Practical on-site measurement of heat strain with the use of a perceptual strain index
Open accessAbstract
Objectives There have been increased interests in research on quantifying heat strain of construction workers and formulating corresponding guidelines for working in hot weather. The aim of this study was to validate a subjective measurement tool, the perceptual strain index (PeSI), for measuring heat strain in real-work settings. Methods A total of sixteen construction workers were invited to participate in the field surveys. Empiric-based human monitoring was carried out with simultaneous micrometeorological (wet-bulb globe temperature, WBGT), physiological (heart rate, HR), and perceptual (perceived exertion, RPE; thermal sensation, TS) measurements throughout the test. The relative heart rate (RHR), the physiological strain index (PSIHR), and the PeSI were then calculated accordingly. Results The PeSI exhibited moderate correlations with WBGT and RHR (r = 0.42 and 0.40, respectively), which indicated the PeSI was sensitive to the variants of WBGT and RHR. The results of regression analysis indicated that the PeSI changed in the same general manner as the PSIHR, with a relatively large determination coefficient (R(2) = 0.67). The established perceptual strain zone illustrated that the PeSI ranging from 7 to 8 would be the exposure limit of construction workers in hot weather. Conclusion The PeSI is a simple, robust, reliable, and user-friendly tool for heat strain assessment in occupational settings. The perceptual strain zone will provide practical guidelines for on-site heat strain monitoring for construction workers.
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This is consistent with what has been perceived and described by construction workers and confirmed by observation and measurement.
“This is consistent with what has been perceived and described by construction workers (Chan and Yang, 2016; Venugopal et al., 2016) and confirmed by observation and measurement (Abdelhamid and Everett, 2002; Maiti, 2008; Rowlinson and Jia, 2014; Chinnadurai and Venugopal, 2016; Meade et al., 2016; Roja et al., 2016).”
From Assessment of Heat Stress Exposure among Construction Workers in the Hot Desert Climate of Saudi Arabia (2019) · cites this paper as Chan and Yang, 2016
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- Authors
- Chan, A. P. C., & Yang, Y.
- Affiliations
- Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HK)
- Corresponding author
- Yang, Y.
- Venue
- International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health
- Published
- 2015-07-03
- Volume
- 89
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 299-306
- ISSN
- 0340-0131 (ISSN-L)
- 1432-1246
- OpenAlex
- W2269603869
- Cited by
- 27
- References
- 37
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 3 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 2
- FWCI
- 1.78
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hdl.handle.net
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PolyU Institutional Research Archive (Hong Kong Polytechnic University) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (RGC Project No. PolyU5107/11E)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Thermoregulation and physiological responses
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Occupational Therapy › Occupational Health and Safety in Workplaces
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Engineering › Urban Heat Island Mitigation
- Keywords
- heat strain, construction workers, wet bulb globe temperature, heart rate, perceived exertion, thermal sensation, physiological strain index, exposure limits, occupational heat stress
- MeSH terms
- Physical Exertion, Heart Rate, Hot Temperature, Humans, Male, Perception, Severity of Illness Index, Thermosensing, Occupational Health, Heat Stress Disorders, Young Adult, Construction Industry
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