Abstract
In firefighting, fit and sizing of personal protective equipment are directly related with the protection level, work performance, and comfort of firefighters. Furthermore, proper fit and sizing depend on appropriate sizing systems and the validity of the data from which they were constructed. Thus, anthropometric data are paramount for personal protective equipment design. Despite recent studies, anthropometric databases on firefighters are still very limited. Aiming to fulfill this shortcoming as well as to understand if Portuguese firefighters’ protective equipment is adjusted to their anthropometrics, a study designated as Size FF Portugal – Anthropometric Study of Portuguese Firefighters is currently underway. This paper presents a preliminary comparison of anthropometric data of firefighters from two different fire brigades: a mixed brigade and a professional brigade. Results of an initial analysis show that participants from the professional brigade were on average 29 mm taller than participants from the mixed brigade. Moreover, participants from the mixed brigade were on average 6.93 kg heavier. Further, results of inferential ANOVA test at a 95% confidence level revealed statistically significant differences of the stature and weight between career-volunteer firefighters from the mixed brigade and career firefighters from the professional brigade. Furthermore, an examination of Body Mass Index revealed that 71.88% of all participants from the mixed brigade as well as 41.58% of participants from the professional brigade were considered above the normal weight range. Differences of anthropometric measurements between the two fire brigades reveal the relevance in developing a more comprehensive yet detailed anthropometric database of Portuguese firefighters.
Original language | English (US) |
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Title of host publication | Proceedings of the 21st Congress of the International Ergonomics Association, IEA 2021 |
Subtitle of host publication | Methods and Approaches |
Editors | Nancy L. Black, W. Patrick Neumann, Ian Noy |
Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH |
Pages | 105-113 |
Number of pages | 9 |
ISBN (Print) | 9783030746131 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jun 13 2021 |
Event | 21st Congress of the International Ergonomics Association, IEA 2021 - Virtual, Online Duration: Jun 13 2021 → Jun 18 2021 |
Publication series
Name | Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems |
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Volume | 223 LNNS |
ISSN (Print) | 2367-3370 |
ISSN (Electronic) | 2367-3389 |
Conference
Conference | 21st Congress of the International Ergonomics Association, IEA 2021 |
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City | Virtual, Online |
Period | 6/13/21 → 6/18/21 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Acknowledgments. 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.
Funding Information:
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 ?s V?timas dos Inc?ndios de Pedr?g?o, and by ICC/Lavoro.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
Keywords
- Anthropometric data
- Body mass index
- Firefighting
- Fit and sizing
- Personal protective equipment