was asked to evaluate the importance of potential barriers to decisions to not retrofit a tractor and potential motivators that could influence the decision to retrofit or purchase a tractor with ROPS.

Estimating Passive Stress Acting on a Grain Entrapment Victim's Chest.

Grain entrapments remain a major concern in the grain industry, with 1,100 incidents documented since the 1970s. One particular concern is the ability of a victim to breathe while entrapped in grain. Anecdotal reports suggest that victims struggle to breathe when entrapped in grain to a depth that covers their chests, yet some evidence indicates that victims should be able to breathe normally as long as their airways are not blocked regardless of depth.

Likelihood of Entanglement when Materials are Dropped Vertically onto a Rotating PTO Knuckle.

Power take-off (PTO) is a common method of transferring power from a tractor to a towed piece of machinery. The PTO is also a well-documented cause of severe and often permanent disabling injuries to farm operators. The physical conditions that cause entanglements are not well established.

Agricultural Worker Injury Comparative Risk Assessment Methodology: Assessing Corn and Biofuel Switchgrass Production Systems.

Keeping workers safe is a continuing challenge in agricultural production. Risk assessment methodologies have been used widely in other industries to better understand systems and enhance decision making, yet their use in production agriculture has been limited. This article describes the considerations and the approach taken to measure the difference in worker injury risks between two agricultural production systems.

Apparent Coefficient of Friction of Wheat on Denim.

Calculation of the extraction force for a grain entrapment victim requires a coefficient of friction between the grain and the surface of the victim. Because denim is a common fabric for the work clothes that cover entrapment victims, the coefficient of friction between grain and denim becomes necessary. The purpose of this research was to calculate the apparent coefficient of friction of wheat on denim fabric using a proven procedure.

Contributing Causes of Injury or Death in Grain Entrapment, Engulfment, and Extrication.

Objectives: Grain entrapments and engulfments are one of most common hazards associated with grain storage facilities, with over 1,140 such entrapments/engulfments documented since the 1970s. The objective of the study was to determine the factors that contribute to injury or death in grain entrapment, engulfment, and extrication cases.

Methods: A literature review, including data contained in the Purdue Agricultural Confined Spaces Incident Database (PACSID), was conducted to determine the conditions that the body experiences during an entrapment or engulfment in grains and during extrication efforts.

Lower extremity joint moments during carrying tasks in children.

Farm youth often carry loads that are proportionally large and/or heavy, and field measurements have determined that these tasks are equivalent to industrial jobs with high injury risks. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of age, load amount, and load symmetry on lower extremity joint moments during carrying tasks. Three age groups (8-10 years, 12-14 years, adults), three load amounts (0%, 10%, 20% BW), and three load symmetry levels (unilateral large bucket, unilateral small bucket, bilateral small buckets) were tested.

The effects of age and type of carrying task on lower extremity kinematics.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of age, load amount and load symmetry on lower extremity kinematics during carrying tasks. Forty-two participants in four age groups (8-10 years, 12-14 years, 15-17 years and adults) carried loads of 0%, 10% and 20% body weight (BW) in large or small buckets unilaterally and bilaterally. Reflective markers were tracked to determine total joint range of motion and maximum joint angles during the stance phase of walking.

Upper extremity and lower back moments during carrying tasks in farm children.

Farm youth commonly perform animal care tasks such as feeding and watering. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of age, bucket size, loading symmetry, and amount of load on upper body moments during carrying tasks. Fifty-four male and female participants in four age groups (8-10 years, 12-14 years, 15-17 years, and adults, 20-26 years) participated in the study.