ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION Ergonomic Intervention on the Occupational Stress of Selective Railway Workshop’s Fitters Partha Mukhopadhyay 1 • Netai Chandra Dey 2 Received: 1 February 2017 / Accepted: 7 November 2017 Ó The Institution of Engineers (India) 2017 Abstract In India, progressively rigorous health, safety and environmental regulation, together with rapid techno- logical advances have caused job demands of man machine interface. Any deviations in implementing rules and regu- lations leave many workers at severe risks. In different railway workshops where periodic overhauling (POH) of different coaches and locomotives are obtained, the exhaustive nature of work results strain within the workers. Unfortunately physiological work studies on railway workers are highly inadequate in India. The present study is aimed to relate the ergonomic intervention on the occu- pational stress of railway workshop’s fitters. Working heart rate (WHR) is measured continuously during their work schedule by portable heart rate monitor. Recovery heart rate and other essential occupational stress indexes are also measured along with total working environmental details. The working heart rate (WHR) of the subjects are found as 138 beats/min (bpm) and 121 bpm for the junior (age \ 40 years) and senior fitters (age [ 40 years), respectively. Net cardiac cost (NCC) and relative cardiac cost (RCC) values exhibit their range in a non-safe zone. No recovery in resting heart rate denotes the hostile envi- ronmental effect on the worker’s physiology. The effective temperature (ET) and wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) of work site cross the recommended value. Clear evidences of a direct relationship between occupational hazard and fatigue is found and it can be considered as an environ- mental stresses which, in conjunction with other environ- mental and host factors induced a chronic fatigue that lead to non-specific health disorders. Keywords Railway motor coaches Á Fatigue Á Work stress Á Health disorders Introduction Now-a-days, occupational stress is a buzz word, when most of the workers, working under organized or unorganized sector have to face occupational health hazards on regular basis. In different railway workshops where periodic over hauling (POH) of different motor coaches, that is, electrical multiple unit, diesel multiple unit and mainline electrical multiple unit are carried out, the workers are directly involved with various strenuous operations in heavy cor- rosion repair section. Medical bulletin published by con- cerned organization indicates that, specific workers are suffering from many occupational diseases. Attempts are frequently made on technical development related issues but delay in implementation and ignorance of workers including lack in skill prohibits any gain out of it. This study is therefore expected to focus on the vital issues like physical and physiological responses of the workers under various workload and environmental capacity. The aims and objectives of the present study includes • Identification of risk factors experienced by the workers at their workstations; • Ergonomic evaluation of occupational stress of fitters and possible recommendations on its remedial measures. & Partha Mukhopadhyay partha.mukhopadhyay.79@gmail.com 1 Eastern Railway Workshop, Kanchrapara, Uttar 24 Parganas 743145, West Bengal, India 2 Department of Mining Engineering, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, P.O. Botanic Garden, Howrah 711103, West Bengal, India 123 J. Inst. Eng. India Ser. C https://doi.org/10.1007/s40032-017-0416-4