W. Patrick Neumann

Ergonomics contributions to company strategies

Managers usually associate ergonomics with occupational health and safety and related legislation, not with business performance. In many companies, these decision makers seem not to be positively motivated to apply ergonomics for reasons of improving health and safety. In order to strengthen the position of ergonomics and ergonomists in the business and management world, we discuss company strategies and business goals to which ergonomics could contribute. Conceptual models are presented and examples are given to illustrate: (1) the present situation in which ergonomics is not part of regular planning and control cycles in organizations to ensure business performance; and (2) the desired situation in which ergonomics is an integrated part of strategy formulation and implementation. In order to realize the desired situation, considerable changes must take place within the ergonomics research, education and practice community by moving from a health ergonomics paradigm to a business ergonomics paradigm, without losing the health and safety goals.

Human factors: spanning the gap between OM and HRM

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the claim that the application of human factors (HF) knowledge can improve both human well‐being and operations system (OS) performance.Design/methodology/approach – A systematic review was conducted using a general and two specialist databases to identify empirical studies addressing both human and OS effects in examining manufacturing OS design aspects.Findings – A total of 45 empirical studies were found, addressing both the human and system effects of OS (re)design. Of those studies providing clear directional effects, 95 percent showed a convergence between human effects and system effects (+, + or −,−), 5 percent showed a divergence of human and system effects (+,− or −,+). System effects included quality, productivity, implementation performance of new technologies, and also more “intangible” effects in terms of improved communication and co‐operation. Human effects included employee health, attitudes, physical workload, and “quality of working life...

The effects of job rotation on the risk of reporting low back pain

Job rotation has been widely recommended as an administrative control to reduce the risk of developing work-related musculoskeletal disorders. However, evidence of its benefits are hard to find in the literature. The effect of job rotation on predictions for the risk of reporting low back pain was estimated using Low Back Pain Reporting (LBPR) and Time Weighted Average (TWA) approaches. Index scores calculated using the peak hand force, the peak L4/L5 shear force and the L4/L5 moment cumulated over the entire shift were used to estimate the effects of job rotation on the probability of reporting low back pain. Simulations of realistic rotations between two jobs showed that workers in low demand jobs who rotate into higher demand jobs experience a linear increase in reporting probability using the TWA approach. With the LBPR approach a step increase in reporting probability occurred because of the immediate exposure to the peak loading parameters associated with the more demanding job. With a 50-50 rotation the TWA and LBPR index scores increased by 39% and 57%, respectively. With the LBPR approach the redistribution of risk was not uniform with job rotation. The increase was greater for those who rotated into the demanding job compared to the reduction experienced by those who rotated out of the demanding job. The effects of job rotation are not easily estimated because of the complex effect that mixing jobs has on peak and cumulative tissue loading.

Impact of materials exposure on assembly workstation performance

This paper examines how the choice of materials exposure impacts workstation performance, in terms of non-value-adding work, space requirements and ergonomics. In a typical Swedish automotive setting, components are exposed in wooden pallets with frames beside the assembly line and supplied by forklift truck. In a case study, three workstations on an assembly line were studied and redesigned following the principles of lean production, using smaller plastic containers for the materials exposure. After the redesign, the space required for materials was reduced by 67%, non-value-adding work decreased by 20%, and walking distance was reduced by 52%. Furthermore, the ergonomics for the assembly operator improved greatly, with a 92% reduction of potentially harmful picking activities, thereby almost eliminating potentially harmful body movements. The theoretical contribution of this paper is firstly the development of an analysis model describing the impact of material exposure on workstation performance and secondly development of the existing categorisation of work operations to include different materials handling activities. The most important managerial implication is an increased understanding of the relationship between space, ergonomics, non-value-adding work and materials exposure. These findings have direct implications on workstation design in industry.

How compatible are participatory ergonomics programs with occupational health and safety management systems

OBJECTIVES Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) are a major cause of pain, disability, and costs. Prevention of MSD at work is frequently described in terms of implementing an ergonomics program, often a participatory ergonomics (PE) program. Most other workplace injury prevention activities take place under the umbrella of a formal or informal occupational health and safety management system (OHSMS). This study assesses the similarities and differences between OHSMS and PE as such knowledge could help improve MSD prevention activities. Methods Using the internationally recognized Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS 18001), 21 OHSMS elements were extracted. In order to define PE operationally, we identified the 20 most frequently cited papers on PE and extracted content relevant to each of the OHSAS 18001 elements. RESULTS The PE literature provided a substantial amount of detail on five elements: (i) hazard identification, risk assessment and determining controls; (ii) resources, roles, responsibility, accountability, and authority; (iii) competence, training and awareness; (iv) participation and consultation; and (v) performance measurement and monitoring. However, of the 21 OHSAS elements, the PE literature was silent on 8 and provided few details on 8 others. CONCLUSIONS The PE literature did not speak to many elements described in OHSMS and even when it did, the language used was often different. This may negatively affect the effectiveness and sustainability of PE initiatives within organizations. It is expected that paying attention to the approaches and language used in management system frameworks could make prevention of MSD activities more effective and sustainable.

Human factors in order picking: a content analysis of the literature

Order picking (OP) is one of the most labour- and time-intensive processes in internal logistics. Over the last decades, researchers have developed various mathematical planning models that help to increase the efficiency of OP systems, for example, by optimising storage assignments or by specifying routes for the order pickers that minimise travel distance in the warehouse. Human characteristics that are often a major determinant of OP system performance have, however, widely been ignored in this stream of research. This paper systematically evaluates the literature on manual OP systems and conducts a content analysis to gain insights into how human factors (HF) have been considered and discussed in the scientific literature. The results of the analysis indicate that management-oriented efficiency criteria dominated prior research on OP, and that there is a clear lack of attention to HF in the design and management of OP systems. This poses an opportunity for research and design of manual OP systems.

Integrating human factors into discrete event simulation: a proactive approach to simultaneously design for system performance and employees’ well being

The aim of this research is to: (1) Develop an approach to integrating both human fatigue-recovery patterns and human learning into Discrete Event Simulation models of a production system to predict productivity and quality; (2) Validate the predicted fatigue against operators’ perceived fatigue; and (3) Demonstrate how this Human Factors-enabled simulation approach can be applied in a case study comparing two manufacturing line designs in the context of electronics assembly. The new approach can predict the accumulation of operator fatigue, fatigue-related quality effects and productivity changes based on system design configurations. In the demonstration comparison, fatigue dosage was 7–33% lower in the proposed system where HF was taken into consideration at the engineering design (ED) stage. In the existing system, the fatigue dose measure correlated with quality deficits with 26% of the variance accounted for – a large portion given the multi-causal nature of production deficits. ED models that do not include human aspects may provide unreliable results in terms of productivity and quality estimates. This research shows that it is possible to design production systems that are more productive while being less hazardous for the system operator.

Solution Building Versus Problem Convincing: Ergonomists Report on Conducting Workplace Assessments

OCCUPATIONAL APPLICATIONS Professional ergonomists (n = 21) from across Canada reported initiating workplace assessments with observations, interviews, and imaging approaches. When necessary, they proceeded to deeper, usually quantitative, methods in order to provide a better understanding of the situation or, more frequently, to motivate action in the company, operating in a “convincing” mode. Some ergonomists reported that when working in a higher trust environment, they used simpler, often more qualitative, evaluation methods to move directly to developing design alternatives—a “solution-building” mode. These findings shed light on how ergonomists judge the appropriateness of a method for a given context in their daily work. They may also be valuable for ergonomists trying to refine their assessment approach, both for researchers trying to better support practitioners through improved tools and knowledge and for the planning of ergonomists’ education. TECHNICAL ABSTRACT Rationale: There are many methods available to help ergonomists in the design and evaluation of work. Very little is known about how practitioners chose appropriate methods in their daily work. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine what approaches are used by ergonomists in their daily work, to describe the experiences of ergonomists with different assessment methods, and to discover how they judge the appropriateness of a method. Methods: In order to explore the use of such methods, 21 semi-structured interviews were completed with professional ergonomists across Canada. Results: Most ergonomists reported initiating a study using methods such as observation, interviews, and imaging. There was a frequent mention of hazard identification and risk assessment at workplaces by the ergonomists interviewed. In some situations, ergonomists proceeded to deeper, often quantitative, analyses in order to provide a better understanding of ergonomics issues or, more frequently, to motivate a recommended action—operating in a ‘convincer’ mode. Some ergonomists reported that when working in a higher trust environment, they are able to use simpler evaluation methods to move directly to developing design alternatives—a “solution-building” mode. Applications: These findings shed light on how ergonomists judge the appropriateness of a method for a given context. They may also be valuable for ergonomists trying to refine their assessment approach, for researchers trying to better support practitioners through improved tools and knowledge or in the planning of ergonomists’ education.

Fatigue and recovery during and after static loading

Subjectively assessed endurance time (ET), resumption time (RT) and perceived discomfort, pain or fatigue (PD), and objectively measured maximum force-exerting capacity were investigated for varying loads and durations of a pushing task with two repeated trials. Beyond the main results quantifying how the load scenario affected ET, RT and PD, three additional results are of note: (1) although the maximum pushing force did not change between trials, shorter ET, longer RT and higher PD indicated accumulation of fatigue in Trial 2; (2) the PD ratings showed a trend with a linear increase during loading and a curvilinear decrease during recovery; and (3) the RT and the load level for different relative loading times were found to have an unexpected U-shaped relationship, indicating lowest fatigue at the intermediate load level. These results can be used to model a more sustainable and productive work-recovery ratio. Practitioner Summary: Sufficient recovery during a work-shift is important for sustainable work. This paper presents data from an empirical study on how fatigue reactions and recovery needs vary with load level and loading time and with one repeated loading. The results enable the modelling of work-recovery ratios to ensure adequate recovery during work-shifts.

Design-for-human factors (DfHF): a grounded theory for integrating human factors into production design processes

The ‘design for human factors’ grounded theory explains ‘how’ human factors (HF) went from a reactive, after-injury programme in safety, to being proactively integrated into each step of the production design process. In this longitudinal case study collaboration with engineers and HF Specialists in a large electronics manufacturer, qualitative data (e.g. meetings, interviews, observations and reflections) were analysed using a grounded theory methodology. The central tenet in the theory is that when HF Specialists acclimated to the engineering process, language and tools, and strategically aligned HF to the design and business goals of the organisation, HF became a means to improve business performance. This led to engineers ‘pulling’ HF Specialists onto their team. HF targets were adopted into engineering tools to communicate HF concerns quantitatively, drive continuous improvement, visibly demonstrate change and lead to benchmarking. Senior management held engineers accountable for HF as a key performance indicator, thus integrating HF into the production design process. Practitioner Summary: Research and practice lack explanations about how HF can be integrated early in design of production systems. This three-year case study and the theory derived demonstrate how ergonomists changed their focus to align with design and business goals to integrate HF into the design process.