ISO 9241-500: Workplace Ergonomics
Ergonomics is the scientific study of analyzing and designing the workplaces. It works with the capabilities and limitations of the workers and then evaluates the workplaces considering these facts. It is a process which helps to make the job suitable to the workers rather than making fit the workers for the job. It has a greater impact on the workplaces, environments, job equipment, job tasks and other terms related to the job sectors or the workplaces and thus also helps the workers to interact in the workplaces. It reduces the risk factors of the injuries of the workers and helps to present a safe workplace.
Ergonomic Risk factors of the workers
The risk factors of the injuries and accidents of the workers are mainly for three reasons. If the work tasks repeat frequently at a regular basis, it may create severe pressure and also cause some injuries to the workers. Again, if the work requires too much force, it may create fatigue and then leads to injuries. Lastly, the joints of the body, muscles or tendons face excessive pressure due to awkward postures. Risk of getting injured increases if the joints are involved in working outside their closer range.
Injury Prevention through Ergonomic Design
Ergonomically inefficient jobs are the jobs which are beyond the capabilities of human bodies. Ergonomically inefficient jobs results in muscular imbalance for the workers. As a result workers are exposed to Musculoskeletal Disorder (MSD) factors or injuries. Besides, fatigue outruns the recovery system and results in musculoskeletal imbalances. If we can evaluate the workstation, it will help us to ensure whether the ergonomic risk factors are present or not in the workplace. It will evaluate the workers present physical state and concludes when the recovery system of the workers lags behind the fatigue while performing their individual jobs. This evaluation reports when the workers are at the verge of musculoskeletal imbalance and musculoskeletal disorder gets imminent. Thus it helps to provide a healthy working environment in the workplaces.
Goals of Ergonomic Improvement Process
The basic goals of ergonomic improvement process are analyzing the workplaces to find out the ergonomic risk factors, taking some protective measures in order to the elimination these ergonomic risk factors, providing a healthy working environment to the workers and thus contributing to increase the efficiency of the workers for the improvement of the productivity.
Benefits of Workplace Ergonomic Process
Ergonomic process helps to reduce the production cost by reducing the ergonomic risk factors, improves the productivity by increasing the efficiency of the workers, provides quality products, improves the employee engagement and thus creates a better safety culture in the workplaces.
References:
Workplace Ergonomics- How to Lower Costs and Improve Productivity
http://ergo-plus.com/workplace-ergonomics/
Office Ergonomics – Topic Overview
http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/tc/office-ergonomics-topic-overview
5 Proven Benefits of Ergonomics in the Workplace
http://ergo-plus.com/workplace-ergonomics-benefits/
Workplace Ergonomics Reference Guide 2nd Edition
A Publication of the Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program
http://cap.mil/Documents/CAP_Ergo_Guide.pdf