Five ways ergonomics changes your life

Ergonomics is a branch of science that draws on engineering, physiology and psychology. It is a made-up word, created by joining the Greek words ergos (work) and nomos (natural laws). While the word might sound obscure, the contribution ergonomics has made to everyday life is anything but. Here are five ways ergonomics shape our lives.

Behind the Wheel. People come in all shapes and sizes. Car manufacturers have to make sure the controls can be easily reached, and the dashboard displays easily seen, by the tallest and the smallest drivers. To do so, they study how people use the controls and how bodies can most comfortably fit into vehicles.

Good design and good ergonomics go hand in hand and cars are an excellent example. Car seats can now be adjusted any which way, and you can reach all the controls without having to stretch across yourself to do so. There’s a reason for that; all the car companies invest a lot in ergonomics. At the cheaper end of the market, car companies want to make cars accessible to as many people as possible. At the luxury end of the market, they’re selling optimum adjustability.

The branch of ergonomics that deals with human variability in size, shape and strength is called anthropometry. It is also widely applied to making more comfortable workplaces, such as back-friendly chairs.

Nuclear Power. In 1979, there was a core meltdown at Three Mile Island which is most dangerous type of nuclear plant accident. As coolant poured away from reactor, those on duty could not understand what was happening due to confusing information on their instruments. And so they inadvertently took action that made things worse. Bad ergonomics were partly to blame for making the nuclear leak worse. Bhopal and Chernobyl too have primarily been attributed to “operator error”.

At Three Mile Island, in Pennsylvania, no one died or was injured. But it led to far reaching reforms of how nuclear plants operate, which used ergonomics to work out more logical controls for staff. A 1979 report by the President’s Commission on the Accident at Three-Mile Island noted the control panel is huge, with hundreds of alarms, and there are some key indicators placed in locations where operators cannot see them.

Ergonomics experts were called in to give a crash course to Nuclear Regulatory Commission managers, engineers and scientists. And a panel investigating other plants found “haphazard” control rooms to be a widespread problem. In the US and abroad, the accident led to improved instrumentation and better control rooms.

Pretty Objects. It’s a cliché to hold up Apple’s sleek and stylish products as examples of good design, but all are highly regarded by ergonomists for combining good looks with usability.

An ergonomically designed device should do more than fit pleasingly into one’s hand. It should be as easy and intuitive to use as possible and that involves understanding how we think when carrying out tasks.

Usability is based on three things. Is it effective, doing what you want it to do? Is it efficient, can do this without too many mouse clicks? And is it satisfying, comfortable and pleasant to use?

Apple’s designers have a good understanding of what people want to do with these devices and then they test and test it to refine the end product.

Is the Mini-Cooper a brilliant ergonomic design? Most engineers would say no as it has many flaws. Is it enjoyable, wonderful to drive? Users of this vehicle would say yes because it is great fun. Emotion researchers know that when a person is in a good mood, the brain is flooded with hormones that make one sensitive to changes in the environment, relaxed about events in the world, and generally receptive to positive events. As a result, minor flaws and glitches can be overlooked.

Under Wraps. We encounter packaging a dozen times a day. Many of our encounters probably involve us criticizing the poor ergonomics without ever using them. The worst examples are bits of packaging that are so poor ergonomically they actually constitute a minor danger to the people opening them.

Here in the US, the term “wrap rage” was coined to describe the frustration of trying to open a rigid plastic “clamshell” two bits of plastic molded together around a product. This type of packaging is typically used around electronics, software or other high cost items where the manufacturer does not want anybody clever stealing from the boxes

In the office. The place where the importance of ergonomics is most commonly expressed is in the office. While workplace ergonomics may have its divine home in heavy industry, today it is a hot office topic, because of office related injuries.The end result is people using nail scissors, knives, electric saws and even kitchen utensils to try to open them, with injuries frequently resulting either from the tool used or a jagged piece of plastic. There are companies like Amazon and Microsoft who are trying to make things a bit more ergonomic. The essence of ergonomic packaging design, is thinking about the ease of the consumer at every stage of the process.

The wonderful thing about office ergonomics is that employees have options. There are trackballs, sculpted mice to fit different hand shapes, mice to be used centrally rather than at the side, joysticks for people with hand tremors and mice designed to force the hand into a particular position and that’s just for mice.

Overall the key to adjustability. Everybody is a different shape and does things slightly differently than another. Some ergonomic processes can be disliked of course but the key is taking the time to figure out what works for you.