The project is led by researchers at the Robert Gordon University’s (RGU) Institute of Health and Welfare Research (IHWR) together with specialists from industry body, Oil and Gas UK.
RGU’s Centre for Obesity Research and Epidemiology (CORE) deputy director and Reader Dr Arthur Stewart and Oil & Gas UK medical advisor Dr Graham Furnace conceived the project in 2011 and formed an experienced team to support the research.
The research, which is claimed to be the first of its kind in over 25 years, will develop an ongoing capability to measure the size and shape of offshore workers.
As a part of the project, the team will design and implement a systematic evaluation of three-dimensional measurements on a sample of about 600 offshore crews.
The data from the evaluation will be used to inform all aspects of offshore ergonomics and health and safety, from emergency helicopter evacuation and survival suit design to space availability in corridors and work environments.
Results of the primary research conducted by the team at RGU has shown that a 90kg man wearing a standard helicopter passenger survival suit increases body volume by 44 litres over that of close fitting clothing.
Dr Stewart said that the last body size survey of offshore crew was conducted in the mid 1980s and since then the average weight of the workforce has increased by 19%.
"As a consequence the size and shape of the offshore workforce has increased to an unknown level," Dr Stewart added.
