Office Work Environment Research Articles

A Comparative Machine Learning Study on IT Sector Edge Nearer to Working From Home (WFH) Contract Category for Improving Productivity

Many private companies in India offered working from home (WFH) for employees due to COVID’19 lockdown. The WFH has both merits and demerits for the employees as well as employer when it compared within office working environment. Many research works is showing many opinions about increases or decreases of productivity in the real time for any industries. This works talks about WFH impression is leads to edge nearer for the efficient productivity to any employer. In addition, the research article is providing survey of the benefits and demerits of WFH in India. In the view of the higher capacity, ultra very low level inactivity for better security is in the internetwork domain, there are lots of benefits in telework, and internet based work. The predicting development is done by Random Forest, Decision Tree, and Naïve Bayes for future with the help of three datasets. The datasets has taken from three types of general public such as city, town, and village for this research analysis. This research article is weighing up the rate of changes of productivity from the employees. Finally, this research work compares the learning method analysis includes prediction of rate of change of productivity from employees at city region. This prediction is computed by ML algorithm. Based on this prediction employers can improve and plan for their production and control the system in a better way.

Movement at work: A comparison of real time location system, accelerometer and observational data from an office work environment

Office workers can spend significant periods of time being stationary whilst at work, with potentially serious health consequences. The development of effective health interventions could be aided by a greater understanding of the location and environmental context in which this stationary behaviour occurs. Real time location systems (RTLS) potentially offer the opportunity to gather this much needed information, but they have not been extensively trialled in office workplaces, nor rigorously compared against more familiar devices such as accelerometers. The aim of this paper was to determine whether an RTLS can measure and spatially locate the non-stationary and stationary behaviours of adults working in an office work environment. Data collected from a series of comparison studies undertaken in a commercial office building suggests that RTLS can measure the velocity at which people are moving and locate them, when stationary, with an accuracy of 0.668 m (SD 0.389). This opens up significant opportunities to further understand how people move within buildings, the indoor physical environmental influences on that movement, and the development of effective interventions to help people to move more whilst at work.

Virtual critical care nursing

In Brief Tele-ICU nurses provide proactive, holistic care for critically-ill patients virtually over a camera. Although tele-ICU nurses can find the role particularly rewarding, they may also encounter challenges adjusting to this remote position. Tele-ICU nurses must adapt to an office work environment that redefines their place on the healthcare team from bedside leader to a more supportive role. This article relates the experiences of tele-ICU nurses in Atrium Health's virtual critical care center and explores how tele-ICU nurses can adapt, continue to learn, and support their patients and bedside colleagues. Tele-ICU nurses provide proactive, holistic care for critically-ill patients virtually over a camera. Tele-ICU nurses must adapt to an office work environment that redefines their place on the healthcare team from bedside leader to a more supportive role. This article relates the experiences of tele-ICU nurses in Atrium Health's virtual critical care center and explores how tele-ICU nurses can adapt, continue to learn, and support their patients and bedside colleagues.

EVALUASI KONDISI LINGKUNGAN KERJA TERHADAP KINERJA KARYAWAN PABRIK PENGOLAHAN KELAPA SAWIT PT. SENTOSA KALIMANTAN JAYA

The purpose of this study was to determine the working environment conditions for employees and to identify employees in oil palm processing factories. This research uses data analysis techniques by measuring directly in the field, observation and questionnaires and literature studies. Then the analysis used descriptive statistical methods using the data and information obtained. The results showed that of the 7 parameters of the work environment that were measured, there were 4 parameters, namely: ceiling height, ventilation holes and light intensity that met environmental quality standards and there were 3 environmental parameters, namely: temperature, dust and permits that did not meet environmental quality standards. According to the Decree of the Minister of Health of the Republic of Indonesia Number 1405 / MENKES / SK / XI / 2002 concerning health requirements for office and industrial work environments. However, this condition is still feasible because it is proven that it can still support employee performance and that employees can work based on optimal parameters. Category of respondents, namely the age factor that dominates, is the age of 20-30 years which is included in the productive age in terms of work, the average education is SMK and SLTA, most of the employees are also experienced enough 3-4 years, this is very supportive of employees to be able to carry out and be responsible for each area in the factory. Employee performance appraisal at the Likert scale calculation factory is good with a value of 71% and can be seen from the production quantity of 900 tonnes / day, the quality of CPO according to standards, namely FFA 2-3 and OER 22%, timeliness of working time to produce 20 hours and experienced employees 95%. The implementation of work is sufficient in accordance with standard operating procedures (SOPs) established by management

The Effects of High Molecular Weight Hyaluronic Acid Eye Drop Application in Environmental Dry Eye Stress Model Mice.

Hyaluronic acid (HA) ophthalmic solution is widely used in dry eye treatment worldwide. However, there are no reports comparing the dry eye treatment effects of high molecular weight HA with low molecular weight HA. Sixty eight-week-old C57BL/6 mice were assigned to the following 6 groups and exposed to environmental dry eye stress (EDES) that mimics office work environment: (1) 0.1% low molecular weight HA (LMWHA) eye drops, (2) 0.3% LMWHA eye drops, (3) 3% diquafosol sodium (DQ) eye drops, (4) 0.15% high molecular weight HA (HMWHA) eye drops, (5) no treatment with exposure to EDES (EDES+/Treatment−), and (6) no treatment without exposure to EDES (EDES−/Treatment−). After EDES, the HMWHA group had significantly longer break-up time (BUT) than the 0.1%, 0.3% LMWHA groups and the DQ group. After EDES, the HMWHA group had significantly lower lissamine green staining scores than the LMWHA and DQ groups. Subepithelial presumed dendritic cell density in the HMWHA group was significantly lower than the EDES+/Treatment− group. After EDES exposure, Conjunctival Muc5AC mRNA expression in the HMWHA group was significantly higher than the 0.1 and 0.3% LMWHA groups. Ophthalmic HMWHA solution may have a better dry eye treatment effect than LMWHA or DQ solution, owing to its anti-inflammatory effect.

Are Measures of Postural Behavior Using Motion Sensors in Seated Office Workers Reliable?

In this study, the reliability of measures of upper body postural behavior (head, thorax, neck, and arm) during sustained office work was evaluated. Although there has been a substantial body of research examining the technical aspects of posture measurement in office workers using motion sensors, there is a paucity of literature examining whether posture-related behaviors are actually consistent among office workers in the field on different days and times. Thirty one office workers performed their usual work for three, 1-hr sessions (two morning sessions and one afternoon session) while wearing wireless motion sensors. Reliability coefficients of the derived measures of postural behavior were calculated. Most (30/31) of the postural behavior measures demonstrated modest to excellent reliability (ICC 2.1: 0.48-0.84). Reliability appeared to be mildly affected by factors such as the time of day recordings were taken and variations in desk setups. The findings suggest these measures may be a reliable method for evaluating postural behavior in the office work environment in future studies. Postural measurement using a technical motion sensor described an acceptable reliability to be used for risk assessment in the workplace. Consideration of assessment time and desk setting would increase the accuracy of postural measurement.

The Need for Integrated Cybersecurity and Safety Training

Companies involved in the nuclear energy domain, like component and platform manufacturers, system integrators, and utilities, have well-established yearly trainings on Nuclear Safety Culture. These trainings are typically covered as part of the annual quality assurance-related refresher trainings, introductory courses for new employees, or indoctrinations of temporary staff. Gradually, security awareness trainings are also addressed on a regular basis, typically with a focus on information technology, the daily office work, test bay, or construction site work environment, and some data protection and privacy-related topics. Due to emerging national nuclear regulation, steadily but surely, specialized cybersecurity trainings are foreseen for integrators and utilities. Beyond these safety, physical security and cybersecurity specific trainings, there is a need to address the joint part of these disciplines, starting from the planning phase of a new nuclear power plant (NPP). The engineers working on safety, physical protection, and cybersecurity must be aware of these interrelations to jointly elaborate a robust instrumentation and control architecture (defense-in-depth, design basis events, functional categorization and systems classification) and a resilient security architecture (security by design, security grading, zone model or infrastructure domain, security conduits, forensic readiness, security information, and event management). This paper provides more in-depth justification of when and where additional training is needed, due to the ubiquitous deployment of digital technology in new NPPs. Additionally, for existing NPPs, the benefits of conveying knowledge by training on specific interfaces between the involved disciplines will be discussed. Furthermore, the paper will address the need of focused training of management stakeholders, as eventually, they must agree on the residual risk. The decision-makers are in charge of facilitating the interdisciplinary cooperation in parallel to the allocation of resources, e.g., on security certifications of products, extended modeling-based safety and security analyses and security testing coverage.

Occupational physical activity in brewery and office workers

Active lifestyles are beneficial to health and well-being but our workplaces may not be inherently supportive of physical activity at work. With the increasing use of technology in the workplace, many jobs are becoming more sedentary. The purpose of this study was to characterize levels of occupational physical activity (OPA) among active and sedentary workers. Two types of activity trackers (Fitbit Charge HR and Hexoskin) were used to assess activity measures (steps, heart rate, and energy expenditure) among workers during one full work shift. The first objective of the study was to assess the agreement between two types of accelerometer-based activity trackers as measures of occupational physical activity. The second objective of this study was to assess differences in measures of OPA among workers in generally physically active (brewery) and sedentary (office) work environments. Occupational physical activity data were collected from 50 workers in beer-brewing tasks and 51 workers in office work tasks. The 101 subjects were from the brewing service sector, a call center, and an engineering office within a manufacturing facility. A two-factor repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to assess the two activity tracking devices while two-sample t-tests were used to compare the two worker groups. There were statistically significant differences in total steps and mean heart rate between the two devices. When comparing the two groups of workers there were statistically significant differences in measures of steps, mean heart rate, and energy expenditure. The results of the present study provide quantitative evidence that levels of OPA should be identified for different work groups.

Personal cooling strategies to improve thermal comfort in warm indoor environments: Comparison of a conventional desk fan and air ventilation clothing

The study examined and compared the performance of two personalized cooling strategies (conventional desk fan [DF] and air ventilation clothing [VC]) in three warm indoor environments. Two cooling methods were selected so that the effect of different local body parts cooling can be analysed on overall thermal comfort of female participants. Three warm indoor conditions (28.0, 30.0 and 32.0 °C; 50% RH) were selected with an aim to determine maximum possible air temperature which can be maintained indoors without compromising with thermal comfort of inhabitants. Results showed that performance of both the two cooling methods are similar in terms of perceptual responses and mean skin temperatures at all three air temperatures. Mean torso temperatures in VC were significantly lower than those in DF at three studied indoor temperatures. It was concluded that the effect of torso cooling on overall sensations was equivalent to combined forehead-hand cooling for the studied indoor conditions. VC is recommended for indoor and normal office work environments with air temperatures up to 32.0 °C because it can save significant cooling energy as compared to conventional desk fans.

Pilot Project

Health programs incorporating physical activity components in office space work environments are encouraged to reduce sedentary/sitting down time that has recently been shown to be detrimental to employee health. PURPOSE: The aim of this pilot project is to compare energy expenditure of three methods to play dance active video games to reduce employee sedentary time and explore the possibilities and limitations to using this video game type as part of an employee based health program. METHODS: A total of 8 desk based worker participants (men, 26 ± 5 years) were recruited to perform 3 types of active video game dances using original instructions and a modification to allow individuals with limitations to play. The 3 dances were Party Rock Anthem, Land of 1000 Dances, and No limit (JustDance, Ubisoft, Montreal). The modifications were to play with a motion capture device (Kinect, Microsoft, USA), with a controller device (PSMove, Sony, Jp), and with a controller device in a sitting position (PSMove, Sony, Jp). The energy expenditure was measured by oxygen uptake using a portable metabolic analyser (K4b2, Cosmed, It) and the heart rate by a heart rate monitor (v800, Polar, Fi). RESULTS: The group average METS with Kinect vs PS vs sitting position during the Party Rock Anthem was 6.3±0.8, 5.5±1.2, and 3.0±0.8 METS (p<0.001). The group average METS on Kinect vs PS vs sitting position during Land of 1000 Dances was 7.4±1.6, 6.1±1.4, and 3.6±1.4 METS (p<0.001). Finally, the group average METS on Kinect vs PS vs sitting position during No limit was 6.8±1.3, 5.8±1.3, and 3.5 ± 1.1 METS (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Knowing that now these games are available using only a cell phone as a controller and a simple computer with internet, it seems feasible to use these video games to reach the minimum ACSM guidelines in a health program for an office company, even when modified for physically limited employees. However, a significant difference between the different types of play and individual needs must be considered in a workplace health program. Furthermore, additional research needs to be done to measure the impact of implementing physical active work breaks on personnel fitness changes and retention.

Identifying opportunities for wearable technology for product development and market positioning

Wearable technology is all set to revolutionalise the human society. This research study provides an overview of the wearable technology and explores its applicability and usefulness in the Indian context as most of the studies are carried out in foreign countries. This research will fill the knowledge gaps for companies working on wearable technology thereby reducing the market and technology uncertainty in the initial stages of new product development process. A Stage-Gate process was adopted as the research methodology which involves both secondary and primary data analyses. Primary data was collected through a questionnaire survey conducted among 184 employees belonging to 40 companies in Bangalore. The results show that solutions like employee safety systems and smart-eyeglasses are very much beneficial across both office and industrial plant work environments. Moreover, they are also interested in features like health and activity monitoring.

Daylighting, health and sleep quality in the office work environment

Daylighting, health and sleep quality in the office work environment

Hydration Potential of Commonly Consumed Drinks in an Office-Working Environment

Several factors are known to influence the hydration potential of drinks such as: volume ingested, ingestion rate, macronutrient composition, water content, electrolyte and caffeine content. However, relatively little is known about the impact of fluid composition on fluid balance during normal daily living/office working situations. PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of 4 different commonly consumed drinks on urine output and net fluid balance over 3 hours in office-workers. METHODS: Twenty-three participants (euhydrated, males (n=7) and females (n=16), age: mean(SD) males 31.3(10.4) y; females 33.1(9.8) y, BMI: males 29.9(4.4); females 27.4 (3.7), arrived at work in a euhydrated state. After emptying their bladder and recording body mass they ingested 1 L of fluid over the following hour as either water, coffee, orange juice or semi-skimmed milk. Energy content of the drinks was 0 kcals/L (water), 4 kcals/L (coffee), 470 kcals/L (orange juice) and 500 kcals/L (milk). Urine output was collected immediately, and each hour for 2 hours, following fluid ingestion for volume and electrolyte analysis. On completion a final body mass was obtained. RESULTS: Mean(SD) total urine mass loss over 2 hours for still water was 1007(108) g and was significantly different to milk 797(181) g (P<0.05). Urine losses with orange juice (953(246) g) and coffee (1067(164) g) were not different to water, but coffee was also different to milk (p<0.05). Net fluid balance was positive at 2 h after milk ingestion (+203(181) ml) and was significantly different (p<0.05) from water (-7(108) ml) and coffee (-67(164) ml) but not different from orange juice (+48(246) ml). Net Na+ balance was significantly different from water (-495(207) mg) after ingestion of orange juice (-973(298) mg) and milk (-295(253) mg). Net K+ balance was significantly different from water (-315(64) mg), after ingestion of orange juice (+576(171) mg) and milk (+901(118) mg). CONCLUSIONS: A variety of drinks can be ingested during normal daily living/working to help maintain fluid balance. Ingestion of milk led to a reduced urine output compared with the other drinks, most likely due to its electrolyte content and casein protein content. The retention of fluid volume following milk ingestion may be important in situations where frequent work breaks need to be avoided.

Office Environment and Musculoskeletal Complaints of Office Workers

Objective: This study aims to investigate the correlation between office and work environment satisfaction levels and musculoskeletal symptoms by conducting surveys asking office workers to state their musculoskeletal symptoms and office and work environment satisfaction levels. Background: The increased number of office workers and their indoor work hours using computers have led to new understandings of the importance of office environment including its temperature, humidity, noise levels, lighting and quality of air, and work environment including monitor arrangement, space arrangement and the functions of desks and chairs. Method: Specific details on office work, office environment satisfaction levels, work environment satisfaction levels, musculoskeletal symptoms, absence from work and treatment due to musculoskeletal related symptoms were analyzed based on the survey answers given by 397 office workers who were the subjects of this research. Results: Office workers showed different characteristics of musculoskeletal symptoms depending on their gender, age, work experience, office hours, break time and time spent on computers. Also, differences in symptoms were found for workers’with different satisfaction levels for office environment (temperature, humidity, noise levels, quality of air, lighting) and work environment (location of monitors, area and display of office space, chairs and desks). ANOVA shows the differences between groups of subjects classified by the experience of work-absences and treatments or pain complaints. Conclusion and Application: Relationship between satisfaction levels with the office and work environment and their musculoskeletal symptoms is expected to be served as essential data for systematic management of the workplace.

Evaluation of the musculoskeletal system symptoms among office workers and assessment of the risk factors in the office work environment

Evaluation of the musculoskeletal system symptoms among office workers and assessment of the risk factors in the office work environment

Development of Evaluation Checklist for Personal Office Furniture and Apparatus and Fact-Finding Survey

Objective:The objective of this research is to develop evaluation checklist for personal office furniture and apparatus to shape comfortable and efficient worksite for welfare improvement, productivity enhancement and labor force preservation, and to identify office work environment by applying the checklist. Background: Because most office workers work using computers in a sitting posture, the ratio of office workers among total musculoskeletal disorders patients is forecast to increase. In this regard, an effort to prevent and manage such musculoskeletal disorders is required. Method: This research developed evaluation checklist for personal office furniture and apparatus by examining 25 domestic and international ergonomic literature and anthropometric data. This research carried out a fact-finding survey targeting the A Office and B Office of one public agency using the checklist. Results: Although, the checklist items on desks, chairs, computers and other goods conformed to the checklist standards, the following items did not conformed: desk height adjustment, seat board depth adjustment, lumbar support depth, foot rest, wrist rest, mouse tray, headset, speaker phone and Bluetooth. Conclusion: The evaluation checklist for personal office furniture and apparatus and fact-finding survey results are considered to be used as basic data for office work environment and welfare improvement. Application: The information drawn from this research can be helpful to manufacturers design and manufacture of ergonomic furniture and apparatus.

Ergonomic Problems and Their Improving Measures in Office Environment of General Hospitals

Objective: The purposes of this study are to investigate ergonomic problems and to propose their improving measures in office environment of big general hospitals.BR Background: Office tasks have varying risk factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs). The first symptom resulted from the office work was recognized as an occupational disease in Korea in 1986. Although the symptoms have increased since its first recognition, there has been few study on the effect of office work environment settings.BR Method: First, the author took pictures of working scenes performed in three big university hospitals. Next, the pictures were analyzed in view point of ergonomics. Based on the analysis, their improving measures were proposed for reducing work stress.BR Results: The results showed that most physical office environment settings such as dimensions of tables/desks and chairs, leg room, thigh, knee and foot clearances, and chairs used did not satisfy the ergonomically recommended design guidelines. In addition, some clerks placed personal belongings under their desks, put monitors in high position and did not lean against the backrest of chairs in seated tasks, which resulted in poor working postures of leg, back, neck etc. It is recommended that the hospital management should provide their clerks with ergonomically designed office furniture and continuously perform ergonomics training program for raising clerks’ recognition for office ergonomics.BR Conclusion: Most office environment settings investigated in this study were not in good condition in view point of ergonomic design for the settings.BR Application: It would be useful as basic data for establishing ergonomically good office environment in hospitals.

How do people attempt to integrate the management of their paper and electronic documents?

Purpose – This article aims to describe how people manage to integrate their use of paper and electronic documents in modern office work environments. Design/methodology/approach – An observational interview type study of 14 participants from 11 offices in eight organizations was conducted. Recorded data were analysed using a thematic analysis method. This involved reading and annotation of interview transcripts, categorizing, linking and connecting, corroborating, and producing an account of the study. Findings – The findings of the study can be categorized into four groups: the roles paper and electronic documents serve in today's offices, the ways in which these documents are managed, the problems associated with their management, and the types of fragmentation that exist in terms of their management and how these are dealt with. Practical implications – The study has identified the need for better integrated management of paper and electronic documents in present-day offices. The findings of the study have then been used to propose a set of guidelines for the development of integrated paper and electronic document management systems. Originality/value – Although similar studies of offices have been conducted in the past, almost all of these studies are prior to the widespread use of mobile and network-based shared technologies in office environments. Furthermore, previous studies have generally failed to identify and propose guidelines for integration of paper and electronic document management systems.

An integrated approach for designing office chair with ergonomic consideration

Ergonomic consideration for designing an industrial or office work environment, taking into account both psychological and physical needs of employees, helps to enhance employee’s efficiency and productivity. It is essential to find optimum parameters that determine the design of a product, which possesses the characteristics not only to appeal to the users but also reduce fatigue and injury during use. Since most of the psychological needs of customers are difficult to express quantitatively, an integrated approach using statistical and artificial intelligence techniques has been proposed in this article to effectively handle subjective characteristics during the design phase. The approach has been demonstrated by using the design of an office chair. The design parameters have been compared with dimensions outlined in Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).

The Potential Pitfall in Telework: Control and Deskilling Issues for Work Done at Home

An exploratory study of ten teleworkers revealed that while teleworkers choose this work option to improve their quality of life as workers and family members, they may not actually exercise much control over work processes. Familial obligations, interruptions, potentially problematic work environments, work routines of others, and isolation from coworkers in the traditional office work environment. . .