Workstation Design Research Articles

Evidence of movement variability patterns during a repetitive pointing task until exhaustion

Human movement is characterized by its variability: the same task is never performed twice in exactly the same way. This variability is believed to play a functional role in movement performance and adaptability, as well as in preventing musculoskeletal damage. This article focuses on the time-evolution of movement variability throughout a repetitive pointing task until exhaustion. The kinematics of 13 subjects performing the pointing task is analyzed. Principal Component Analysis of joint angles identifies joint coordinations for each pointing cycle, and cycle-by-cycle comparison highlights movement variability. Non-supervised clustering reveals that subjects adopt successive coordination patterns at an intra-individual level. Inter-individual variability is characterized by the number and type of such patterns: from 3 to 5 patterns, mobilizing the trunk, the shoulder and the upper limbs differently. Movement variability exists even in a seemingly basic and constrained task. It appears in the very early stages of fatigue onset, and may correspond to adaptative coordination responses throughout task performance. This observation should encourage workstation designers to better account for movement variability in order to preserve operators' health and safety.

A Methodology for Human Factors Utility Analysis in Quality Inspiction Workstation Design.(Dept.M)

A Methodology for Human Factors Utility Analysis in Quality Inspiction Workstation Design.(Dept.M)

Design Of Pt Xyz Work Station By Calculating The Standard Time, Single-Minutes Exchange Of Dies (Smed) And 5s Method

A good work station can support an increase in worker productivity. Increased productivity will have a direct impact on company profits and provide workers with morning comfort. In this research, the role of work station design with reference to standard time, Single-Minutes Exchange of Dies (SMED) and 5S method was carried out. Standard time is used to see how long workers do a job. The SMED method aims to replace an external setup activity with an internal setup that reduces the setup time for an activity. To support the SMED method, it is necessary to design a work station based on the 5S principle. The resulting work system design results in the form of a work station that has considered ergonomic principles to support the performance of workers. The results of the design carried out are expected to increase comfort for workers.

Socio Economic Impact of Assembly Line Balancing in Garment Manufacturing with the Help of Work Aids

The experimental efficacy of a work station that is ergonomically designed owes its overall reliance on production engineering, especially considering assembly line balancing besides the sustained work output of the assembly line and its snags caused in the production process have been acknowledged since long. The manifestation of these irregularities and consequent inadequacies on persistent shoulder – neck exposure have been studied for this paper with the help of work aids. A conducive workplace based on better ergonomic work station design, influences stress decreased due to the undue strain of repeated actions in an assembly line situation. This makes for resultant assembly line need to get balanced and subsequent to the production most irregularities decrease. It also results in the perpetuation of idle time across the assembly line outputs as compared to when no work aids have been introduced. 
 Focus 
 The researcher contribution of this paper is the experimentation conducted on a work table designed for the finishing line segment of the garment manufacturing assembly line. The folding table, as it has been called has flexibility of adjustment of work angle and some advantages over the conventional fixed surface tables.
 
 Method 
 Designing aspect apart this Table has been experimented with for usage and stability in the garment manufacturing assembling at three different units. The pilot results have been examined in the light of work done by earlier scholars.
 
 Scope 
 The musculoskeletal strain experienced by workers in the garment manufacturing units impacts directly on their work output resulting long term physical and socio-economic implications that tend to effect work output efficiency in the long run. 
 Results and Findings
 Decreased stress levels show indications of positive usage of this work aid. However, testing is still going on to confirm the preliminary results

Improving Working Conditions Using the Ergonomic Checkpoints Tool: Application in a Colombian Meat Processing Plant

OCCUPATIONAL APPLICATIONS Integrating ergonomics (or human factors) in production and service processes is a topic of interest for ergonomics researchers and practitioners, especially in industrially-developing countries. In this paper, we present how an ergonomic intervention was carried out in an area of a Colombian meat processing plant using the Ergonomics Checkpoints tool. Of 65 checkpoints verified, 24 required improvement action and 17 of them were a priority. The main problems were related to materials storage and handling, hand tools, machine safety, workstation design, and work organization. Organizational and engineering proposals were made. The engineering proposals were modeled in 3 D to increase understanding of and acceptance by the company's workers. We hope that the lessons learned and reflections derived from this case study serve as a reference for conducting ergonomic interventions in similar contexts.

Ergonomic Assessment Methods Enhanced by IoT and Simulation Tools

AbstractThe advent of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) principles and technologies has been a great boost for manufacturing companies, constantly focused on the production processes optimization in order to reach the double objective of improving productivity and minimizing related costs. Today, the use of I4.0 technologies seems to be more accessible for a large number of companies, allowing to perform a more detailed analysis on their processes by means of experimental data coming directly from the system. In this context, ergonomics, which has been underestimated until 30 years ago, is assuming more and more importance. This paper aims at proposing a methodology focused on an ergonomic analysis carried out by implementing data collected from the field; in particular, a set of inertial sensors integrated in the worker suit detects the body posture. Then, thanks to the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), data are transferred to a simulation software in order to quickly evaluate the current ergonomic effort. In this way, it is possible to perform a real‐time evaluation on the workstation design and consider a possible re‐design with the aim of improving ergonomics.

A novel data-driven approach to support decision-making during production scale-up of assembly systems

In today's manufacturing settings, a sudden increase in the customer demand may enforce manufacturers to alter their manufacturing systems either by adding new resources or changing the layout within a restricted time frame. Without an appropriate strategy to handle this transition to higher volume, manufacturers risk losing their market competitiveness. The subjective experience-based ad-hoc procedures existing in the industrial domain are insufficient to support the transition to a higher volume, thereby necessitating a new approach where the scale-up can be realised in a timely, systematic manner. This research study aims to fulfill this gap by proposing a novel Data-Driven Scale-up Model, known as DDSM, that builds upon kinematic and Discrete-Event Simulation (DES) models. These models are further enhanced by historical production data and knowledge representation techniques. The DDSM approach identifies the near-optimal production system configurations that meet the new customer demand using an iterative design process across two distinct levels, namely the workstation and system levels. At the workstation level, a set of potential workstation configurations are identified by utilising the knowledge mapping between product, process, resource and resource attribute domains. Workstation design data of selected configurations are streamlined into a common data model that is accessed at the system level where DES software and a multi-objective Genetic Algorithm (GA) are used to support decision-making activities by identifying potential system configurations that provide optimum scale-up Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). For the optimisation study, two conflicting objectives: scale-up cost and production throughput are considered. The approach is employed in a battery module assembly pilot line that requires structural modifications to meet the surge in the demand of electric vehicle powertrains. The pilot line is located at the Warwick Manufacturing Group, University of Warwick, where the production data is captured to initiate and validate the workstation models. Conclusively, it is ascertained by experts that the approach is found useful to support the selection of suitable system configuration and design with significant savings in time, cost and effort.

Ergonomic Workstation Design for Fish Smoking Workers in the Coastal Area of Surabaya

Introduction: Workstation design should be made adjusting the workers’ anthropometry to not put additionalburden on the worker’s body. Fish smoking workers in the coastal area of Surabaya work sitting on a chairas high as their heels which cause them working with unnatural postures. This study aimed to determineergonomic workstation design for fish smoking workers in the coastal area of Surabaya.Methods: Respondents were the total population consisting of 12 male and 18 female workers. The worker’sbody was measured in a sitting position using a measuring tape. Dimensions measured included the reach ofthe thumb as measured from the back, elbow height when seated, calf height, hip width, buttock-popliteallength, and sitting height. Each dimension was calculated on the 5th and 95th percentiles to determine thesize of the ergonomic workstation.Result: Workstations were made with an adjustable concept. The size of the ergonomic workstation designfor male workers includes table width 71.93-77.57 cm, table height 51.81-55.86 cm, chair height 28.64-32.03 cm, chair width 38.66-41.84 cm, chair length 43.24-50.10 cm, and chairback height 89.21-95.46 cm.In addition, for female workers, the size of the ergonomic workstation design includes table width 60.55-68.00 cm, table height 39.21-43.57 cm, chair height 23.64-27.47 cm, chair width 29.13-34.54 cm, chairlength 35.80-39.87 cm, and chairback height 74.28-79.72 cm.Conclusion: It is necessary to make improvements to workstation of fish smoking workers in the coastalarea of Surabaya, as an attempt to make it ergonomic.

The Modification of Workstation of Lipa Sabbe Weavers as an Effort to Reduce Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs)

Work with more loads and equipment design that is not ergonomic results in the use of more energy and riskywork postures. Working in a sitting position basically can reduce stress on the feet, energy consumption,and circulation requirements. Ergonomic workstation is an example of the application of ergonomics whichaims to create a balance between various aspects of each work system and process carried out as an attemptto create a high quality of work and quality of life, as well as an effort to prevent occupational injuries anddiseases. This study aimed at modifying the workstation to reduce MSDs among lipa sabbe weavers. Thisis a quasi-experimental study with one-group pretest-posttest approach to analyze differences in the levelsof MSDs before and after the intervention through modification of ergonomic workstation designs. Theparticipant selection technique used purposive sampling. The research instruments used were Nordic BodyMap questionnaire, camera, and anthropometric measurement tools. Data were analyzed using WilcoxonSigned-Rank Test. The result showed that there is a difference in the level of complaints after modificationof the work media of lipa sabbe weavers. It indicates that modification of work media can reduce MSDsamong lipa sabbe weavers.

Emergency Physicians' Workstation Design: An Observational Study of Interruptions and Perception of Collaboration During Shift-End Handoffs.

Frequent external interruptions and lack of collaboration among team members are known to be common barriers in end-of-shift handoffs between physicians in the emergency department. In spite of being the primary location for this crucial and cognitively demanding task, workstations are not designed to limit barriers and support handoffs. The purpose of this study is to examine handoff characteristics, actual and perceived interruptions, and perceived collaboration among emergency physicians performing end-of-shift handoffs in physician workstations with varying levels of enclosures-(a) open-plan workstation, (b) enclosed workstation, and (c) semi-open workstation. Handoff and interruption characteristics were captured through in-person observations of 60 handoffs using an iPad-based tool. Additionally, physicians participating in the handoffs responded to a survey pertaining to their perception of interruptions and collaboration with clinicians during each phase. Other organizational and demographic data were obtained from the hospital database, surveys, and observations. Physicians working in the open workstation experienced a significantly higher number of interruptions/hour (18.08 int/hr) as compared to the semi-open (13.62 int/hr) and enclosed workstations (11.41 int/hr). Most physicians perceived that they were interrupted in the semi-open and open workstations. In addition, majority of physicians in the enclosed pod perceived high collaboration with clinicians involved in and present in the workstation during handoff. This correlational study showed positive outcomes experienced by physician working in the enclosed workstation as compared to the open and semi-open workstations.

Comparison of univariate and multivariate anthropometric accommodation of the northwest Mexico population

ABSTRCT Ergonomic workstation design is crucial to prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Many researchers have proposed multivariate analysis for human accommodation. However, no multivariate anthropometric analysis exists for the Mexican population. This study compares common multivariate human accommodation approaches (e.g. principal component and archetypal analyses) and clustering techniques (e.g. k-means and Ward’s algorithm) with the classical percentile-based univariate accommodation approach, using the Chi-squared goodness-of-fit test and the McNemar’s test. The theoretical accommodation percentage obtained by multivariate approaches was higher than those obtained by the percentile univariate approach considering the central 98% data. k-means and archetypal analysis obtained similar and the highest accommodation values, followed by Ward’s algorithm and principal component analysis. The study findings can be deployed to assess the design of workstations in Mexico, such as electronic components assembly and crew designs, and the effects of different anthropometric measurements in human accommodation. Practitioner summary: Products and workplaces design are commonly based on the classical univariate approach, using the extreme percentiles. In this study, multivariate approaches were tested on dimensions for sitting workstations, and results showed a bigger accommodation level in comparison to the univariate 1%–99% approaches. Abbreviations: RHM: representative human model; DHM: digital human model; PCA: principal component analysis; AA: archetypal analysis (AA); PCs: principal components; FA: factor analysis; RSS: residual sum of squares; SSE: sum of squared estimated errors; WA: Ward’s algorithm; DBI: Davies–Bouldin index; CHI: Calinski–Harabaz index; SI: silhouette index; SH: sitting height; EHS: eye height, sitting; AHS: acromial height, sitting; PH: popliteal height; KHS: knee height, sitting; BPL: buttock–popliteal length; BKL: buttock–knee length; FGR: functional grip reach; AD: anthropometric dimension; E: expected; A: achieved

Models for Estimating the Hearing Threshold of Quarry Workers at High Frequencies

It is widely known that quarry industry has great importance in developing countries, such as Nigeria. There is paucity of information regarding effects of noise experienced by quarry workers during their working time. Therefore, this study investigated the influence of age of workers, years of exposure of workers and noise level of the machine used in quarry on hearing threshold. A factorial design of experiment was employed for the investigation. Two hundred and four quarry workers volunteered for this study from four quarries in South western Nigeria. Emitted noise, which quarry workers were exposed to during machinery operation, was measured with a digital sound level meter and workers hearing threshold was measured in an audiogram sound proofing testing booth at standard conditions. Predicted models were established from experimental design to determine main and interactions effects towards the response (hearing threshold). These were statistically analysed using analysis of variance (ANOVA). All terms of the models were significant at p<0.05. The best fitted model was at 4kHz (R2 = 0.639, p<0.05). The magnitudes of the main effect of the factors are in ascending order of noise level >years of exposure>age. The analysis of the experimental response indicated that there is no interaction of any factors on the hearing threshold. It can be concluded that age, years of exposure and noise level have main effects at various capacities at different frequency to predict the hearing threshold of the quarry workers. This work determined the factors and the predicted model to spell out safe hearing threshold of quarry workers that fitted for the job at a particular noisy workstation as well as ensuring comfortable, safe and effective workstation design.

Assessment of musculoskeletal problems among desk job employees of a tertiary care hospital in Goa

Background: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are a leading cause of disability and the most frequent cause of all health-related absence from work. There is lack of information about MSDs among desk job employees.Methods: A cross sectional study, carried out among desk job employees engaged in administrative work at a tertiary care hospital in Goa involved, data collection on MSDs using Standardised Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) and workstation ergonomics assessment using NIH (National Institute of Health) checklist.Results: Among 110 respondents, 50 males and 60 females, majority (42.7%) were from age group 31-40 years. As per the NMQ, one-year prevalence of MSDs was highest in lower back (55.5%), followed by neck (48.2%); and the lowest in ankles (4.5%). Regular postural breaks were not taken by 59 (53.6%) of the total participants, of which 41(37.3%) complained of at least one MSD and the association was statistically significant (p=0.001). On ergonomic assessment, 62 (56.4%) had chairs with poor lower back support, of which 44 (40%) complained of lower backache; 20 (18.2%) were uncomfortable during keyboard use and 18 (16.4%) with desk setup. Of the 40 participants with continuous computer use for 4-5 hours, 27 complained of neck pain and there was a significant association found between continuous computer use and neck pain (p=0.003).Conclusions: Based on the findings, ergonomic training workshops should be conducted, and the workstation design needs to be improved to reduce the burden of work-related MSDs.

Physical Ergonomic Improvement and Safe Design of an Assembly Workstation through Collaborative Robotics

One of the key interesting features of collaborative robotic applications is the potential to lighten the worker workload and potentiate better working conditions. Moreover, developing robotics applications that meets ergonomic criteria is not always a straightforward endeavor. We propose a framework to guide the safe design and conceptualization of ergonomic-driven collaborative robotics workstations. A multi-disciplinary approach involving robotics and ergonomics and human factors shaped this methodology that leads future engineers through the digital transformation of a manual assembly (with repetitive and hazardous operations) to a hybrid workstation, focusing on the physical ergonomic improvement. The framework follows four main steps, (i) the characterization of the initial condition, (ii) the risk assessment, (iii) the definition of requirements for a safe design, and (iv) the conceptualization of the hybrid workstation with all the normative implications it entails. We applied this methodology to a case study in an assembly workstation of a furniture manufacturing company. Results show that the methodology adopted sets an adequate foundation to accelerate the design and development of new human-centered collaborative robotic workstations.

Automated 2D Layout Design of Assembly Line Workstations through Physical Principles

Decreasing product life cycles with increasing product variants force manufacturing companies to adapt their assembly systems to changing conditions. As a result of this, typically manually performed design tasks of assembly workstation layouts often are suboptimal and time extensive. One reason is the identification of complex interactions between resources. This paper presents an approach to support manufacturing engineers in applying physically based modeling techniques to the design process. The model describes relationships between different resources with physical principles. Resources with more impact on the layout are able to obtain their optimum location and influence the locations of other resources.

Design of a workstation based on a human-interfacing robot for occupational health and safety.

Robots communicate with the physical world program with the mechanic's simulations. They recommend that people-to-people robotics will prepare for cognitive models. Presently, there is a considerable concern for greater flexibility and efficiency in the scope of human-robot interfacing collaboration across hospitals. Nevertheless, interfacing is still in its infancy in manufacturing; industrial practitioners have many questions and doubts about the efficiency of the device and the health of human operators. Therefore, research on processes and methods of design is required to ensure that the intended human-computer interaction-based workstations effectively meet system performance, human safety, and ergonomics standards for realistic applications. This study provides a design process for a workstation appropriate for occupational health and safety. This article outlines the perspectives learned from incorporation into the preparation and operation of robotics of digital cognitive models. This ends with an overarching game-theoretical model of contact and analyses how different approaches contribute to effective communicating activities for the robot in its interaction with people. The new feature of this design process is the approach for testing alternative workstation designs, taking into account efficiency and safety features with computer simulations.

Workstation Design Based on the 5S Principles to Reduce Potential Hazards of Smoked Fish Working Environments

Workstation Design Based on the 5S Principles to Reduce Potential Hazards of Smoked Fish Working Environments

Ergonomic evaluation of the risk factors causing pain in the upper part of the body among IT professionals in India.

In developing countries, the recent increase in computer-related work has considerably increased the occupational complaint of pain. To examine the effects of workstation design, posture and ergonomic awareness on the prevalence of pain for a year in the upper part of the body (eyes, hands, arms, shoulders, lower back, and upper back) among IT professionals in India. To investigate the association of risk factors with the prevalence of pain in different body parts, a newly designed online questionnaire titled "A Questionnaire based on ergonomics for IT Professionals" was developed. The psychometric properties of this questionnaire were tested. 110 computer office workers were recruited from IT companies from major cities in India. The confirmation of reliability and lack of redundancy of items was provided by the calculation of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha 0.804) and cross-validation. 60% of participants was male. Mean age was 29.73±6.09 years. The prevalence of pain for a year in the upper part of the body was 38.2%. The frequently reported pains were in the neck (22.7%), lower back area (22.7%), and eye strain (21.8%). It was identified that long working hours, excessive usage of smartphones, lack of exercise, incorrect workstation adjustments, and incorrect posture were the risk factors for the prevalence of pain.

Determinants of Computer Ergonomic Hazards among Office Workers in Klang Valley, Malaysia

Extent of computer usage in public and private sectors had been greatly increased in recent decades carrying the risk of several health hazards. Due to the impact of computer ergonomic hazards on office workers, this study is conducted to evaluate the awareness and determinants of computer ergonomic hazards among office workers in Klang Valley. A total of 340 office workers from 4 district areas were selected using online survey. Independent sample t-test and standard multiple regression was used to analyse the data. The finding of this study reveals that the respondents possess a high level of awareness of computer ergonomics hazards especially the long hours of computer usage can affect their health conditions. Consistent with the Activity Theory, this study suggests that the design of workstation has an impact on computer ergonomic hazards. This study gives the office management as well as policy-makers the opportunity to take necessary steps such as arranging training and development programmes, prepare guidelines on the awareness of computer ergonomic hazards, and redesign the workstation’s furniture and setup following worldwide prominent ergonomic standard and guidelines.

Redesign of computer workstation using ergonomics

Today’s world is mostly occupied on computers, for which the workstation must be more comfortable to the operators. The objective of this paper is to develop a new design of a computer workstation (upright position) for preventing health risks associated with conventional workstations. The redesigned workstation incorporating ergonomics enhances the motivation, performance and productivity of the operator without affecting health. The vital requirements of computer workstation specified in various literature as per the standards for providing comfort to users is briefly presented. In addition, the product must be manufactured at less cost. To accomplish this design for manufacture and assembly (DFMA) principles are employed. Finally, the integrity of the redesigned workstation is analysed using simulation software.