Sanjay Kumar Palei

@iitbhu.ac.in

Associate Professor, department of Mining Engineering, IIT(BHU), Varanasi 221005 INDIA
IIT(BHU) Varanasi INDIA

Sanjay Kumar Palei

RESEARCH, TEACHING, or OTHER INTERESTS

Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology, Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
24

Scopus Publications

696

Scholar Citations

12

Scholar h-index

14

Scholar i10-index

Scopus Publications

  • Risk assessment techniques for quantitative evaluation of postural risks in workplaces
    Khane Jithendar Singh, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Netai Chandra Karmakar
    Ergonomics Risk Assessment in Unorganized Sectors, 2026
    Ergonomic risk assessment is a measure of risk variables prevalent in the workplace that may lead to musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) or injuries to workers. This chapter discusses the commonly utilised risk assessment techniques for the quantitative evaluation of postural risks in workplaces. Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) and Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) are two postural assessment methods that researchers frequently use across different types of industries. A brief introduction of the methods and procedures to evaluate the risk scores are also outlined. RULA primarily focuses on upper limb (forearm, upper arm, neck, hand, and trunk) postures and movements. It incorporates muscle use but does not include coupling. It mostly assesses static postures and is thus well-suited for tasks involving repetitive or sustained upper limb activities. On the other hand, REBA mostly assesses dynamic postures and hence is suitable for tasks involving various combinations of whole-body movements. A case study of a dumper operator of a surface coal mine has been illustrated for the apprehension of the methods. Further, this chapter demonstrates how postural risk assessment tools can be effectively implemented, within their limitations, to obtain rapid and actionable feedback toward curbing workplace MSDs.
  • Assessment of Relative Health Risks of Vibration-Exposed Equipment Operators in Coal Mines
    Khane Jithendar Singh, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Netai Chandra Karmakar, Suprakash Gupta, Amrendra Kumar
    Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 2025
    Objective: The present study aims at evaluating the influence of whole-body vibration (WBV) exposure and its contributing factors on musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) of equipment operators in coal mines. Methodology: In this paper, WBV measurement was conducted for 100 equipment operators exposed to vibration, followed by a questionnaire survey. This questionnaire survey was also extended to 104 workers with limited exposure to vibration. Results: The daily average frequency-weighted acceleration A(8), when compared with health guidance caution zone (HGCZ) of ISO 2631-1, reveals that 15% operators are exposed to likely health risk and 82% to potential health risk. The relative risk of MSDs of vibration-exposed operators was 2.63 times more than the control group. Moreover, when mines were compared, Mine B showed a 3.27 times higher likelihood of vibration hazards compared to Mine A. Conclusion: Equipment operators in mines are exposed to vibration as a part of their occupation. The company management may take preventive measures through design of workplace and work environment for minimizing vibration exposure on operators to reduce MSDs.
  • A Research Methodology for Assessment of Whole-Body Vibration Exposure of HEMM Operators in Mines — An Approach
    Khane Jithendar Singh, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Netai Chandra Karmakar
    Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research, 2025
    The main objective of this paper is to provide an approach to assess the exposure of Whole-Body Vibration (WBV) on the Heavy Earth moving Machinery (HEMM) operators and its impacts on Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs) taking into consideration of various contributing factors. The WBV is measured using a human vibration analyzer. Anthropometric measurements along with postural assessment are carried out simultaneously. Data related to physical and physiological factors are evaluated using a questionnaire survey on personal, machine, work environment, and health parameters. After data collection, modelling, and analysis are done using a suitable machine learning tool to get a better knowledge of the occurrence of MSDs at workplaces. Various models are used in the literature for the assessment of risks faced by the operators exposed to WBV hazards. This modelling would help in identifying the role of contributing factors of WBV to inflict MSDs on the workers, with a view to either eliminate or minimize its detrimental effects. Adoption of this research methodology will help researchers to measure WBV, collect data on contributing factors, and to establish correlations with any type of MSDs using a suitable machine learning tool.
  • Discomfort survey of dumper operators exposed to whole-body vibration in opencast coal mines
    Vivekanand Kumar, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Netai Chandra Karmakar
    JVC Journal of Vibration and Control, 2025
    Exposure to whole-body vibration (WBV) can lead to pain and discomfort of the heavy earthmoving machinery operators. In this paper, WBV measurement of 110 dumper operators has been conducted in three opencast coal mines, followed by a discomfort survey. Vibration measurement revealed that the mean frequency-weighted daily rms acceleration, A(8), for the operators was 0.87 m s−2. The discomfort survey was conducted to determine whether body regions of discomfort relate to their kinds of task performed by the dumper operators and also to prioritize areas for ergonomic intervention. Overall discomfort was evaluated corresponding to five regions of human body in the present survey. The results of the survey revealed that maximum operators had discomfort in their lower back region (65%) followed by leg region (53%). The industrial application of discomfort analysis is to identify the human body regions susceptible to vibration hazards. The discomfort indices are also correlated with vibration magnitude and some of the contributing factors of WBV for better understanding the vibration risks faced by the dumper operators for effectively managing the impacts of vibration in surface coal mines.
  • Role of contributing factors on health risks of whole-body vibration exposure of heavy equipment and vehicle operators: A critical review
    Khane Jithendar Singh, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Netai Chandra Karmakar
    JVC Journal of Vibration and Control, 2024
    Whole-body vibration (WBV) is a recognized health hazard that primarily affects the musculoskeletal system of human beings. Although research works on WBV are documented, for the past few decades or so, researchers are still attempting to explore the role of contributing factors of WBV for the causation of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). Therefore, this paper synthesizes up-to-date knowledge on WBV with respect to measurement methods, critical vibration magnitudes, contributing factors, and effects on human health. The present review is based on PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyzes) that includes 112 studies on WBV exposure and its contributing factors. It also summarizes the contributing factors of MSDs that include personal factors, environmental factors, machine-related factors, and WBV exposure of the heavy vehicles and equipment operators across various industries. Most of the studies reported lower back pain as the most common MSDs experienced by the vehicle operators exposed to WBV, followed by upper back pain. However, it is apparent from the prevailing literature that musculoskeletal health risks do not result from exposure to WBV alone. The role of multivariate contributing factors should also be considered, analyzed, assessed, and understood to establish correlations between these factors with the development of MSDs. In addition to the measurement and assessment of WBV as per the ISO guidelines to evaluate the potential and likely health risks faced by the heavy equipment operators, researchers should also focus on studying various impacts of WBV, and understanding the role of its contributing factors on human health using advanced machine learning tools.
  • Data-driven fault diagnosis approaches for industrial equipment: A review
    Atma Ram Sahu, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Aishwarya Mishra
    Expert Systems, 2024
    Abstract Undetected and unpredicted faults in heavy industrial machines/equipment can lead to unwanted failures. Therefore, prediction of faults puts paramount importance on maintaining the reliability and availability of capital‐intensive equipment. Due to large number of interconnected and interdependent mechanical and electrical components in the machines, fault analysis becomes a complex and challenging task. Under these circumstances, data‐driven fault diagnosis (DDFD) is one of the most powerful, reliable and cost‐effective artificial intelligence tools to detect, isolate, identify and classify the occurrence of faults. This article aims to make a comprehensive literature survey of various DDFD approaches used for analysing faults in industrial machines/equipment; and summarizing the strengths, limitations, and possible applications of existing fault diagnosis methods. Analysing and synthesizing 190 research works conducted on DDFD in last two decades revealed three types of DDFD approaches: supervised‐learning, semi‐supervised‐learning and unsupervised‐learning‐based fault diagnosis. The supervised‐learning is predominantly applied for fault diagnosis contributing to 82% of research works. Therefore, this article puts special emphasis on two supervised‐learning‐based approaches for fault diagnosis: (i) classification‐based artificial neural network approach, and (ii) inference‐based Bayesian network approach. Finally, these fault diagnosis approaches have been briefly discussed with effectiveness of the models and their possible inclusion in future industrial applications.
  • Fault analysis of dragline subsystem using Bayesian network model
    Atma Ram Sahu, Sanjay Kumar Palei
    Reliability Engineering and System Safety, 2022
  • Whole-Body Vibration Exposure vis-à-vis Musculoskeletal Health Risk of Dumper Operators Compared to a Control Group in Coal Mines
    Vivekanand Kumar, Sanjay K. Palei, Netai C. Karmakar, Dhanjee K. Chaudhary
    Safety and Health at Work, 2022
    Background: Whole-body vibration (WBV) exposure of coal mine dumper operators poses numerous health hazards. The case-control study was aimed at assessing the relative musculoskeletal health risk of dumper operators' exposure to WBV with reference to the nonexposed group. Methods: Measurements of WBV exposure were taken at the operator-seat interface using a human vibration analyzer for 110 dumper operators in three coal mines. This vibration measurement was supplemented by a questionnaire survey of 110 dumper operators exposed to WBV and an equal number of workers not exposed to WBV. The relative risk of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) has been assessed through the case-control study design. Results: ISO guidelines were used to compare the health risk. It was observed that the prevalence of pain in the lower back was 2.52 times more in the case group compared to the control group. The case group of Mine-2 was 2.0 times more prone to vibration hazards as compared to Mine-3. Conclusion: The case group is more vulnerable to MSDs than the control group. The on-site measurement as well as the response of the dumper operators during the questionnaire survey corroborates this finding.
  • Whole-body vibration exposure of heavy earthmoving machinery operators in surface coal mines: a comparative assessment of transport and non-transport earthmoving equipment operators
    Dhanjee Kumar Chaudhary, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Vivekanand Kumar, Netai Chandra Karmakar
    International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 2022
    Purpose. Two groups of heavy earthmoving equipment operators, transport equipment (dumper) operators and non-transport equipment (drill and shovel) operators, in coal mines are assessed comparatively for their vibration magnitude and possible health consequences. Methods. Whole-body vibration exposure measurements were recorded according to Standard No. ISO 2631-1. Measurements were carried out at the operator–seat interface with a tri-axial seat pad accelerometer using a vibration analyser, followed by a questionnaire survey. The binary logistic regression model was used to comparatively assess the two groups of operators. Results. The binary logistic regression analysis revealed that the risk of lower back pain is 4.06 times greater (95% confidence interval [1.36, 12.08]) in transport equipment operators compared to non-transport operators. The daily vibration dose value of the transport equipment operators was 2.92 times greater than their counterparts (95% confidence interval [0.94, 9.09]). However, non-transport equipment operators belonging to the high driving experience category presented a value 5.26 times higher than the transport equipment operators. Conclusion. Transport equipment operators are more vulnerable to vibration hazards than their counterparts, as is evident from the vibration magnitude as well as from the symptoms of lower back pain.
  • Occupational exposure of dumper operators to whole-body vibration in opencast coal mines: an approach for risk assessment using a Bayesian network
    Mahendra Kumar Atal, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Dhanjee Kumar Chaudhary, Vivekanand Kumar, Netai Chandra Karmakar
    International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 2022
    Whole-body vibration (WBV) is one of the leading risk factors for development of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) that develop symptoms of lower back pain, pain in the neck and shoulders, digestive problems, blood pressure and diabetes among professional dumper operators. The present study specifically aimed at assessing the WBV exposure of 79 dumper operators engaged in two Indian opencast coal mines through vibration measurements followed by questionnaire survey. From the daily frequency-weighted root mean square exposure, dumper operators have experienced vibration levels higher than the Health Guidance Caution Zone (HGCZ) of Standard No. ISO 2631-1:1997. However, on the basis of daily vibration dose values, 60.8% of operators have experienced vibration levels above the HGCZ. Finally, an attempt was also made to explore the potential of a Bayesian network to predict the risk factors for WBV of dumper operators in development of MSDs to prioritize the factors for human health risk assessment.
  • Real-time fault diagnosis of HEMM using Bayesian Network: A case study on drag system of dragline
    Atma Ram Sahu, Sanjay Kumar Palei
    Engineering Failure Analysis, 2020
  • Erratum to: APPLICATION OF RISK-BASED MAINTENANCE USING ANALYTIC HIERARCHY PROCESS FOR SELECTION OF MAINTENANCE POLICY OF DRAGLINE (Journal of Mining Science, (2020), 56, (616-630), 10.1134/S1062739120046909)
    B. R. Sahoo, S. K. Palei
    Journal of Mining Science, 2020
  • Reliability Analysis of Dragline Using Equivalent Aging Model
    Aishwarya Mishra, Sanjay Kumar Palei, Suprakash Gupta
    Arabian Journal for Science and Engineering, 2020
  • Reliability-Centered Maintenance of Rapier Dragline for Optimizing Replacement Interval of Dragline Components
    Sanjay Kumar Palei, Smarak Das, Snehamoy Chatterjee
    Mining Metallurgy and Exploration, 2020
  • Study on New Type of Roadway Side Support Technologyin Coal Mines
    B. R. Sahoo, S. K. Palei
    Journal of Mining Science, 2020
  • Fault prediction of drag system using artificial neural network for prevention of dragline failure
    Atma Ram Sahu, Sanjay Kumar Palei
    Engineering Failure Analysis, 2020
  • Failure mode, effects and criticality analysis of dragline components and evaluation of risk priority number for effective maintenance planning
    Journal of Mines Metals and Fuels, 2020
  • Production scheduling of an iron deposit under ore grade uncertainty
    Journal of Mines Metals and Fuels, 2020
  • Receptor modelling of air pollutants for source apportionment on coal-based anthropogenic activities
    Journal of Mines Metals and Fuels, 2020
  • Quantification of human error rate in underground coal mines - A fuzzy mapping and rough set based approach
    Suprakash Gupta, Pramod Kumar, Netai Chandra Karmakar, Sanjay Kumar Palei
    IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management, 2014
  • Effects of demography and occupational traits on consequence of injury of underground coal miners
    S. K. Palei, N. C. Karmakar, R. S. M. Reddy
    IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management, 2014
  • Modeling of tolerable repair time without affecting system reliability
    A. Mishra, P. Murari, S. K. Palei, S. Gupta
    IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management, 2014
  • Logistic regression model for prediction of roof fall risks in bord and pillar workings in coal mines: An approach
    Sanjay Kumar Palei, Samir Kumar Das
    Safety Science, 2009
  • Sensitivity analysis of support safety factor for predicting the effects of contributing parameters on roof falls in underground coal mines
    S.K. Palei, S.K. Das
    International Journal of Coal Geology, 2008

RECENT SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS

  • Risk assessment techniques for quantitative evaluation of postural risks in workplaces
    KJ Singh, SK Palei, NC Karmakar
    Ergonomics Risk Assessment in Unorganized Sectors , 2026
    2026
  • Assessment of Relative Health Risks of Vibration-Exposed Equipment Operators in Coal Mines
    KJ Singh, SK Palei, NC Karmakar, S Gupta, A Kumar
    Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 29 (4), 254-259 , 2025
    2025
  • A research methodology for assessment of whole-body vibration exposure of HEMM operators in mines — An approach
    KJ Singh, SK Palei, NC Karmakar
    Journal of Scientific & Industrial Research 84 (4), 456-467 , 2025
    2025
    Citations: 1
  • Discomfort survey of dumper operators exposed to whole-body vibration in opencast coal mines
    V Kumar, SK Palei, NC Karmakar
    Journal of Vibration and Control 31 (3-4), 583-591 , 2025
    2025
    Citations: 4
  • Role of contributing factors on health risks of whole-body vibration exposure of heavy equipment and vehicle operators: A critical review
    KJ Singh, SK Palei, NC Karmakar
    Journal of Vibration and Control 30 (11-12), 2338-2355 , 2024
    2024
    Citations: 25
  • Data-driven fault diagnosis approaches for industrial equipment: A review
    AR Sahu, SK Palei, A Mishra
    Expert Systems 41 (2), 1-29 , 2024
    2024
    Citations: 102
  • Long exposures to vibrations may cause musculoskeletal disorders
    SK Palei
    Times of India , 2023
    2023
  • Fault diagnosis of dragline system using artificial intelligence - A causal analysis
    AR Sahu, SK Palei, S Rai, V Kashi
    5th International Conference on Opencast Mining Technology & Sustainability … , 2023
    2023
  • Fault analysis of dragline subsystem using Bayesian network model
    AR Sahu, SK Palei
    Reliability Engineering & System Safety 225 (September), 1-13 , 2022
    2022
    Citations: 34
  • Postural risk assessment of heavy earthmoving machinery operators in opencast coal mine
    KJ Singh, SK Palei, NC Karmakar
    9th Asian Mining Congress on Technological Advancements in Mining Industry … , 2022
    2022
  • Whole-body vibration exposure vis-à-vis musculoskeletal health risk of dumper operators compared to a control group in coal mines
    V Kumar, SK Palei, NC Karmakar, DK Chaudhary
    Safety and Health at Work 13 (1), 73-77 , 2022
    2022
    Citations: 41
  • Occupational exposure of dumper operators to whole-body vibration in opencast coal mines: an approach for risk assessment using a Bayesian network
    MK Atal, SK Palei, DK Chaudhary, V Kumar, NC Karmakar
    International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics 28 (2), 758-765 , 2022
    2022
    Citations: 26
  • Whole-body vibration exposure of heavy earthmoving machinery operators in surface coal mines: a comparative assessment of transport and non-transport earthmoving equipment …
    DK Chaudhary, SK Palei, V Kumar, NC Karmakar
    International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics 28 (1), 174-183 , 2022
    2022
    Citations: 43
  • Postural risk assessment of heavy earthmoving machinery operators in mines using Rapid Upper Limb Assessment
    KJ Singh, SK Palei, NC Karmakar, V Kumar, A Kumar, S Gupta
    4th International Conference on Opencast Mining Technology & Sustainability … , 2021
    2021
  • Economic risk assessment of PM10 in coal-based industrial region and its management strategy
    A Mishra, SK Palei, NC Karmakar, M Mishra
    Arabian Journal of Geosciences 14 (23) , 2021
    2021
  • Real-time fault diagnosis of HEMM using Bayesian network: A case study on drag system of dragline
    AR Sahu, SK Palei
    Engineering Failure Analysis 118, 104917 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 29
  • Receptor modelling of air pollutants for source apportionment on coal-based anthropogenic activities
    A Mishra, SK Palei, NC Karmakar
    Journal of Mines, Metals and Fuels 68 (9), 293-303 , 2020
    2020
  • Reliability analysis of dragline using equivalent aging model
    A Mishra, SK Palei, S Gupta
    Arabian Journal for Science and Engineering 45 (8), 6975-6984 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 14
  • Reliability-centered maintenance of rapier dragline for optimizing replacement interval of dragline components
    SK Palei, S Das, S Chatterjee
    Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration 37, 1121-1136 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 27
  • Application of risk-based maintenance using analytic hierarchy process for selection of maintenance policy of dragline
    BR Sahoo, SK Palei
    Journal of Mining Science 56 (4), 616-630 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 10

MOST CITED SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS

  • Logistic regression model for prediction of roof fall risks in bord and pillar workings in coal mines: An approach
    SK Palei, SK Das
    Safety Science 47 (1), 88-96 , 2009
    2009
    Citations: 184
  • Data-driven fault diagnosis approaches for industrial equipment: A review
    AR Sahu, SK Palei, A Mishra
    Expert Systems 41 (2), 1-29 , 2024
    2024
    Citations: 102
  • Sensitivity analysis of support safety factor for predicting the effects of contributing parameters on roof falls in underground coal mines
    SK Palei, SK Das
    International Journal of Coal Geology 75 (4), 241-247 , 2008
    2008
    Citations: 85
  • Whole-body vibration exposure of heavy earthmoving machinery operators in surface coal mines: a comparative assessment of transport and non-transport earthmoving equipment …
    DK Chaudhary, SK Palei, V Kumar, NC Karmakar
    International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics 28 (1), 174-183 , 2022
    2022
    Citations: 43
  • Whole-body vibration exposure vis-à-vis musculoskeletal health risk of dumper operators compared to a control group in coal mines
    V Kumar, SK Palei, NC Karmakar, DK Chaudhary
    Safety and Health at Work 13 (1), 73-77 , 2022
    2022
    Citations: 41
  • Fault analysis of dragline subsystem using Bayesian network model
    AR Sahu, SK Palei
    Reliability Engineering & System Safety 225 (September), 1-13 , 2022
    2022
    Citations: 34
  • Fault prediction of drag system using artificial neural network for prevention of dragline failure
    AR Sahu, SK Palei
    Engineering Failure Analysis 113, 104542 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 31
  • Real-time fault diagnosis of HEMM using Bayesian network: A case study on drag system of dragline
    AR Sahu, SK Palei
    Engineering Failure Analysis 118, 104917 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 29
  • Reliability-centered maintenance of rapier dragline for optimizing replacement interval of dragline components
    SK Palei, S Das, S Chatterjee
    Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration 37, 1121-1136 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 27
  • Occupational exposure of dumper operators to whole-body vibration in opencast coal mines: an approach for risk assessment using a Bayesian network
    MK Atal, SK Palei, DK Chaudhary, V Kumar, NC Karmakar
    International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics 28 (2), 758-765 , 2022
    2022
    Citations: 26
  • Role of contributing factors on health risks of whole-body vibration exposure of heavy equipment and vehicle operators: A critical review
    KJ Singh, SK Palei, NC Karmakar
    Journal of Vibration and Control 30 (11-12), 2338-2355 , 2024
    2024
    Citations: 25
  • Reliability analysis of dragline using equivalent aging model
    A Mishra, SK Palei, S Gupta
    Arabian Journal for Science and Engineering 45 (8), 6975-6984 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 14
  • Application of risk-based maintenance using analytic hierarchy process for selection of maintenance policy of dragline
    BR Sahoo, SK Palei
    Journal of Mining Science 56 (4), 616-630 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 10
  • Optimization of productivity with surface miner using conveyor loading and truck dispatch system
    SK Palei, NC Karmakar, P Paliwal, B Schimm
    International Journal of Research in Engineering and Technology 2 (9), 393-396 , 2013
    2013
    Citations: 10
  • Guar gum in hydraulic fracturing in Indian shale mines
    N Jain, K Garg, NC Karmakar, SK Palei
    Present Technology and Safety Scenario in Mining and Allied Industries , 2013
    2013
    Citations: 7
  • Quantification of human error rate in underground coal mines — A fuzzy mapping and rough set based approach
    S Gupta, P Kumar, NC Karmakar, SK Palei
    2013 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering … , 2013
    2013
    Citations: 6
  • Discomfort survey of dumper operators exposed to whole-body vibration in opencast coal mines
    V Kumar, SK Palei, NC Karmakar
    Journal of Vibration and Control 31 (3-4), 583-591 , 2025
    2025
    Citations: 4
  • Modeling of tolerable repair time without affecting system reliability
    A Mishra, P Murari, SK Palei, S Gupta
    2014 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering … , 2014
    2014
    Citations: 4
  • Effects of demography and occupational traits on consequence of injury of underground coal miners
    SK Palei, NC Karmakar, RSM Reddy
    2014 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering … , 2014
    2014
    Citations: 4
  • Production scheduling of an iron deposit under ore grade uncertainty
    PP Malharkumar, SK Palei, S Choudhury
    Journal of Mines, Metals and Fuels 68 (3), 85-90 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 2