Thesis (LLM. (Development and Management)) -- University of Limpopo, 2012 / Occupational health, safety and wellbeing of employees is an important factor in the socioeconomic development of a country hence the need for South Africa as a developmental state, to give priority to the health and safety of employees in the country as employees are key to socio-economic development. The right to an environment that is not detrimental to the health and wellbeing of employees is also entrenched in the Constitution of the Republic making it a fundamental right which should be enjoyed by all. Laws related to occupational health and safety have been enacted in South Africa with a view to, on the one hand, prevent occupational injuries, diseases or deaths and on the other hand to provide compensation where such occurs. This study seeks to determine which of the laws are applicable, whether they are reasonable when compared to the constitutional requirements and South Africa’s obligations as a member of the international community. Comparisons are also made with other countries and recommendations made for the South African government to adequately ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of employees in the country.

This master thesis was performed in collaboration with Scania Ferruform in Luleå, with the purpose to create an efficient, rational and safe workplace at the unloading station of the crossmember painting line. The mission from Ferruform was to investigate and analyse flaws, risk, and bottlenecks with regards to flows, ergonomics and material handling. The project aimed to create a vision that could guide present and future development, followed by an implementation strategy consisting of concrete measures of both layout and organisational character. The vision is: “Create a work situation that is rooted in Scania's production system and characterized by efficiency, rationality and safe working conditions, where committed individuals can be challenged and developed”   The research questions that has guided the project are: What problem is the basis for the ergonomic situation at the crossmember painting? How can an efficient and rational workplace be created at crossmember painting? What does Ferruform need to do to create a safe and sustainable work environment at the crossmember painting?   The first step was to map the current state and identify problems with regards to process and organisation. This was done by using participative observation, interviews, user participation, overview analysis and Scania’s intranet. Apart from previous studies, the main problems that the mapping identified was consequences of frequent downtimes, shifts being isolated and having unique work methods, unsafe work environment, and finally that tools and aids for reducing harmful lifts are not used.  These problems and their consequences were analysed with regards to the current research in work science, behavioural science, and by using methods such as Fault tree analysis and proximity chart. One of the most important conclusions was that downtime, apart from compromised production volumes, affected the work situation negatively. Operators compensate for downtime by working faster and unsafe to reach the weekly production goals. Additionally, a middle manager role has disappeared in favour of meeting the production goals. This has severe consequences on the organisation of work and among others, ergonomics. The proximity chart showed that placement of functions in the production system is not based on logic, resulting in safety issues, intersecting flows and inefficient handling of materials. To counter the identified problems, three different layouts were developed and evaluated using the specification of requirements. The concept with highest score was further developed and detail designed. It is called “Wing” and separates humans and forklifts, has a centralized material buffer and redundancy for downtime. The concept allows for safer work environment, and efficient flows. The required changes are arranged in three steps, each with increasing capacity. The final concept together with the implementation plan, which present recommendations on how the final concept could gradually be implemented and what organisational changes that are needed, shows that productivity and rationality can coexist with a good work environment, where both humans and the production system can flourish.