Workplace Layout Research Articles

Analisis Kompensasi dan Lingkungan Kerja dalam Meningkatkan Loyalitas di PT. Citra Nusantara Catering

This research aims to analyze the role of compensation and work environment in increasing employee loyalty at PT. Citra Nusantara Catering. Qualitative descriptive methods with triangulation interviews and observation techniques were used to explore compensation conditions, work environment, and employee loyalty levels. The results of the research showed that the compensation provided by the company was below standard, with employee salary data indicating the need for adjustments to achieve higher compensation levels. adequate. The work environment also requires improvement, as indicated by workplace layout data. It is recommended to improve lighting, air circulation and layout arrangements to improve employee welfare and productivity. Employee attendance data is an additional factor that needs to be taken into account when analyzing loyalty levels. Research shows a correlation between compensation conditions, work environment, and employee absenteeism levels. With the results of this research, recommendations for reviewing compensation policies include salary adjustments, increasing incentives, and providing more comprehensive benefits. On the work environment side, improvements to lighting, air circulation and workplace layout are proposed to improve employee welfare and productivity. By implementing these steps, it is hoped that the company can increase employee loyalty, having a positive impact on overall company performance.

Ergonomic Practice in Medical Laboratory Workers in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Lahore

Objective: To evaluate the ergonomics practice pattern among medical laboratory professionals to determine the ergonomic deficiencies to improve the workplace quality and safety at a tertiary care hospital in Lahore Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in department of pathology, King Edward Medical University/Mayo Hospital, Lahore from November 2019 to January 2020. All the workers engaged in all the sections of the clinical laboratory were included in the study. The results were collected using a self-administered questionnaire, which included demographic information, ergonomic practices, workplace layouts and equipment utilization pattern. Individuals were instructed to complete the questionnaires in accordance to their own specific time range and return it after filling. All the data was gathered from the surveys and then coded and securely stored in a database for further analysis and interpretation. Results: Average age of the participants was 26.80±5.70 years. Several participants reported appropriate bench heights (70.7%) and tools within arm’s reach (62.2%), deficiencies were noted in foot and knee clearance, with only 50.0% and 53.7% respectively. Limited provision of foot rails (11.0%) and floor mats (31.7%) for prolonged standing tasks was seen. Seated benches showed similar disparities, with notable deficiencies in adjustable armrests (32.9%) and footrests (29.3%). Microscope usage demonstrated challenges in maintaining neutral posture (65.1%), while pipette use and micro-manipulation tools highlighted the need for improved accessibility and ergonomic support. Conclusion: Study revealed the varying levels of ergonomic appropriateness across the workplace and equipment among medical laboratory workers, with significant inadequacies in foot and knee clearance, the presence of foot rails, floor mats, adjustable armrests, and foot rests. Difficulties in using a microscope, as well as concerns about pipettes and micro-manipulation equipment, underscored the need for improved accessibility and ergonomics.

Factors Influencing Unsafe Behavior in Somber Small Industry Centers (SIKS) Using Logistic Regression Analysis

Tofu is a characteristic of Indonesian food, so it is not uncommon if this tofu food is found in Balikpapan City. Tofu is commonly produced in small and medium scale industries that are commonly found in the city of Balikpapan. The technology used in the tofu production process is still very simple, still uses human labor, and the process is less than optimal. The tofu production process begins with the washing, grinding, and pressing processes carried out by humans. This study aims to analyze the influence of the work environment and worker identity on Behavior Based Safety in the SIS tofu making industry. The population in this study is workers in SIKS somber totaling 32 workers from 14 home tofu production sites as for how to collect samples by direct observation and interviews with workers (response variables), namely unsafe behavior in the form of not wearing proper clothes while working (Y), and independent variables (predictors), namely a safe workplace environment (x1), Air Ventilation Conditions (X2) , Layout Conditions (X3), Working Duration (X4) Denoted 1 if > have worked for 3 months and 0 if < 3 months, worker status (X5), use of PPE in the form of boots (x6), educational status (x7) This study uses binary logistic regression analysis ?(x), where the workplace environment and workplace layout have the opportunity to have a significant influence on the unsafe behavior of workers (not wearing proper clothing) production workers know SIKS Somber.

Improving Economic Efficiency and Occupational Safety in Production Facilities Using the 5S-Kaizen Method

This manuscript explores the integration of the 5S-Kaizen method as a strategic approach to improve economic efficiency and occupational safety in production facilities. Economic efficiency in manufacturing involves optimizing resources, enhancing productivity, and managing costs, while occupational safety is vital for employee well-being and sustainable business growth. In Vietnam, where companies face challenges related to high production costs and unsafe working environments, the 5S-Kaizen method is implemented to eliminate waste, reduce costs, and create safer workplaces. This method promotes process enhancements, system improvements, and workplace layout modifications, resulting in cost savings, improved labor efficiency, and reduced occupational accidents and illnesses. The manuscript details the 5S methodology, Kaizen principles, their advantages and disadvantages, and the benefits of combining them. It emphasizes the need for leadership support, employee involvement, and continuous improvement for successful implementation. Ultimately, the integration of 5S and Kaizen fosters a culture of continuous improvement and sustainability, positively impacting economic efficiency and occupational safety.

Safe workplace layout design by joint analysis of workers and material flows

Safe workplace layout design by joint analysis of workers and material flows

The Effect of Environmental and Ergonomic Stimuli of the Work Environment on Employees’ Behavior by the Mediating Role of General Health

Objectives: Considering the importance of employees' behavior in service organizations and its significant impact on their success and failure, the present study investigates the environmental and ergonomic factors affecting the mental health and behavior of employees in one of the branches of Islamic Azad University.
 Methods: The present study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-correlational in terms of data gathering and analysis. The statistical population of the study includes: 315 employees of Rasht Branch of Azad University, out of them 196 people were selected by random sampling method and the necessary data were collected using a questionnaire. Structural equation modeling and SMART PLS3 software were used to test the hypotheses.
 Results: According to the findings, workplace layout affects on use of work equipment (0.389), use of office chair (0.252) and environmental conditions (0.538), but the effect of workplace layout on the posture of employees was not confirmed in 5 percent significance level. Also, the effect of posture (0.586), layout (0.440), work equipment (0.458), office chair (0.345) and environmental conditions (0.550) on public health and also the effect of general health (0.690) and environmental conditions (0.158) on employees’ behavior is significant. Examining the indirect relationships of the research model also shows that workplace layout affects employee behavior through the general health and environmental conditions. Workplace layout influences employees’ behavior through work equipment, office chair, environment conditions and general health.
 Conclusion: The indirect effect of workplace layout on employees’ behavior through public health has the highest impact (0.304), therefore, making policies for the general health, can improve employees’ behavior.

Surface Electromyography in the Field of Human Factors and Ergonomic Muscle Fatigue: A Narrative Review

Recently Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WMSD) and Fatigue are taking on an important role especially in the progressive increase and tightening of the human-machine interface. Many ergonomists are currently using surface electromyographic (sEMG) signals techniques to investigate and assess muscle fatigue. Therefore, this paper provides a narrative review of current research on sEMG techniques in the field of human factors and ergonomic muscle fatigue.Evaluate and summarize studies related to the use of sEMG in human factors and ergonomics to probe muscle fatigue.Selected articles included publications in journals, books, and conference proceedings between 2012 and 2022 and assessed muscle activity in research using surface EMG techniques, intervention studies in real human subjects, quantitative research methods and evaluation tools, and authoritative study design.The final review included 32 articles and found that surface EMG studies in the field of human factors and ergonomic muscle fatigue mainly included risk assessment of work-related musculoskeletal disorders, workplace layout design assessment, usability assessment, and exoskeleton optimization assessment. Moreover, the current EMG experiments have significant variability in ideal and realistic conditions, and the lack of standardization of data and methods, which limits the development and application of EMG signals in human factors and ergonomic studies.The findings of this study can help ergonomists to understand the current research progress of sEMG techniques in this field in order to better select suitable, reliable, and accurate methods for human factors and ergonomic muscle fatigue assessment.

Studying the Role of Workplaces Layout on Employees Health: Sick Building Syndrome

Background and Objectives: Workplace architecture is one of the most important factors influencing employees' health and wellbeing. Therefore, it is necessary to study the role of workplace design on the emergence of various types of health problems among employees. The present research aims to study the prevailing conditions at the case studied workplaces and to identify the role of factors influenced by interior layout (location-ergonomics, lighting, indoor air quality (IAQ), temperature, noise, design style, and cleaning) on the emergence of Sick Building Syndrome among employees.
 Methods: In the present study, three administration buildings (roads and urban development office, construction engineering organization, and airport) in Urmia, Tabriz are investigated as case studies and a total of 226 employees working in these buildings are selected as samples. Then, they are asked to fill out a questionnaire to collect the required data. The reliability of the questionnaire is confirmed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient.
 Results: The findings indicate that despite the advantages of open plan layout for the organization of work environments, it still has many negative consequences such as too much noise and distraction, lack of ergonomics, congestion, reduced privacy, and the lack of personal control of environmental conditions. In general, it is not considered an efficient layout design for the workplace.
 Conclusion: The results indicate that to effectively deal with the emergence of sick building syndrome and provide a healthy work environment, it is necessary to establish a balance between various parts in the workplace layout design including private office space, shared workplace, and/or open plan according to the nature and type of work while taking into account the factors and parameters influenced by the layout design and environmental properties.

A New Model for Determining Factors Affecting Human Errors in Manual Assembly Processes Using Fuzzy Delphi and DEMATEL Methods

Human errors (HEs) are common problems in manual assembly processes, impacting product quality and resulting in additional costs. Based on expert judgments, this study aims to identify the most significant factors affecting HEs in manual assembly processes and explore the cause-and-effect relationships among those factors. In order to achieve this objective, a proposed model is constructed using two types of Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) techniques. Firstly, using two rounds of the fuzzy Delphi method (FDM), twenty-seven factors with an influence score of 0.7 or higher were found to have a major impact on HEs during manual assembly processes, with at least a 75% consensus among experts. After that, the twenty-seven factors affecting HEs were given to experts in a third round to analyze the cause-and-effect relationships among those factors using the fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method. In MCDM techniques, symmetry refers to an important property that can be used to find relationships between variables. It is based on the principle that the relative importance or preference between two variables should remain the same regardless of their positions or roles. Therefore, symmetry is a factor that MCDM approaches take into account to ensure that the relationships between variables are accurately represented, leading to more reliable decision-making outcomes. The reliability and normality of the surveying data were examined using the SPSS 22.0 software program. The study results revealed that training level, poor workplace layout, a lack of necessary tools, and experience were the major factors affecting HEs as root causes. Moreover, a failure to address the error-causing problem, unintentional unsafe acts, fatigue, and poor error visual perception were found to be effect (dependent) factors. The findings of this study can help organizations make better-informed decisions on how to reduce worker errors and interest in the factors that contribute to assembly errors and provide a good basis for reaching the quality of final assembled parts.

Proposed Post-Pandemic Design Guidelines for Design Districts

This paper delves into bridging the gap between theory and implementation in the context of post-pandemic workplace design. It examines challenges and solutions in translating theoretical principles into practical architectural applications. The global impact of COVID-19 has underscored the need to address workplace design to mitigate virus transmission risks and create safer environments. Workplaces, due to their high occupancy, can facilitate virus spread, prompting international health organizations to release pandemic-related standards. These standards have influenced the redesign of internal workspaces, necessitating adaptation to new safety measures. This study explores post-pandemic design principles for workplace layouts and their significance for architectural firms striving to provide safer workplaces while adhering to new guidelines. It offers an overview of workplace safety measures in the Design District, a unique creative hub in Egypt. This district showcases innovative design features aligned with the pandemic-induced changes, encompassing offices, showrooms, exhibits, entertainment spaces, serviced apartments, and various amenities. The study underscores the incorporation of key criteria like accessibility, transportation, safety, population density, surroundings, views, air quality, noise, and technology. Additionally, it emphasizes the expansion of space dimensions, circulation, indoor/outdoor connections, technology integration, and biophilic elements due to infection concerns. The objective is to create a healthy, safe, and adaptable environment. To achieve this, the research employs a mixed-methods approach involving a literature review, questionnaires, interviews with industry experts, case studies, and data analysis. This multifaceted approach aims to comprehensively understand modified design guidelines and their implications post-pandemic. The paper’s outcome will provide enhanced design solutions, offering a detailed comparative analysis between pre- and post-pandemic spaces. Such an analysis is crucial to elevating operational efficiency and development in projects like the Design District. The ultimate goal is to create spaces that are resilient and optimized for evolving challenges.

The Effect of Work Environment on Employee Productivity: A Case Study of Manufacturing Company

The work environment plays an important role in employee productivity. Due to the work environment is a set of relationships that exist between employees and the environment where they work. In addition, we can see that most of the common problems that affect the work environment and productivity of employees in manufacturing companies in Batu Pahat is that the workplace perspective of most companies is unhealthy and dangerous. Therefore, this study focuses on the effect of the work environment on employee productivity in a Batu Pahat manufacturing company. In this study, the researcher aims to identify the effect of the work environment on employee productivity in a Batu Pahat manufacturing company. Quantitative methods are used in this research. Questionnaires were distributed to 384 respondents in manufacturing companies in Batu Pahat. The response rate was 70.31% and data was collected and analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS). The results of the descriptive analysis show that working conditions are the main effect of employee productivity in manufacturing companies in Batu Pahat. The physical work environment, working conditions and workplace layout have a significant relationship between employee productivity. This research will help research to know more about the effects of the work environment. This finding may be a reference for companies in manufacturing to know the work environment that can affect employee productivity.

Adaptive Workplace with Indoor Health and Comfort Approach Toward Sustainable City

The Covid-19 pandemic has an impact on public health, including workplace occupant. The spread of the coronavirus occurs a lot in the workplace. Indoor health and comfort play an important role in providing a healthy and comfortable workplace. Work patterns during the Covid-19 pandemic have changed with the work from home and physical distancing policies. The arrangement of the workplace interior accompanied by indoor health comfort can affect the work experience of occupant. This study aims to produce an adaptive workplace layout design with an indoor health and comfort approach based on occupant perception toward sustainable city. This study uses mix methods with observation and questionnaire survey techniques. The object of research is ten offices in the Medan city, Indonesia. Observations were made to analyze the layout of the workplace, then questionnaires were distributed to employees to analyze their perceptions of comfort and the application of health protection in the workplace. The variables are lighting, ventilation, temperature and humidity, distance of workbench, and health protection. The results showed that the workplace must provide good air quality with the exchange of air through ventilation. Workbench spacing and the use of barriers are most recommended. A workplace with cubical layouts can be arranged parallel to the desk divider as a screen between desks. Whereas in a workplace with non-cubical layouts, work desks can use zig-zag or non-parallel seating arrangements and dividers between tables. Office buildings should prepare a workplace that concerned with space efficiency and comfortable indoor space.

Physical and Technological Capital Efficiency for Profit Growth in Small and Medium Enterprises in Gauteng, South Africa: A Descriptive Qualitative Study

The increasing number of businesses closing down and the persistent slow growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) within the manufacturing sector is a serious concern globally, including in South Africa. The SMEs that are currently existing are operating below the required efficiency level. Physical and technological capital efficiency integrating manufacturing systematic planning, work study, standardisation and inventory management to improve the profit of SMEs in Gauteng South Africa is inadequate, which is a major concern. This study aimed to explore the physical and technological capital constraints affecting SMEs’ profit growth and develop the physical and technological capital efficiency adoption model merging manufacturing systematic planning, work study, standardisation and inventory management for SME profit growth in Gauteng. The study was qualitative, exploratory and descriptive in nature. Face-to-face interviews were conducted targeting 15 owners/managers amongst SMEs in Gauteng. The findings show the most common causes of slow profit growth, which involve poor material handling, unfavourable workplace layout, unscheduled machine maintenance, network challenges, failure to adhere to workplace standards, insufficient product and material recording systems and poor work methods and procedures. The study revealed major concerns for SMEs that required intervention for these enterprises to sustain their profit growth. Thus, the adoption of the model concerning the incorporation of physical and technological capital efficiency tools to advance manufacturing operations be considered as the contributing insight into the profit growth of SMEs in Gauteng. Thus, this study recommends that the government creates an enabling environment for the adoption of this model for SMEs.

Active workplace – Association between workplace layout and physical activity among employees: A cross-sectional study

This study aims to examine the association between workplace layout typology and employees’ physical activity, sedentary behavior, and health. A multi-method approach was conducted for collecting data in four governmental office buildings in Erbil city between April 2022 and June 2022. Qualitative data collection includes architectural plan analysis and photography. Quantitative data collection includes a self-reported questionnaire by participating 132 desk-based employees measuring daily physical activity, sedentary behavior, and physical and mental health. For analyzing the collected responses from the desk-based employees of government office buildings, IBM SPSS (statistical package for the social sciences) software V.25 was adopted. The result shows that there is a significant difference in the mean value of physical activity among employees, physical activity. Despite the low level of physical activity, employees working in linear layout buildings were more physically active than those in radial layout (linear=1.31, P-value < 0.000; radial = 1.13, P-value<0.000). The result also shows that there is a significant positive relation between sedentary behavior and physical health (r= 0.191, P-value<0.05), and mental health (r= 0.172, P-value<0.05). Based on these findings, we can infer that improving the quality of the built environment and implementing active design solutions contribute to promoting physical activity, decreasing sedentary behavior, and enhancing occupational health.

Ergonomic Analysis of Factors Causing Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD) in Heavy Vehicle Drivers

Driving comfort is important for any class of vehicle drivers. Seating comfort is very important for drivers who are undergoing extended period of driving and its associated side effects include higher risk of back problems, discomfort in neck, shoulder and thighs. A good sitting position and correct posture are important for drivers to reduce various work related injuries. There are several occupational risk factors that may affect the work performance of heavy vehicle drivers that may lead to health issues. One of these issues is the driver’s exposure to Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD). MSDs are injuries and disorders that affect the human body's movement or musculoskeletal system. This is due to the fact that heavy vehicle drivers are often exposed to vibration, prolonged sitting and other postural factors. Some are related to the actual driving task, traffic situation, individual variability and cabin layout. The musculoskeletal disorders are mostly associated with work postures and movements, repetitiveness and pace of work, force of movement, vibration, temperature, workplace layout and monotonous tasks. And these mentioned risk factors may affect not only the health of the heavy vehicle drivers but may also cause related road accidents. In order to determine the occupational risk factors, a study is required to identify the current condition of heavy vehicle drivers in relation to major risk factors. Furthermore, this study aims to determine the significant factors affecting the occurrence of musculoskeletal disorders using statistical analyses.

Explainable human activity recognition based on probabilistic spatial partitions for symbiotic workplaces

ABSTRACT In recent years, smart workplaces that adapt to human activity and motion behavior have been proposed for cognitive production systems. In this respect, methods for identifying the feelings and activities of human workers are being investigated to improve the cognitive capability of smart machines such as robots in shared working spaces. Recognizing human activities and predicting the possible next sequence of operations may simplify robot programming and improve collaboration efficiency. However, human activity recognition still requires explainable models that are versatile, robust, and interpretative. Therefore, recognizing and analyzing human action details using continuous probability density estimates in different workplace layouts is essential. Three scenarios are considered: a standalone, a one-piece flow U-form, and a human-robot hybrid workplace. This work presents a novel approach to human activity recognition based on a probabilistic spatial partition (HAROPP). Its performance is compared to the geometric-bounded activity recognition method. Results show that spatial partitions based on probabilistic density contain 20% fewer data frames and 10% more spatial areas than the geometric bounding box. The approach, on average, detects human activities correctly for 81% of the cases for a pre-known workplace layout. HAROPP has scalability and applicability potential for cognitive workplaces with a digital twin in the loop for pushing the cognitive capabilities of machine systems and realizing human-centered environments.

Evaluation of Working Posture of Construction Workers: A Case Study on Wall Construction Using Lightweight Bricks

Workers are an important factor in the implementation of a construction project. Applying ergonomic postures for workers in the projects is necessary to minimize the risk of work accidents and the risk of experiencing musculoskeletal disorders (MsDs). The use of lightweight brick for wall construction is relatively new and is in great demand by construction industries in Indonesia. During wall construction, workers do repetitive activities such as bending, kneeling, holding tools, or tilting the body. These activities potentially increase the risk of injury and musculoskeletal disorders. This study aims to assess the work posture of workers on the wall construction using lightweight brick and to analyze the high-risk activities. The wall construction work assessment included five stages of activities, (1) material transfer, (2) practical columns making and installation, (3) lightweight brick adhesive dough-making process, (4) lightweight bricks laying, and (5) lightweight brick plaster. The Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) method was used to evaluate the working posture. This method was developed to investigate the risk of abnormalities that workers will potentially experience. Based on the RULA employee assessment worksheet, the research results showed that 69% of workers have a high-risk level of work posture and 31% have low-risk levels of work posture. There are three activities with a high-risk level, namely, material transfer, lightweight brick laying, and lightweight brick plaster. At the same time, practical column making and installation work and lightweight brick adhesive dough-making processes are at a low-risk level. According to the RULA risk level, action is required to investigate and immediately improve activities with a high-risk level. If workers continue to work with the same posture, they will be at risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders related to the neck, trunk, and wrists in the near future. Correcting the worker’s posture can be done by improving work position, process, and workplace layout.

Dynamic cognitive maps for robot route planning in complex workplaces represented by abstract mazes

Adaptive path planning and optimization for robots are a persistent challenge due to the lack of a cognitive map of the complex and dynamic environments. This paper presents a cognitive-map-based method for dynamic robot path planning by a formal maze model for workplace layouts representation. The maze model and global path trees provide a cognitive map for the robot to aware the environment. A theory of dynamic Paths Finding and Optimization (PFO) is developed. Powered by the PFO algorithm, a robot is able to autonomously explore the optimal path in a complex workplace by a single sight-read of its layout. The maze based PFO methodology provides robot for an efficient real time path cognition and optimization algorithm for dealing with dynamic workplaces. A set of experiments demonstrates the efficiency of the method, which extends traditional stepwise robot vision technologies to cognitive-map-driven global path optimization.

The Influence of Assembly Workplace Layout on Ergonomics

Assembly is an important element in the production process. It largely influences the quality of the product and especially the time required to produce the final product. Studies in the field of assembly show that as technology advances, it is necessary to use new improvements at each stage of production, which includes the assembly stage. The aim of every enterprise should be to make the best and most economical use of all the resources at its disposal, on the one hand, and to increase productivity, on the other. Nowadays, ergonomics must be taken into account when solving problems or rationalizing assembly, since most assembly operations are carried out manually. In the theoretical part of the document, the assembly process is described together with the factors that influence it, focusing on manual assembly and its impact on ergonomics. The practical part describes an experiment carried out with the aim to increase the ergonomics of workers and to make the assembly process more efficient at an assembly workplace in a selected industrial enterprise through pre-arrangement of the workplace.

The Prevalence, Causes and Prevention of Occupational Musculoskeletal Disorders

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are collectively referring to an array of conditions affecting the human locomotor system, such as muscles, nerves, joints, tendons and spinal discs. MSDs related to work are called occupational MSDs and are typically caused by physical factors consisting of repetitive tasks, forceful exertions, awkward positions, vibration due to use of vibrational tools and prolonged staying in the same positions. These physical factors are often complicated by psychosocial factors comprising job demand, job control, social support, job satisfaction, job security, work arrangement, etc. which can aggravate the biomechanical loading imposed by physical factors, thus resulting in more severe outcomes. Besides, individual factors such as health conditions, age, education level and medical history could lead to highly variable physiological responses and internal tolerances, hence outcomes. As the physical and psychosocial risk factors vary widely in different workplaces, the prevalence of MSDs tends to vary with sectors, occupations and even regions. Generally, healthcare sector has been reported to have relatively high occupational MSDs cases in multiple nations. To prevent occupational MSDs, priority should be given to elimination of the associated risks through job and workplace designs and management. Where elimination is not practical, the risks could be reduced through modification of workplace layout, work environment, work systems and tools as well as the use of mechanical aids. Provision of information, instruction and training, and other administrative controls such as job rotation which do not target at reducing the risks would have lower priority and should be used together with other control measures of higher priority.