RESUMO
This article presents a macroergonomic intervention in a Brazilian footwear company and its evaluation by the workers. Using participatory ergonomics, the traditional Taylor/Ford production system was transformed into a socio-technical one and tested by 100 volunteers working during 3.5 years in a pilot production line. Multiskilling and teamwork were the major changes promoted to enlarge and enrich work and make it more flexible. The workers' evaluation pre- and post-intervention showed an increase in overall satisfaction with the work and more commitment to the results and company targets. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: This study showed that problems and solutions can be identified through participatory ergonomics, that it is easier to involve workers than the managerial staff, and that a macroergonomic intervention, mainly focusing on work organization, led to positive personnel, health and production outcomes, despite management's resistance to changes.
Assuntos
Ergonomia/normas , Indústria Manufatureira , Sapatos , Brasil , Ergonomia/métodos , Feminino , Humanos , Satisfação no Emprego , Masculino , Indústria Manufatureira/métodos , Indústria Manufatureira/organização & administração , Indústria Manufatureira/normas , Admissão e Escalonamento de Pessoal/organização & administração , Admissão e Escalonamento de Pessoal/normas , Projetos Piloto , Local de Trabalho/organização & administração , Local de Trabalho/psicologia , Local de Trabalho/normasRESUMO
This article presents a costs-benefits analysis of a macroergonomic intervention in a Brazilian footwear company. Comparing results of a pilot line (composed by 100 multiskilled workers organized in teams) with eight traditional lines (still working in a one human being/one task model) the intervention showed to be worth pursuing since achieved gains were higher than intervention costs: there was a reduction in human resource costs (80% reduction in industrial accidents, 100% reduction in work-related musculoskeletal disorders or WMSD, medical consultations and turnover, and a 45.65% reduction in absenteeism) and production improvement (productivity increased in 3% and production waste decrease to less than 1%). The net intervention value of the intervention was around U$ 430,000 with a benefit-to-cost ratio of 7.2. Moreover, employees who worked in the pilot line understood that their quality of work life improved, compensating the anxiety brought up by the radical changes implemented.
Assuntos
Indústrias , Saúde Ocupacional/economia , Sapatos , Brasil , Análise Custo-Benefício , Ergonomia , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Exposição Ocupacional , Estudos de Casos OrganizacionaisRESUMO
OBJECTIVES: The validity of any measurement obtained through a cephalogram largely depends on the reproducibility of the cephalometric landmarks. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the influence of a programme of professional calibration (PPC) on the variability of landmark identification comparing conventional radiographs and cone beam CT (CBCT)-synthesized cephalograms. METHODS: 5 graduate students in oral radiology identified 20 cephalometric landmarks from cephalograms generated from conventional radiographs (RADs), Ray-Sum CBCT-synthesized cephalograms (CBTs) and half-skull CBT (HSTs) from 10 patients. After a period of reinforcement on instruction and calibration with inter- and intraexaminer assessment of reproducibility (intraclass coefficient correlation scores > 0.75) for RADs, CBTs and HSTs obtained from 5 different patients, observers were asked to repeat the analysis of the first 10 patients under the same circumstances. Values in millimetres represented each landmark in a table of Cartesian co-ordinates (x- and y-axes). RESULTS: ANOVA showed significant reduction in variability levels after the PPC, and there were no differences among the methods of image acquisition. Repeated measures ANOVA indicated that the PPC accounted for reduction in variability levels in 14 of 20 landmarks. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that a PPC has more influence than the type of image acquisition on variability of landmark identification based on two-dimensional cephalometric analysis. Cephalograms obtained from RAD or CBCT can be considered equivalent for clinical and experimental applications.
Assuntos
Cefalometria/métodos , Cefalometria/normas , Tomografia Computadorizada de Feixe Cônico , Radiologia/educação , Análise de Variância , Humanos , Variações Dependentes do Observador , Reprodutibilidade dos TestesRESUMO
INTRODUCTION: The Opp system is an ATP-binding cassette-type transporter formed by membrane-associated proteins required for the uptake of oligopeptides in bacteria. In gram-positive bacteria, the Opp system, and particularly the oligopeptide-binding protein (OppA), has been shown to be involved in different aspects of cell physiology, including intercellular communication and binding to host proteins. METHODS: In the present study we began to investigate the Opp system of Streptococcus mutans, the main etiological agent of dental caries. RESULTS: Five opp genes (oppABCDF) organized in a single operon were identified in the genome of the S. mutans UA159 strain. Amino acid sequence analyses showed that the S. mutans OppA is closely related to an ortholog found in Streptococcus agalactiae. Incubation of S. mutans UA159 cells with an anti-OppA-specific serum did not inhibit biofilm formation on polystyrene plates. Moreover, S. mutans UA159 derivatives carrying deletions on the oppA or oppB genes did not show significant growth impairment, increased sensitivity to aminopterin, or defective capacity to form biofilms on polystyrene wells in the presence or not of saliva. Remarkably, only two out of three laboratory strains and one out of seven clinical strains recovered from tooth decay processes harbored a copy of the oppA gene and expressed the OppA protein. CONCLUSION: Collectively, these results indicate that, in contrast to other Streptococcus species, the S. mutans Opp system, and particularly the OppA protein, does not represent an important trait required for growth and colonization.
Assuntos
Transportadores de Cassetes de Ligação de ATP/genética , Proteínas de Bactérias/genética , Genes Bacterianos , Oligopeptídeos/metabolismo , Streptococcus mutans/genética , Transportadores de Cassetes de Ligação de ATP/fisiologia , Sequência de Aminoácidos , Aderência Bacteriana/genética , Proteínas de Bactérias/fisiologia , Biofilmes , Proteínas de Transporte/genética , Proteínas de Transporte/fisiologia , Cárie Dentária/microbiologia , Humanos , Lipoproteínas/genética , Lipoproteínas/fisiologia , Família Multigênica , Óperon , Proteínas RecombinantesRESUMO
Os autores apresentam o resultado de duas series de pacientes operados pela tecnica de Magnuson-Stack. A 1a. com 24 anos de evolucao (apenas 3 casos), e a 2a., 14 pacientes com 4 anos. Os resultados mostraram ser iguais em ambas, que aliados a simplicidade da operacao e a satisfacao dos pacientes operados,faz-nos indicar esta tecnica em pacientes portadores de Luxacao Anterior Recidivante de Ombro