Research on Occupational Risk Assessment for Welder Occupation in Romania

: The ever-increasing needs of the working population have led to the development of various branches of industry, an increase in the number of employees, and a rise in the number of work-related accidents. The welder occupation is one of the most sought after occupations in Europe, according to the EURopean Employment Services (EURES) statistics. Taking into account the work system in which welders conduct their activity (uncomfortable working positions, splashes, high temperatures, mechanical factors, gases and fumes, magnetic ﬁ elds due to electric current), the paper presents the risk factors identi ﬁ ed for the welder occupation, based on the occupational injury and illness risk assessments. Following the analysis of 25 risk assessments, carried out by the assessment team that must include quali ﬁ ed evaluators, process specialists, the workers’ representative, occupational health and safety responsible at various industrial economic agents, a total of 70 main risk factors of occupational accidents and diseases were identi ﬁ ed for the welder occupation. Risk factors were classi ﬁ ed according to four main work components: worker, workload, work environment, and means of production. To re ﬂ ect the importance of the identi ﬁ ed risk factor, the number of organizations that considered that the risk was likely to occur but also the possibility that the risk was above the acceptable limit, calculated using the National Institute for Research and Development for Labor Protection “Alexandru Darabont” (INCDPM) method, a method often used in Romania, was identi ﬁ ed from the analyzed assessments. Finally, a prevention and protection plan was drawn up with regard to the risks identi ﬁ ed for the welder occupation, the ﬁ nal aim of which was to respectively reduce the probability of occurrence with the severity of the risks identi ﬁ ed.


Introduction
The labor market in European Union (EU) countries has maintained its growth despite the problems the economies have been going through, especially in the second part of 2022, problems caused by the armed conflict in Eastern Europe, which has led to massive increases in energy prices, supply chain disruptions, and therefore increases in the cost of living [1].Gross domestic product (GDP) growth overlapped the total employment growth by 2.0% in the EU and by 2.3% in the Euro area.Thus, in 2022, the number of people employed in the EU was 213.7 million, of which 166.1 million were in the Euro area.The highest increases in persons employed were recorded in Ireland (+6.6%),Malta (+6.3%), and Lithuania (+5.1%), with the lowest in Romania (+0.1%),Poland (+0.4%),Germany, and Bulgaria (+1.3%) [2].
According to the Romanian National Institute of Statistics (RNIS), at the end of 2022, in Romania, there were 8051 million people entitled to work, of which 7.812 million were employed and 239,100 unemployed [3].
Metal fabrication and welding are essential in many industries and sectors of the economy: construction, manufacturing, infrastructure, defense, energy, aerospace, marine, medical, mining, and food processing.
Welding is a fundamental industrial process in the industries above-mentioned, serving as a critical fabrication process in creating durable structures.The welding process involves the fusion of materials, typically metals or thermoplastics, by using high heat to melt the parts together.
The fusion and melting welding process is among the most dangerous activities in metal fabrication.The welding process involves working with high heat, intense light, and different materials, which can pose significant risks to the welder's health and safety.For this reason, it is important to identify these hazards to ensure the implementation of proper safety protocols [4][5][6].
A welder is a skilled professional who uses various tools and equipment to join metal pieces or parts by heating the surfaces to the point of melting them, and then fusing them together to form a strong permanent bond.A welder's responsibility can involve a variety of industries including civil and industrial construction, capital repairs and maintenance, heavy industry, automotive, manufacturing, and other industrial sectors.Therefore, a welder must have detailed knowledge of mechanics, physical science, metallurgy, and safety procedures.
Based on the names of the main industrial branches that use welders in production, the Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE) and Classification of Activities in the National Economy in Romania (CAEN) codes specific to these branches were identified in the paper.Table 1 presents the classification of the industrial branches of civil and industrial construction, capital repair and maintenance, heavy industry, and automotive manufacturing in the NACE and CAEN codes.Within these industrial branches, there is a trend toward the use of welding processes to produce welded joints of materials with improved properties specific to different applications (medical, aerospace, etc.) [7][8][9] as well as toward the use of new manufacturing processes [10][11][12], which imply the possibility of new risks specific to the welding occupation.
European Union occupational safety and health (OSH) legislation is important to ensure the health and safety of EU workers at work.Thus, to achieve safe and healthy workplaces [13] for all workers, an important element related to the workplace is the possibility to protect them against health and safety risks [14].In the case of OSH, defined as the science of anticipating, identifying, assessing, and controlling hazards occurring in the workplace that could affect the health and safety of workers [15], accidents at work are the most important areas for action in EU social policy.
Occupational accidents generate both direct costs (which can be directly attributed to expenses resulting from the consequences of an accident and recorded in the organization's accounting system) and indirect costs (which result from the accident but are not allocated and accounted by the employer) [16][17][18][19], costs that are analyzed in terms of the number of working days lost, damage caused, medical, administrative and recruitment costs (to compensate for the production incapacity caused by the lack of manpower as a consequence of the work accident), costs linked to the loss of job welfare, loss of the organization's reputation, etc.
Improving workplace safety policies has been a major concern at the global, European, and later EU level, with a gradual development, as presented in Figure 1 [20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31].A work accident is defined, according to the ESAW methodology, as "a discrete occurrence in the course of work which leads to physical or mental harm (injury to the worker)".The phrase in the course of work' means while engaged in an occupational activity or during the time spent at work'.A fatal accident' means an accident that leads to the death of a victim within one year of the accident.Non-fatal workplace accidents or serious accidents at the workplace involve at least four complete days of absence from work [22,[32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44].
The overall costs of occupational accidents and diseases are often much higher than initially perceived at the organizational level.Organizations need to increase their investment in occupational safety and health including safety culture, thereby aiming to reduce both the direct and indirect costs while lowering insurance premiums and absenteeism and improving worker performance, productivity, and morale [45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54].
Work accidents are a challenge for economic sectors defined by the NACE code [31,33,[37][38][39]42,[55][56][57] (e.g., agriculture, forestry, and fishing, manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail trade; transport and storage, etc.).In the EU, the number of nonfatal work accidents in 2021 was 2,886,507, with the most recorded in Germany (810,127 accidents), France (655,024 accidents), and in Spain (457,435 accidents), while Romania ranked 25th with 2779 non-fatal work accidents recorded.In terms of fatal accidents, in the same year, out of a total of 3347 fatal accidents, France ranked first with 674 fatal accidents, Italy second with 601 accidents, and Germany third with 435 accidents, while Romania ranked sixth with 172 fatal accidents [32,43,58,59].
The main objective of this paper was to identify and analyze the risks for the welder occupation in Romania, which can be extended to the EU level.The novelty of the research presented in the paper consists of identifying the risk factors related to the welder occupation in Romanian organizations.Following the identification of the risk factors, a prevention and protection plan was proposed (depending on the national strategy in accordance with the European strategy) to minimize the probability of occurrence as well as the severity of the identified risk factors by taking technical, organizational, hygienic, and sanitary measures.The final part of the paper presents the distribution of the identified risks by each component of the work system.

Materials and Methods
This paper was based on a research methodology used to identify the risk factors associated with the welder occupation in Romania that consisted of:

•
Identification and consultation of the health and safety national legislation; According to the stipulations of this law, the employer has the obligation: • "to assess the risks for workers' health and safety, including the choice of work equipment, chemical substances or preparations used and the layout of workplaces" (Law 319/2006 art.7, para.4, letter a); • "that, following the [risk] assessment and if necessary, the prevention measures and the working and production methods applied by the employer ensure an improvement in the level of safety and health protection of workers and are integrated into all the activities of the undertaking and/or establishment concerned and at all hierarchical levels" (Law 319/2006 art.7, para.4, letter b).
Additionally, according to Law 319/2006 art.12, para. 1, lit.(a), the employer has the obligation "to carry out and be in possession of an occupational safety and health risk assessment, including for those groups sensitive to specific risks".Concerning the health and safety conditions at work, the prevention of accidents and occupational diseases, employers are required by Law 319/2006 art.13, letter b "to draw up a prevention and protection plan consisting of technical, sanitary, organizational and other measures, based on risk assessment, to be applied in accordance with the specific working conditions of the establishment".
The methodological rules for the application of the provisions of the Law on Safety and Health at Work No. 319/2006 were approved by Government Decision (GD) no.1425 of 11 October 2006 [61,62,64], which also contains articles on risk assessment:

•
The prevention and protection activities carried out in the enterprise and/or establishment are the following: "hazard identification and risk assessment for each component of the work system, i.e., the worker, the workload, the means of production/work equipment and the work environment at the workplace/workstations" (GD 1.425/2006 art.15, p. 1, point 1); • "following the risk assessment for each workplace/workstation, prevention and protection measures of a technical, organizational, hygienic-sanitary and other nature necessary to ensure the safety and health of workers shall be established" (GD no.1425, art.46, para.2); the prevention and protection plan shall be revised whenever changes in working conditions occur, when new risks arise, and following the occurrence of an event (GD no.1425, Article 46(1)); According to Law No. 319/2006 on occupational safety and health, the definitions of the terms for each component of the work system are: Work equipment-Any machine, apparatus, tool or installation used in work; Performer = The worker who carries out the work task; Work task = Totality of actions to be performed by the worker through the means of production to achieve the purpose of the work system; Work environment = Component of the work system consisting of the totality of the physical, chemical, biological, and psychosocial conditions in which the worker carries out their activity.
Based on the legal requirements on risk assessment presented above, in Romania, the most widely used method for assessing the risks of occupational injury and illness is the INCDPM method, developed by INCDPM.This method was endorsed by the Ministry of Labor and Social Solidarity in 1993 and has been tested to date in most industries, with continuous improvements [65][66][67][68].
Figure 2 presents the mandatory steps contained in the INCDPM's risk assessment for occupational injury and illness.
The steps shown in Figure 2 are carried out by an analysis and assessment team that is made up of occupational safety specialists and technologists, knowledgeable about the work processes being analyzed, and coordinated by an authorized risk assessor.

•
Event probability:  Extremely rare: P < 10 By combining the severity (m) and probability classes of events (n), we obtain the matrix (m,n), and the risk level ranging from 1 to 7 ( ○ x ), according to Table 2.
Table 2. Risk level assessment matrix.

Risk Level (Combination between the Severity of the Consequences and the Probability of Occurrence) Probability Class (n)
Severity Class (m) P < 10 −1 /year 10 −1 < P < 5 −1 /year 5 −1 < P < 2 −1 /year 2 −1 < P < 1 −1 /year 1 −1 < P/year < 1 −1 P > 1 ) ➀ where level ➀ represents the minimum acceptable risk level (events occurring are not subject to prevention, they are not accidents at work; they are usually treated as incidents and their elimination is subject to action to increase comfort at work, not safety), ➁-➅ represent intermediary risk levels and ➆ represents a critical risk level at which system safety is minimal.
Following the assessment of the risks of injury and occupational illness, the members of the assessment team established a level of severity and probability of occurrence for each identified risk, and the combination of these two elements, according to Table 2, resulted in the risk level for that identified risk.
The INCDPM method states that for Romania, the maximum accepted value for the risk level is ➂, according to Table 2.

Research on Risk Factors Specific to the Welding Occupation in Romania
Considering the statistics presented above on the number of fatal and non-fatal work accidents in the EU and Romania, to reduce the probability of occurrence and the severity of work accidents, in this paper, the risk factors and their distribution on each component of the work system within the industrial fields for the welder occupation were identified.
Considering the requirements set out in Government Decision 1.425/2006 art.15, para.1, para. 1 regarding hazard identification and risk assessment for each component of the work system respectively the worker, the workload, means of production/work equipment and the working environment [68] for the welder occupation, the results of 25 risk assessments carried out in organizations using welders in the work process were analyzed.
Following the analysis of the 25 assessments carried out by the evaluation team that had to include expert evaluators, process specialists, workers' representative, health and safety responsible at various industrial economic agents, a total of 70 occupational injury and illness risks for welders were identified, whose distribution by each component of the work system is shown in Tables 3-6.The main components of a workplace are the worker, the workload, the working environment, and the means of production.
Team members had a detailed knowledge of the evaluation method, the tools used, and the working procedures.Prior documentation of the objective was also carried out.The team of evaluators may include, depending on the needs, designers, ergonomists, medical specialists from the unit, etc.The team leader is the expert evaluator qualified according to national legislation.
Based on the INCDPM methodology, as presented in Section 2, each identified risk is assigned a severity level or probability of occurrence from this combination, resulting in the risk level for that identified risk.
From the point of view of the methodology presented, the risks identified above the limit of ➂, the acceptable limit value in Romania, implies an obligation for the organization to identify and implement specific measures to reduce either the severity or the probability of the occurrence of those risks.
Table 3 presents the risk factors related to the executant (welder) analyzing the risks from the point of view of wrong actions or omissions of the executant in the manufacturing process.From the point of view of the risk factors related to the executant, one can observe that the main risk factor was " Non-use of the personal protective equipment and other means of protection provided", a factor that was identified in all of the organizations analyzed and had a risk level above the acceptable limit in more than half of the organizations.Additionally, a high number of risks generated by the wrong actions of the worker [23] was observed, which represents 32.8% of the total number of risks related to the welder occupation.
Another important risk factor was "falling from the same level by tripping, unbalancing, slipping" and the lowest percentage identified was in "poor communication due to noise".For the two risk factors identified, none of the analyzed organizations considered presented a risk level above the acceptable limit.For the "Use of aprons, gloves, shoe soles, etc. to counteract the fire on the pipe effect" risk factor, this was identified in 8% of the organizations analyzed, and all of them identified it as having a risk level above the acceptable limit.
The workload can cause risk factors to arise during the manufacturing process.Thus, the inadequate or incomplete presentation of the workload or the inadequacy of the workload to the capacity of the worker (welder) can lead to work accidents.From the workload point of view, the risk factor "Wrong operations, rules, procedures-absence of some operations indispensable for work safety", although identified in few organizations (28%), represented a risk level above the acceptable limit in 42.8% of these organizations.The risk factor of diseases due to forced working positions or those caused by manual lifting and carrying of various components was a risk identified in most of the cases analyzed.
The working environment is one of the main elements that can influence the occurrence of accidents at work for the welder occupation.Workplace risk factors can be managed by improving the working conditions and creating an environment suitable for the production process.

Biological risk factors
Presence of dangerous animals and insects (e.g., dogs, mosquitoes, etc.) 24 0 * Percent of the total number of organizations that have identified the risks.** Percent of the total number of organizations that have identified the risks; the acceptable limit for Romania is ➂, according to the INCDPM method.
From the analysis of Table 5, one can observe that, for the welder occupation, the risks of illness caused by ambient temperature, natural disasters.and poisoning have been identified in many organizations (over 76% of those analyzed).Considering the nature of the materials used in welding processes, the risk of fire/explosion is high, being identified with a risk level above the acceptable limit in 30% of the organizations analyzed.
From the point of view of the risk factors related to the means of production, it is necessary that all production equipment is subject to verification, maintenance, or overhaul processes, according to the established planning.If all the means of production operate within the parameters defined by the manufacturer, the risk of accidents at work is greatly reduced.Crushing due to unbalanced bodies because of the change of the gravity center when welding/cutting its components 28 0 Blockage of the flow of fluids to the flame by the molten material, causing the flame to "backfire" into the cutting machine, into the acetylene hose and then into the acetylene supply system (rapid propagation to the acetylene source and explosion) 28 0 Blockage of the flow of fluids to the flame by the molten material, causing the flame to "backfire" into the cutting machine, into the oxygen hose and ignite the material from which the oxygen hose is made 28 0 * Percent of the total number of organizations that have identified the risks.** Percent of the total number of organizations that have identified the risks; the acceptable limit for Romania is ➂, according to the INCDPM method.

Chemical risk factors
During welding processes, the use of inappropriate means of production can increase the risk of accidents at work.Thus, electrocution by direct contact with uninsulated cables was a risk factor identified in all of the organizations analyzed, and in 40% of the organizations, this risk was above the acceptable limit.
Based on the information presented in Tables 3-6, Figure 3 presents the distribution of the identified risks by each work system component.From Figure 3, one can observe that most of the risks of injury and occupational illness for the welder occupation are those generated by the worker, with 40% of the total number of risks identified.
According to Government Decision No. 1.425 art.46, para.2, "following the risk assessment for each workplace/workstation, prevention and protection measures of a technical, organizational, hygienic-sanitary and other nature necessary to ensure the safety and health of workers are established", a prevention and protection plan must be drawn up, the final aim of which is to reduce the probability of occurrence and the seriousness of the risks identified.To highlight the importance of the measures indicated in the protection and prevention plan, they were also evaluated from the perspective of the hierarchy of controls, according to NIOSH methodology (Table 7), which involves considering the efficiency level, level of action, and action results [69,70].The color code represents the level of action, in accordance with the NIOSH methodology.
Table 8 shows an extract from the prevention and protection plan, drawn up based on the risks identified following the analysis of the risk assessments.

Risks Assessed Proposed Measures Level of Action* Worker
Falling from the same level by tripping, unbalancing, slipping

Routine inspection of floor integrity and repair of defective parts;
Night-time lighting of parking spaces.Cleaning the access routes for vehicles and pedestrians;

Organizational measures
Cleaning the workplace and storing waste in the established places; Marking the places with risk of tripping.

Other measures
Ergonomic design of workspaces.
Improper adjustment of the working regime, improper of electrode type, wire, etc.

Technical measures
Periodic equipment checks; Timely certification and recertification according to national requirements.
Falling from height by unbalancing, slipping, stepping into the void (working at heights without insurance)

Technical measures
Equipping with appropriate platforms for intervention and working at height.

Organizational measures
Use of personal protective equipment appropriate to the work process.

Other measures
Medical notice.

Technical measures
Equipping workers with personal protective equipment appropriate to the work carried out

Organizational measures
Training workers on the consequences of failure to comply with safety restrictions-non-use or incomplete use of protective equipment, etc.; Mandatory use of personal protective equipment appropriate to the specific activities carried out; Stipulation by internal regulation of the obligation for all workers to use specific personal protective equipment; Continuous checking by the workplace manager of the use of the protective equipment provided.

Organizational measures
Training the execution staff by making them aware of the risks of serious injury in the case of using unverified technical equipment; Implementation of the maintenance procedure.

Workload
Risk in back disorders due to forced working positions when working in narrow or inaccessible spaces, or awkward positions during welding operations on site (e.g.,

Technical measures
Ergonomic workplace design for welders to avoid forced or awkward positions-laying the welding parts on benches, supports at 1 m height; Avoiding improvisations that do not provide safety in work execution.

Organizational measures
Inform and train staff on the handling of heavy cargo; Informing and training welders on how to use the welding equipment.

Hygiene and sanitary measures
Regular medical check-ups.

Work Environment
Ultraviolet and infrared radiation from oxyacetylene flame, in case of not protecting the skin with appropriate protective equipment

Technical measures
Equipping the workers with light filters suitable for the types of operations performed; Providing collective means of protection: protective screens.

Organizational measures
Use of personal protective equipment appropriate to the work process; Regularly verification of the manner of use of the means of protection provided; Reducing the duration and intensity of exposure; Marking the risk with safety signs.

Hygiene and sanitary measures
Regular medical check-up with focus on ophthalmological investigations.
Illness caused by high air temperature in summer/low air temperature in winter

Organizational measures
During summer, 2-4 L of carbonated salt water/day should be administered, working hours should be reduced to avoid exposure during the hottest periods of the day, breaks should be taken whenever necessary and adequate ventilation should be provided; In winter, workers will be given warm tea and, if necessary, personal protective equipment; Workers' workplaces will be provided with sanitary facilities.

Hygiene and sanitary measures
Providing drinking water dispensers.

Technical measures
Emergency exit signaling systems.

Organizational measures
Organize simulation actions for emergency situations; Drawing up an action plan for emergency situations; Informing and training workers on how to behave in case of natural disasters; Keeping access and evacuation routes clear.

Other measures
Assign responsibilities for actions in case of emergency situations.
Gas and smoke poisoning from burning acetylene (CO, CO2), melting electrodes and welded metals

Technical measures
Setting out of the space for welding (enclosure with metal panels, supports, and benches for laying the joining materials including ventilation installation and the absorption of toxic gases exhausted during the operation); When welding outdoors, the worker should position themselves so that the gases are in the direction of the air currents (wind).

Organizational measures
Equip workers with personal protective equipment (including mask with filter cartridge for toxic gases) and train them with a focus on the risk of occupational diseases; Alternate work periods with rest periods to remove toxic gases from work areas; Ventilation by natural and artificial ventilation of the places where the welding operation is performed; Appropriate marking of workplace risks.

Hygiene and sanitary measures
Regular medical check-up to monitor health (e.g., lung disease); Offering protective food (milk) against toxicity.

Other measures
Ventilation of the space where welding is performed.

Means of Production
Cutting, pricking when in contact with dangerous surfaces-cutters, prickers-metal edges, tools etc.

Technical measures
Use of personal protective equipment specific to the risk.

Organizational measures
Periodic training of workers on the use of objects with dangerous edges.

Hygiene and sanitary measures
Provision of medical first aid kits and checking the validity of its content; Regular medical check-ups.

Organizational measures
Provision with personal protective equipment, according to the regulations; Use of collective equipment (fenders, paravanes, protective screens, etc.); Training workers on the consequences of non-compliance with security restrictions; Regular inspection by senior management.
Getting hit by means of transport on the way to the workplace where they will carry out the activity

Organizational measures
Periodic training on traffic behavior, pedestrian or driver, passenger in means of transport, according to the legislation on public road traffic; Wearing seat belts when driving on public roads and respecting the speed limit; Compliance with traffic regulations.
Thermal burn caused by direct contact of the skin with splashes, sparks, slag, high temperature surfaces (welded seam, recently welded parts)

Technical measures
Carrying out periodic overhauls of the electrical installation.

Organizational measures
Direct contact with overheated surfaces is prohibited; Wearing protective gloves when carrying out small repairs.
Electrocution by direct touch of uninsulated cables (uninsulated connecting terminals, conductors with destroyed insulation in the power supply starter, etc.

Technical measures
Insulation of terminal blocks and other current paths in electrical welding equipment; Checking and repairing power conductors; The realization of mass circuits according to the technical and safety provisions in force; Visual inspection of the integrity of the grounding of the equipment enclosures, metal and concrete posts, and metal supports in the work area; Discharge of the capacitive load of the installation to be worked on; The use, where appropriate, of electro-insulating gloves, electro-insulating footwear or mats, and tools with electro-insulating handles.

Organizational measures
Use of electro-insulating and protective equipment in oxyacetylene and electric welding; Training of workers; More rigorous checks on compliance with security restrictions and technological discipline; Respect the schedule for checking the means of protection provided (both technical equipment and personal protective equipment).
The color code represents the level of action, in accordance with the NIOSH methodology.
From the analysis of the information in Table 8, one can observe that providing welders with personal protective equipment and training are the most widely used measures to ensure the safety and health of workers and to reduce the probability of the occurrence and impact of the identified risks.

Conclusions
This paper presented the research carried out to identify the main risk factors for the welder occupation in Romania.The results obtained may be used as a starting point in the identification and assessment of risks in organizations where welders carry out their activities.
The analysis of the 70 identified risk factors and their grouping according to the main components of a workplace-the worker (28 factors), the workload (9 factors), the work environment (15 factors), and the means of production (18 factors)-stands as a model to help the representatives of the organizations to reduce or eliminate work accidents involving welders.
The prevention and protection measures presented in this paper can be implemented immediately, without further analysis, in organizations with the aim of ensuring the safety and health of workers.
The measures proposed in the prevention and protection plan were analyzed in terms of effectiveness according to the hierarchy of controls in the NIOSH methodology.Thus, forty-seven were administrative control measures, twelve were measures related to personal protection equipment, eleven were related to engineering controls, two aimed to replace the hazard, and two aimed to physically remove the hazard.
From the point of view of future research, the prevention and protection plan developed will be distributed to each organization participating in the study, with the aim of implementing the recommended measures and performing a new evaluation after 6 months.The results of the new evaluation will provide important information on the effectiveness of the proposed measures, the level of implementation of these measures in each organization, and the implementation approach in each component of the workplace related to the welder occupation.
The limitations in the research are due to the incomplete information reported at the national or EU levels.Another limitation derives from the fact that a portion of work accidents and their causes are not reported in time or are not properly classified, and as a result, the risks are not properly identified either (according to national reports).

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.Stages of improving workplace policies in Europe and later in the EU.

Figure 2 .
Figure 2. Mandatory steps of the INCDPM method for assessing the risks of occupational health and safety.The risk level is a combination of the severity of the consequences and the probability of occurrence, both of which are classified into the following classes:

Figure 3 .
Figure 3. Distribution of identified risks by work system component.

Table 1 .
Classification of industrial branches of civil and industrial construction, capital repair and maintenance, heavy industry, and automotive manufacturing in the NACE and CAEN codes.

Table 3 .
Distribution of risk factors related to the worker.

Risk Factors Risk Identified from Total Assessments * (%) Organizations with Risk Level above Acceptable Limit ** (%) Generated by wrong actions of the welder
* Percent of the total number of organizations that have identified the risks.** Percent of the total number of organizations that have identified the risks; the acceptable limit for Romania is ➂, according to the INCDPM method.

Table 4 .
Distribution of workload-related risk factors.

by under-or oversized load in relation to the executant's capacity
Risk of back disorders due to forced working positions when working in narrow or inaccessible spaces, or awkward positions during welding operations on site (e.g., squatting, bending knees, overhead, etc.).
* Percent of the total number of organizations that have identified the risks.** Percent of the total number of organizations that have identified the risks; the acceptable limit for Romania is ➂, according to the INCDPM method.

Table 5 .
Distribution of risk factors related to the work environment.

Table 6 .
Distribution of risk factors related to the means of production.

Table 7 .
Hierarchy of controls.