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Portuguese Firefighters’ Anthropometrics: Pilot Study Results

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Proceedings of the 8th International Ergonomics Conference (ERGONOMICS 2020)

Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 1313))

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Abstract

Personal protective equipment is of paramount importance in aiding and protecting firefighters against hazardous conditions. Personal protective equipment should be compatible to firefighters’ body dimensions. However, the lack of updated anthropometric data for this specific occupational group can lead to ill-fitting equipment, compromising work performance and the level of protection. To understand if Portuguese firefighters’ protective equipment is adjusted to their anthropometrics a study designated as Size FF Portugal is currently underway. A pilot study was conducted in a fire brigade located in the North of Portugal aiming to collect preliminary anthropometric data. Thirty-two male firefighters participated in the pilot study. This paper contrasts some preliminary anthropometric data of Portuguese firefighters with an anthropometric database of U.S. firefighters. The results show statistically significant differences between the stature and weight of Portuguese and U.S. firefighters. Conversely, crotch height and calf circumference measurements were not statistically different when comparing firefighters of both countries. Final considerations regarding the study limitations are presented.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Some participants decided to interrupt their participation and others were not available to conclude all data collection stages.

  2. 2.

    Pacific West, North Central, Northeast, and South.

  3. 3.

    The complete database as well as a description of data collection procedures are available in https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/data/datasets/rd-1007-2015-0/default.html.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge the 2C2T-Centre for Textile Science and Technology of the University of Minho. This work is financed by FEDER funds through the Competitive Factors Operational Program (COMPETE) POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007136, by national funds through the FCT-Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology under the project UID/CTM/000264, by Fundo de Apoio às Vítimas dos Incêndios de Pedrógão, and by ICC/Lavoro.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Minho, Guimaraes, Portugal

    Anna S. P. Moraes, Miguel A. F. Carvalho, Rachel S. Boldt & Fernando B. N. Ferreira

  2. Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA

    Susan P. Ashdown

  3. University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Linsey Griffin

Authors
  1. Anna S. P. Moraes
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  2. Miguel A. F. Carvalho
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  3. Rachel S. Boldt
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  4. Fernando B. N. Ferreira
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  5. Susan P. Ashdown
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  6. Linsey Griffin
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Anna S. P. Moraes .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

    Davor Sumpor

  2. Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

    Kristian Jambrošić

  3. Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

    Tanja Jurčević Lulić

  4. Faculty of Graphic Arts, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

    Diana Milčić

  5. Faculty of Textile Technology, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

    Ivana Salopek Čubrić

  6. Faculty of Textile Technology, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

    Irena Šabarić

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Moraes, A.S.P., Carvalho, M.A.F., Boldt, R.S., Ferreira, F.B.N., Ashdown, S.P., Griffin, L. (2021). Portuguese Firefighters’ Anthropometrics: Pilot Study Results. In: Sumpor, D., Jambrošić, K., Jurčević Lulić, T., Milčić, D., Salopek Čubrić, I., Šabarić, I. (eds) Proceedings of the 8th International Ergonomics Conference. ERGONOMICS 2020. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 1313. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-66937-9_17

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-66937-9_17

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-66936-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-66937-9

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