Research Proposal on "Wbgt Limits for Chinese Migrant"

Research Proposal 9 pages (3222 words) Sources: 9

[EXCERPT] . . . .

" While this would seem to be in line with the necessary considerations elucidated above, subsequent research has found the WBGT index lacking in a key area; namely, WBGT produces overly conservative estimations of heat stress in highly humid conditions, necessitating the use of a more accurate heat limit standard for tropical climates.

In contrast, Claasen and Kok (9) examined the accuracy of the WBGT heat stress index at low and high humidity levels in their paper of the same name and ultimately found that "WBGT index values above 30 with HH [high humidity] levels underestimate thermal load and that un-acclimatized employees may be at risk to develop heat illnesses if work schedules are not properly managed" because the WBGT index is so inaccurate at high humidities that "a reduction of at least 3 in the WBGT index value is suggested for WBGT index values above 30 with high relative humidity levels." This coincides with additional research by Miller and Gates (8) that compared the Thermal Work Limit (TWL) heat index with the WBGT, finding that "in the field study, TWL was a more appropriate and realistic index than WBGT, which was found to be excessively conservative." In particular, Miller and Gates found that "in an aboveground environment where the convective and evaporative effect of air movement contributes significantly to cooling, the WBGT is an excessively conservative index of environmental heat stress," so that "although WBGT is the nominal standard for many industries, it is often not in fact used, particularly in industries where heat stress is a significant issue, as its implementation would lead to too much lost production." In short, though WBGT has become widespread in literature and regulations due to its relative ease of use, its actual practical applicability has been limited in the industrial sector, precisely for those reasons listed above.

The researchers suggest the TWL as a viable alternative to WBGT, because "TWL has been shown to perform better than WBGT as a predictor of the impact of environmental heat stress in outdoor work environments." Further research (12) has compared the WBGT index with the Predicted Heat Strain (PHS) index, finding that "analyzing similar climatic conditions with WBGT and PHS indicate that WBGT provides a more conservative assessment philosophy that allows much shorter working time than predicted with PHS" such that the WBGT is shown to be an unreliable standard for determining heat stress in high humidity environments as well as those climates which will be drastically affected by climate change in the future (such as the tropics).

The entire preceding discussion of extant literature regarding heat stress effects on migrant workforces in tropical climates and the construction industry as well as the efficacy of the WBGT index in general has served to outline the questions and considerations surrounding the compatibility of the WBGT index with a Chinese migrant workforce laboring in the construction industry of a tropical climate. Thus, this proposed research will concern itself with using the observations and conclusions produced by this extant literature to demonstrate the need for alternate or hybrid heat indexes in determining heat stress limits for a Chinese migrant workforce in a tropical climate. To see why this is necessarily the case, it will be useful to look back at the necessary considerations for determining heat stress limits elucidated above, this time with an eye towards those considerations which the WBGT index is incapable of taking into account (or else produces inaccurate information when confronted with these considerations).

The first crucial variable to consider when determining the compatibility of the WBGT index to a Chinese migrant workforce in a tropical environment is the influence of acclimatization on heat stress, because as Matsumoto et al. (15) and Lee et al. (16) note, acclimatization greatly reduces the rate of heat exposure and the effects of heat stress on the body through more efficient cooling and use of bodily fluids, bringing with it an attendant reduction in dehydration. Thus, a Chinese migrant workforce would at least initially not be acclimatized to tropical conditions (particularly the high humidity), but the WBGT heat index was found to be inaccurate in high humidity situations, such "that un-acclimatized employees may be at risk to develop heat illnesses if work schedules are not properly managed" with a more accurate heat index (9).

Furthermore, as the tropics will be affected by climate change to a vastly disproportionate degree, any heat index used to create limits for migrant workers in a tropical climate must necessarily take into account the mutability of that climate, something the WBGT has been shown to be less-than-ideal for (12). Although the WBGT may be adapted to account for clothing and different body types and even hydration levels, its inaccuracy at high humidities and short-range predictive power make it an apparently ill fit for determining heat stress limits for a Chinese migrant workforce in the construction industry in a tropical climate. (Although WBGT does not necessarily have any explicit weaknesses when it comes to determining heat stress limits in the construction industry beyond those already demonstrated regarding humidity and climate change, it is worth recalling Miller and Gates' (8) observation that WBGT "is often not in fact used, particularly in industries where heat stress is a significant issue [such as the construction industry], as its implementation would lead to too much lost production.")

If it is not already clear, the WBGT heat index weaknesses are precisely in accounting for those variables which become most relevant when considering unacclimatized migrant workers in a tropical environment, especially in the construction industry in which all the threats from heat stress are amplified and exacerbated. However, this has not kept the WBGT heat index from becoming standardized, as the majority of the studies addressed here use it as their central means of determining heat stress (except for those studies which intentionally compare WBGT against alternate heat indices). In summation, a look at the relative strengths and weaknesses of Wet Bulb Globe Temperature limits have revealed that measurements and predictions based on the WBGT index appear problematically conservative when dealing with unacclimatized workers or climates with particularly high humidity or likelihood of climatic upheaval.

Thus, the ultimate purpose of this proposed research (after having demonstrated the incompatibility of WBGT limits for a Chinese migrant workforce in a tropical climate more robustly) will be to build off of the research already discussed here dealing with alternative and hybrid heat indices as a means of finding the ideal limits for the particular labor demographic under discussion (in this, the aforementioned Chinese migrant workforce, but ideally, determining the best heat index to use with this specific population will reveal standard rules and guidelines for choosing the ideal heat index for any configuration of acclimatization, climate, and relative humidity).

By examining the variables which must be considered in any attempt to mitigate the effects of heat stress and then moving on to those variables most important for a discussion of unacclimatized migrant construction workers in a tropical climate, this essay outlined the particular needs that must be addressed for any heat index to be applicable and useful in this particular situation. The WBGT heat index was found to be inadequate for these needs, but by noting the weaknesses of the WBGT and the relative strengths of other indices, such as the Thermal Work Limit and Predicted Heat Strain, this essay demonstrated how one might begin to address the heat stress mitigation needs of an unacclimatized Chinese migrant workforce in a tropical climate, specifically in regards to the effects of humidity on heat stress and the individual's cooling via sweat and the efficient use of bodily fluids.

Thus, while the problem of this proposed research is WBGT's incompatibility with a Chinese migrant construction workforce in a tropical climate, the solutions eventually generated by this research will benefit users of heat stress indices across the world and in every industry and climate. By uncovering all of the variables which influence heat stress and the body's physiological response, this research will be able to provide a standard by which workers' health can be maintained and encouraged in any context, regardless of climate, relative humidity, or the level of acclimatization undergone by the worker.

Reference List

1. Ben GS, Hashim Z, Hamzah R. Occupational heat stress of workers in a plastic industry,

Selangor. J of Occupational Health 2009; 1(2):56-63.

2. Chen M, Chen C, Yeh W, Huang J, Mao I. Heat stress evaluation and worker fatigue in a steel plant. AIHA J. 2003; 64(3):352-359.

3. Bates GP, Miller VS, Joubert DM. Hydration status of expatriate manual workers during summer in the Middle East. Ann. Occupational Hygiene 2009; 54(2):137-143.

4. Kenefick RW, Sawka MN. Hydration at worksite. J of the American College of Nutrition

2007; 26(5):597S-603S.

5. Bates GP, Schneider J. Hydration status and physiological workload of UAE construction workers: A prospective longitudinal observational study. J Occupational Medicine and Toxicology 2008; 3(21).

6. Moroioka I, Miyai N, Miyashita K.… READ MORE

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