Comparison of Anthropometry of US Electric Utility Field Workers to North American General Population Databases

Abstract

The primary purpose of this anthropometric study was to determine whether conventional anthropometric databases of the US general population are applicable to the population of US electric utility field workers. Based on anecdotal observations, electric utility field workers seemed to be taller and larger than the general population. Fourteen anthropometric measurements were recorded from 187 male field workers from three US electric power utilities. The anthropometric data from field workers were compared to seven well-known conventional anthropometric databases for North American males, including Central American. In general, the male field workers were taller and heavier than the people in the reference databases for U.S. males. The field workers were up to 2.3 cm taller and 10 to 18 kg heavier on average than the reference databases. When designing for electric utility field workers, designers and ergonomists should consider the population of intended users and the data from this study.