Objective:
The primary goal of the project is to provide the Maritime Industrial Base with a cost-effective counter to workforce fatigue and injury in certain shipbuilding / repair activities.
Summary:
Shipyard workers, while performing critical jobs, face high rates of injury and burnout fatigue due to physically demanding labor and exposure to extreme environments. Awkward postures, slips and falls, heavy lifting, and accidents from tool use (e.g. skin abrasions, cuts, burns) contribute to acute and chronic biomechanical injuries that can be exacerbated by fatigue and exhaustion resulting in workforce turnover, injury related work downtime, and reduced worker quality-of-life; all of which can have dramatic negative effects on shipyard productivity. As a countermeasure to these conditions, exoskeletons are an emerging technology aimed at reducing injury risk factors. There are multiple commercial-offthe-shelf (COTS) solutions that have shown effectiveness in manual labor. However, there exists little-to-no research targeting exoskeleton usage in shipyards; thus, presenting a gap for a new study to determine the effectiveness of exoskeletons in assisting the shipyard workforce.
Key Deliverables / Benefits:
It is anticipated that using the systems could result in lower staff turnover, reduced downtime, and allow a higher quality of life for the workforce.
A Final Report for public distribution will include an ROI for the maritime industrial base and a concept of a new device specifically for shipyard usage.
Overview
Project Team:
- Austal USA, Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition, Austal USA Advance Technologies, NSWC Carderock Division
- February 2026 – February 2027
- INDUSTRY INVESTMENT $11K
- NSRP INVESTMENT $200K
