Is the background knowledge of ergonomists important if ergonomics is to succeed within a simultaneous engineering (SE) environment?

Abstract

Successful implementation of simultaneous engineering (SE) depends upon a number of factors. Meaningful communication among the team members is one factor. While most members on the SE multidisciplinary team have a common foundation, engineering, it is generally the ergonomist who lacks such background and becomes the weakest member of the team. Instead of being a problem solver, he/she is frequently treated as an irrelevant element in the scheme of things. This paper shows that simple ergonomic recommendations for product design could result in economically undesirable consequences for the manufacturer. Therefore, the ergonomist on the SE team must understand and consider the economic and technical impact of his/her recommendations on consumer product manufacturing and, in consultation with the engineering designer and process engineer, determine the best way to implement them. This obviously requires a thorough understanding of manufacturing and the adoption of an interdisciplinary role on the part of ergonomists. Furthermore, discussions involving the significance and importance of ergonomics should be carried out in forums primary to manufacturing (Society of Manufacturing Engineers, Institution of Production Engineers, Journals of Design and Manufacturing, etc.) and process engineers so that the main objective — consideration of ergonomics in product manufacture — may be achieved cost effectively. Relevance to industry Successful implementation of simultaneous engineering should lead to usable and reliable products that can be made easily, quickly, efficiently, and economically. Consideration of ergonomic design guidelines is essential in order to manufacture such products. Therefore, for market success, manufacturers must ensure that ergonomists participating in multidisciplinary SE design teams have background in both design and manufacturing technology.