Nitto Automotive, Inc., a manufacturer of acoustical, structural, and sealant products, partnered with ARC Physical Therapy+’s onsite team in 2018 and since then have seen phenomenal results, including an 81% drop in their DART rate and a TRIR drop of 62%.
Nitto Automotive, Inc. knew the physical risks of the machines in their facility were taken care of, but were still seeing a high number of ergonomic issues.
They knew a lot of those issues were treatable with first aid measures, they just didn’t have a way to treat them without sending employees to a health clinic which could result in an OSHA recordable, either from a prescription drug or from being sent to physical therapy.
Matt Scherer, EHS Supervisor at Nitto Automotive for the past 5 years explained, “I am very passionate and focused on creating a safer work environment for all employees’ while maintaining a profitable business organization, so I knew we had to come up with a solution.”
Matt started looking into ergonomic intervention programs and found ARC Physical Therapy+ and their onsite services. The ARC Physical Therapy+ team shared how they reduced both ergonomic injuries and OSHA recordables, with stats and case studies from other clients to back it up. Matt was sold and soon announced the new Early Intervention program to their employees, encouraging them to use it as much as possible.
As part of the announcement, Director of Onsite Service and Physical Therapist Mary Peters, MPH, CEA and Physical Therapist Assistant/Certified Ergonomics Assessment Specialist Kristy Robinson, CEAS III came onsite and introduced themselves to the employees, letting them know they were available for any sort of concern, whether it’s an aching back or a difficult job requirement.
Matt explained the benefit of having Mary and Kristy onsite, “Our team sees us, the EHS personnel, every day and we’re available to help, but having outside experts and healthcare professionals puts our employee’s minds at ease. Beyond that, people like talking with them, it boosts morale to have Mary and Kristy around.”
As part of the program, the ARC Physical Therapy+ team worked with the newly formed Ergonomic Committee to complete an ergonomic assessment for each job and implement a corresponding stretching program.
Matt and the rest of the EHS team have been impressed with ARC Physical Therapy+ and the results they’ve delivered.
After working with ARC Physical Therapy+ from April 2018 to March 2019 their DART (Days Away, Restricted or Transferred) rate decreased by 81%. Currently their rate is 0.74%, compared to the industry average DART rate of 3.9%
In that same time period, their TIR (Total Incident Rate), including first aid, went down by 62%.
“I would absolutely recommend them,” Matt shared. “If a company is having ergonomic or musculoskeletal issues, I definitely suggest they talk to the ARC onsite team. They have made a huge difference for us, both for our employees and for our OSHA recordables.”
Interested in learning more about onsite services for your factory, warehouse or facility? Contact us at (913) 831-2721.
