Health by Design: new public lecture series at Massey

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

In the first of a series of public lectures, entitled Health by Design, Associate Professor Ian Laird will speak about Prevention through Design (PtD) – the integration of hazard analysis and risk assessment methods early in the design and engineering stages so that risks of injury or illness are prevented.

“Designing out hazards is seen as one of the most effective means of preventing occupational injuries, illnesses and fatalities,” Dr Laird says.

“It’s a transdisciplinary process and although this concept is well known, there hasn’t yet been a concerted effort to achieve broad implementation of it, particularly in relation to noise exposure and prevention of noise induced hearing loss.”

Dr Laird says some PtD principles have been successfully applied to noise reduction in the construction and mining industry but have not yet been applied extensively within the agricultural sector. “The research I will discuss utilises PtD principles and applies them to control noise exposures commonly experienced in agriculture.”

His presentation examines two New Zealand-based case studies which highlight how the acoustic assessment methodologies can be used to inform and drive the PtD process.

“The first focuses on an all-terrain vehicle extensively used in farming operations here and internationally. The second case study involves sheep shearing equipment. Noise sources are identified and, in both cases, the PtD process is illustrated to design out the excessive noise,” he says.

Dr Laird is an Associate Professor in Occupational Health and Safety in the Centre for Ergonomics, Occupational Safety and Health, School of Health Sciences, Massey University. He has a Master of Science in Occupational Hygiene from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London, and a PhD in Physiology from Massey University. Dr Laird was a member of the Occupational Health Advisory Group that advised the Worksafe NZ Board on occupational health. He is a Fulbright Senior Scholar and visiting scientist at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Image: Associate Professor Ian Laird, School of Health Sciences.

Event details

Time: 5pm start with networking, drinks and nibbles. Event concludes approximately 6.30pm

Date: April 4

Location: Japan Lecture Theatre, University House, Main Drive, Massey University, Palmerston North

Click here to register and for more information about the Health by Design public lecture series.

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