Ergonomics: The hidden cost to your assembly

The backbone of your entire operation is ergonomics. If your ergonomics are poor, your productivity, profitability, and quality will suffer. By integrating more ergonomic solutions into your assembly, your operators will remain happy and healthy, and your production will prosper.

A major aerospace company was in search of a solution that could reach its target torque while providing superior ergonomics for its operators. At Atlas Copco, we know just how important ergonomics are to the prosperity of your company. Our experts set out to find the perfect solution to meet their needs. Read on to discover the solution that transformed their assembly.

Operating with limited space is difficult, especially without using the right tool. Our customer was facing that exact problem. Not only did the application have limited access, but the tools they were using were unsafely modified, creating a huge ergonomic issue for operators. These pneumatic tools were modified to work above the torque range and needed a 20-inch chrome extension, which caused an unsafe torque reaction.

Our customer used these modified pneumatic tools for many years. While they got the job done, their assembly was suffering. Without good ergonomics, their operators were exposed to harmful torque reactions that could negatively affect their health. This is a topic we talk a lot about regarding vibrational injuries related to material removal tools. This discourse is meant to protect operators from developing injuries and disorders that could last a lifetime.

This is vital to maintaining a profitable company because fewer injuries mean better production and lower costs. For one, healthy operators are productive operators. Furthermore, you will ultimately increase costs for your employees and company for things such as rehabilitation, insurance, and medical costs, as well as for hiring a replacement.

We rigorously test our products to ensure the safety of the user. All our products must pass a solid ergonomic review before we launch them. This is why, in the long run, using our tools will lead to less downtime related to operating injuries. In addition to our rigorous testing, we insist operators wear the correct personal protective equipment for the application.

Upon seeing this application, our experts knew they could improve our customer’s assembly with the right tool. At first, our customer wanted another pneumatic tool to replace the old one. While there are many advantages of using air tools over electric tools, in this case, an electric tool was the right choice. So, we demoed the ITB angle tool to prove its value to their application.

The Tensor ITB is the perfect tool for a wide variety of applications. It is a direct drive wireless nutrunner with advanced features and controller software integrated right into the tool. With this tool, accessing hard-to-reach places in production is a breeze, making it the perfect solution for our customer’s applications.

With all these features, it was clear the ITB angle tool would best fit their needs. With accessories such as a 4" neck extension and custom torque multiplier, they could operate with a tool meant for their application. Furthermore, by switching to a battery tool, our customer could eliminate the air hose, giving them more flexibility and consistent tightening. With this tool integrated into their production, our customer experienced a 55% increase in productivity over an air tool solution, boosting their process efficiency.

At Atlas Copco, we look out for our customers and their bottom line. That’s why our experts work hard to find the solution that best fits your needs. In the case of this customer, the Tensor ITB was the perfect solution, providing them with superior ergonomics, improved productivity, and profitability.

Would you like to know more about the Tensor ITB angle tool? Contact our experts today and schedule a demo!