This study evaluated the status of industrial accidents at a ship-yard in Korea in order to provide the basic materials for preventing further industrial accidents.

This study reviewed and analyzed the records of 252 industrial accidents that occurred in a ship-yard at Ulsan city from January 1 1997 until December 31st, 2001 according to age, the work career, the job department, the day of the week, the occurrence time, the part of body injured, and the accident type.

There were a total of 252 industrial accidents over the five years. The incidence of industrial accidents per year were 17.38, 26.99, 16.44, 11.35, 14.50 per 1,000 persons from 1997 to 2001, respectively. The frequency of industrial accidents per year were 11.56, 11.23, 6.27, 4.42, 5.79 per one million man hours from 1997 to 2001, respectively. The intensity of industrial accidents per year was 1.67, 0.18, 4.32 per 1,000 man hours from 1999 to 2001, respectively. The highest incidence occurred in the over 50 age group (33.87 per 1,000 persons). Regarding the incidence according to the work career, it was highest in those who had worked for less than 1 year (39.76 per 1,000 persons). The incidence in those working in high places and those using heavy materials were higher than the others. The most frequent day of the week was Monday (19.8%), which was followed by Friday (16.7%) and Saturday (15.9%). The most frequent time of an accident was 15:00-16:59(25.8%), which was followed by 08:00-09:59(24.2%), 10:00-11:59(20.2%). The most frequent part of the body injured was the low back (28.6%), which was followed by the lower extremities (24.2%), and the upper extremities (23.0%). The types of industrial accidents were stenosis (27.0%) to have been happened most and upset (19.8%), fall down (14.7%), hard movement (12.3%), and falling (9.1%).

The above results suggests that a more precise system of reporting industrial accidents will be needed in order to enhance the accuracy and reliability of the industrial accident statistics. In addition, the preventive activities for back injury, stenosis, and fall down are needed in order to prevent industrial accidents at ship-yards in Korea. Furthermore, the strengthening of a continuous health education program will be necessary for beginners, older workers, and those working in high places and using heavy materials.