Applied
Ergonomics 41 (2010) 731-737
The
IEA contribution to the transition of Ergonomics from research to practice
NATIONAL
INSTITUTE OF INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING
PGDIE-42
Industrial Engineering
Assignment on Industrial Engineering research
paper
Presented
By:
-
Jitendra Nayak
PGDIE 42
Roll No.118
Abstract:
The future
growth of ergonomics as a scientific discipline will require a greater focus on
methods to transition research findings into practice. Whilst the International
Ergonomics Association (IEA) and the Federated Ergonomics Societies provide opportunities
to promote exchange on ergonomics research and collaboration in research
programs, the future sustainability of the domain will be dependent on the
provision of ongoing educational opportunities in ergonomics and the
transitioning of the research findings into practice. This transition will
require greater external focus outside the ergonomics profession in working in
collaboration and partnership with other professional associations, governments
and international agencies. Practical tools that are targeted towards
particular user groups within
the community,
workplace, and governments will enhance the opportunities for the transition of
ergonomics research into practice. Focus on extramural initiatives such as
Ergonomics Checkpoints, integration of the ergonomics design process into the
International Organisation for Standardization Guidelines, and the
incorporation of ergonomics into the World Health Organisation research
programs will ensure that the positioning of ergonomics will continue at an
international level.
1.Introduction:
The growth of
the ergonomics domain since the formation of the International Ergonomics
Association (IEA) over the last 53 years reflects the multidisciplinary basis
of the core research areas. These primarily relate to the physical, cognitive,
and organisational factors impacting on human wellbeing and systems
performance. Ergonomics research has been extensively published in a wide range
of national and international journals with eight of these journals endorsed by
the IEA. Participation in conferences, congresses and seminars enables
ergonomics researchers to share and discuss their research outcomes,
methodologies and future challenges. There are now 25 Technical Committees
within the IEA that reflect the
diversity of the
ergonomics research and practice domain.
When considering
the practice of ergonomics, a process of transition is required to engage the
potential users of the research information and to educate them on the benefits
in adopting the
research outcomes.
The primary objective of this paper is to explore how this transition from
scientific research to practice within industry, governments, and members of
the public could be managed to optimise the uptake of the research outcomes.
The education of ergonomics practitioners including engineers, designers,
occupational hygienists, physicians and therapists needs to provide them with
knowledge of ergonomics principles and data. The skills and tools to translate
these into practice will determine the effectiveness in meeting the user needs.
Generally, the
beneficiaries of the ergonomics research tend not to read the scientific
journals nor attend the conferences, congresses and seminars. The overall
approach of the scientific
Organisations
drawing together researchers, educators and practitioners is for the sharing
and dissemination of their research. This is an internally focussed process
designed around the needs and benefits to the ergonomics scientific community.
2.Methodology:
This section describes the method
for data gathering from three sources
2.1)Ergonomics
conferences:
During the period 2006e2009, participation in
international ergonomics related conferences was undertaken during 25 countries
visited as part of the role as the 16th IEA President. These included Japan,
Mexico, India, Iceland, USA, Korea, Netherlands, Columbia, Malaysia, and South
Africa. This provided an opportunity for extensive consultation with ergonomics
researchers and also other stakeholders involved in leadership positions of international
professional associations, and also government and non government agencies and
industries with potential utilisation of ergonomics research outcomes. The
informal consultation with these researchers and stakeholders focussed on their
perceptions of ergonomics and how the transition from research to practice
should be undertaken to maximize the contribution of ergonomics to the
community.
2.2) External stakeholder’s consultation:
Extensive
consultation occurred with external stakeholders from other Professional
Associations and NGOs (Non Government Organisations).
These included:
World Health Organisation (WHO)
International Labour Organisation (ILO)
International Organisation for
Standardization (ISO)
International Commission on Occupational
Health (ICOH)
International Occupational Hygienist
Association (IOHA)
International Council of Societies of
Industrial Design(ICSID)
2.3) Other
dissemination methods:
Consultation
with governments, industry associations, trade unions and professional
associations occurred through the development of the “Seoul Declaration on
Safety and Health at Work” during 2008.
3.Results:
From the three sources above, the
following analyses were
made.
3.1. Conferences
The IEA
international and national conferences provide opportunities for ergonomics
research to be presented to peers to stimulate discussion and sharing of
results. It is noted that the methodologies adopted varied internationally
depending on the educational background of the presenters. For example,
physicians mainly utilised work physiology methods whilst industrial engineers
mainly used job and task analysis methods. Case study presentations were
frequently used to illustrate examples of research into practice. Few
longitudinal studies were provided to show the sustainability of the outcomes.
An increasing use of media releases was observed to promote conferences. A
selection of papers relating to issues of potential community interest had
media releases circulated in an attempt for newspaper, TV or radio coverage.
Specialist skills in media management were frequently accessed by the
conference organisers to undertake this work. As a general observation there
was little participation of the anticipated end users of the ergonomics research
at these conferences.
One positive
outcome noted was that there was increasing credibility provided to research
sessions allowing greater interaction between participants to discuss the
implications of the research into practice. There was less preference to formal
presentations using power point presentations with little time for discussion.
This was consistent across countries and cultures. There was a strong desire
from researchers to explore how
their findings can be transitioned in to practice.
3.2. Stakeholders consultation
Consultation
with external international agencies and professional associations indicated
that the domain of ergonomics is not clearly understood. The primary research
area most commonly discussed in their perception of ergonomics was
musculoskeletal disorders. The interest derives from the high incidence found
in developed and
developing countries. There is a need to provide good examples of ergonomics in
practice across the diversity of the domain to extend this understanding to the
broader areas of human wellbeing and systems performance. Some examples were
identified where collaboration has occurred between external agencies and the
ergonomics research community to develop tools and resources that transition
the research into practice. These include
3.2.1Ergonomic
checkpoints
These simple
case studies have been developed under the leadership of Dr Kazutaka Kogi from
Japan together with a team of ergonomics researchers as a joint project between
the IEA and the ILO. The initial publication was Ergonomic Checkpoints (ILO,
1996). In 2009, the second edition of this publication will be launched
together with a further publication relating to Ergonomic Checkpoints in
Agriculture. These publications have been one of the highest circulated
documents produced by the ILO for trade unions, employers, and governments at
an international level. The presentation and language used in the Checkpoints
are targeted to
local
communities as the basis for participatory ergonomics. They are designed to
identify risks associated with their work places and home environments. They
also propose a range of simple practical solutions for the users to consider.
3.2.2. Industrial design tools
The industrial
design profession has been interfacing with the IEA to explore the integration
of ergonomics research findings into design outcomes. The 2008 Industrial
Design Gold Excellence Award was given to the Size China anthropometric tools
developed for Chinese and South Asian populations particularly for the shape of
the head and face. These are useful for measurements and designing of helmets,
face masks, and eye glasses (Ball, 2008). This
three
dimensional tool based on anthropometric data is provided in Fig. 2 below.
Rather than
providing tables of measurement data, manikins based on the actual data for
percentiles of the target population can be used for fit testing products.
3.2.3. WHO
guidance on injury prevention In 2007, the WHO General Assembly agreed to a
“Global Plan of Action on Workers Health 2008-2017”. This provided a commitment
from
this peak
organisation to recognise the research that is being undertaken to benefit the
reduction of illness and injury amongst workers at the global level.
Fig. 1. Size
China Anthropometric tool based on Chinese and South Asian populations
3.2.4. Control
banding approach
The Occupational
Hygiene profession has been working in collaboration with the WHO in developing
simple guidance relating to chemical exposure (Zalk and Nelson, 2008). The
Control Banding provides quantitative guidance on exposure levels in simple
tables to assist workers and employers in developed and developing countries to
understand the research outcomes when applied in practice. The WHO has
requested the IEA to consider developing
Control Banding
guidelines particularly associated with the prevention of musculoskeletal
disorders (MSD) to transition the research recommendations into practice. The
feedback from the MSD researchers indicated that this simplistic approach would
potentially discredit ergonomics by a focus on physical risk factors such as
joint angles, forces, postures and object weights when the current research
reflects a broader multi-factorial holistic approach
is required.
3.2.5.
Development of ergonomic design process requirements
Table 1
Objective
|
Topic
|
1
2
3
4
5
|
To devise and
implement policy instruments on
Workers’
health.
To protect and promote health at the work
place.
To improve the performance of, and access
to,
Occupational
health services.
To provide and communicate evidence for
action
and practice.
To incorporate workers’ health into other
policies.
|
Since 2001, the
IEA has been developing a generic process document to reflect the integration
of ergonomics into design. This has been known as EQUID (Ergonomics Quality in
Design) and has been overseen by an international committee of ergonomics
researchers involved particularly in the area of product design (IEA, 2008a,b).
The scientific basis of the EQUID design process has been based on the ISO
Quality and Design requirements imbedded into a range of ISO Standards. This
has ensured the compatibility and extension of the existing knowledge on design
processes to embrace the ergonomics requirements. The ISO TC159 has been
overseeing the development of the EQUID process with consideration of future
embracing the content of EQUID into ISO official guidance materials.
3.3. Other dissemination methods
3.3.1. IEA Technical Committees
Members of these
Committees include individuals who are considered technical experts in the
respective area of the ergonomics domain for participation in a range of
national and international external activities. These include participation on
committees involved in setting the Standards as well as providing technical
support in the development of legislation and guidelines for governments
Table
2
Ergonomics Technical Committees
supported by the IEA (2008a,b).
Human Simulation and Virtual
Environments
Mining
Musculoskeletal Disorders
Online Communities
Organisational Design and
Management
Process Control
Psychophysiology in Ergonomics
Safety & Health
Slips, Trips and Falls Transport
Work With
Computing Systems
3.3.2. Ergonomics month
The 2008 Global
Ergonomics Month e October (IEA, 2008a,b)provided an opportunity for all
Federated Societies to share and collaborate programs and resources for
promoting ergonomics to the community at the global level. Leadership has been
provided by the HFES (Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, USA) and the FEES
(Federation of European Ergonomics Societies) to develop the concept and to
initiate extensive programs of dissemination of ergonomics research into
practice. The FEES provides an opportunity for ergonomics research to be
integrated into the European Parliament political debate. In 2010 FEES is
hosting a major conference in Belgium targeted to politicians and government
officials to
input ergonomics research in to the debate on managing an aging workforce. Such
links into the political agendas assists the credibility and impact of
ergonomics research into
practice.
3.3.3. Media
promotion
The larger Federated Societies
utilise external media for promoting ergonomics as it relates to community
issues. The Ergonomics Society in the UK provides an extensive list of
contributions from ergonomists in television, public seminars and debates,
newspaper and radio interviews, and scientific expositions (The Ergonomics
Society, 2008a,b). These media interventions promote the positive contribution
from ergonomics to the community. Greater use of media releases and nominated
spokes persons on specific ergonomics areas would enable a greater proactive
media program
3.3.4.
Community targeted websites
There are many
websites which have been developed to transition ergonomics research into
practice. One excellent example that is targeted towards children and their understanding
of
ergonomics is
the Ergonomics4Schools website (The Ergonomics Society, 2008a,b). The Liberty
Mutual Community Safety program provides a range of Tips, Quizzes, and video
clips relating to the home, children, transport and recreation (Liberty Mutual,
2008).
3.3.5. Ergonomics Roadmaps
In 2006, the
Japan Ergonomics Society developed a Roadmap outlining the current position of
ergonomics research and the future directions for ergonomics within Japan. This
Roadmap is a requirement of the Japanese Government to monitor the future
directions of scientific disciplines. This approach provides a template for
identifying current strengths and future challenges for ergonomics. It provides
a useful template for ergonomics societies in identifying key areas for
promotion and transitioning from research into practice to meet current
community needs (Japan Ergonomics Society, 2008). Each Federated Society should
Consider
developing a Roadmap as part of their Strategic Plan review process. It also
forms a template for communication with Governments and their scientific
agendas.
4.
Government liaison
The transition
of research into practice can be seen through a range of initiatives at a
government level to promote ergonomics research findings particularly into industry
and community safety requirements. Governments form a crucial avenue to
translate ergonomics research into practice. This includes legislation,
guidance materials and awareness programs to address public health and
workplace health risks. This process was observed in developed
and developing
countries visited during 2006-2009
4.1. Ergonomics in legislation
In contrast, it
is noted that the Federation of European Ergonomics Societies continues to be
involved in providing technical input at the European Union in relation to
legislation and guidance associated with ergonomics (Rookmaaker, 2008). There
are ergonomic standards in many countries including Canada, Australia, Sweden
and Denmark that have been incorporated into government legislation and industry
guidance.
4.2.
Government Ergonomics advisors
The Nordic
Ergonomics Society has been actively involved in a network of ergonomics
researchers employed by governments across Europe. This group provides an
opportunity for sharing strategies to embrace ergonomics research and to
integrate these into government guidance materials, legislation and programs.
It also provides an opportunity to evaluate the enforcement activities with the
associated benefits to the worker’s health and productivity.
4.3.
Collaborative research programs with government
In India, the
government has been working closely with ergonomics researchers in developing
programs and strategies on emerging community issues. These include aging,
musculoskeletal disorders and the role of women in the workplace (HWWE, 2007).
In Japan this has occurred in the area of public transport. The involvement of
Ergonomics Societies in providing technical information to governments remains
a significant and important opportunity for the transition of ergonomics
research into practice. The establishment of consultative committees between
Ergonomics Societies and government facilitate this process. For example, the
Human Factors and Ergonomics Society of Australia are members of a group of
professional associations that are recognised and meet regularly with
government to contribute the outputs of research into the policy and program
development
processes for
government departments (HFESA, 2008).
4.4. Emergence of industry specific Technical
Committees
The growth of
the IEA Technical Committees in 2006e2008 has primarily related to the
emergence and development of thoseTechnical Committees that are linked directly
to particular application or practice areas. The most active have been in the
areas of health care; aerospace; agriculture; mining; working with computer
systems; musculoskeletal disorders; anthropometry; and online communities. Each
of these reflects the relationship that the research group is developing with
their respective community of external stakeholders.
4.5.
International partnerships
The building of
partnerships between the ergonomics researchers and the external stakeholders
is seen to be an important process in the transition of ergonomics research
into practice. Memorandums of Understanding are progressively being introduced
at the IEA level with some of the key international partners. In 2008, a
tripartite Memoranda of Understanding was signed between the IEA with ICOH and
IOHA. The formal relationship between the IEA and the WHO and also the IEA with
ISO has been an essential component to the overall development of relationship
and mutual agreement to promote ergonomics at the broadest level.
4.6.
Sustainability of ergonomics in industry
Whilst the
ergonomics domain aims to enhance human well being and systems performance, the
sustainability of intervention requires a broader understanding of industry. A
holistic approach is required that embraces a participatory model engaging the
wide range of stakeholders (Zink et al., 2008). These include considerations of
the cost benefits analysis; community expectations based on corporate and
societal levels. This holistic approach to ergonomics analysis reflects the
need to consider the broad consequences of research outcomes in their transition
into practice. Dul and Neumann (2008) discuss the need to integrate ergonomics
into business strategy formulation and implementation. They suggests that to
realize the desired situation, considerable changes must take place within the
ergonomics research, education and practice community by moving from a health
ergonomics paradigm to a business ergonomics paradigm, without losing the
health and safety goals.
5. Discussion
The national and international
activities for sharing research outcomes between ergonomics educators,
researchers and practitioners needs to be maintained. However, for the
sustainability of the ergonomics domain, an increasing focus on finding
innovative
ways to transition the research
findings into practice is required. When considering ergonomics research
methodologies further discussion is required to define the fundamental core
components of the methodologies in work situations to ensure the physical,
cognitive and organisational factors are considered. These methodologies need
to consider the participatory processes in usability studies and the holistic
perspective to embrace sustainable outcomes.
To achieve these
outcomes and to meet the needs of target user groups, the education and
professional development programs for Ergonomists needs to identify the
importance of the transition of research into practice. A range of strategies
and tools need to be developed, evaluated and disseminated that meets the needs
of the particular user groups. Consultation with the users about information
dissemination options and evaluation of these strategies should be seen as
important as the research itself. The interaction between ergonomics research
with emerging society and technical challenges need to be part of this broad
approach. These include issues such as the impact on society of world
environmental changes; the global financial crisis; as well as the impact of
new technologies.
6. Conclusions
Ergonomics methodologies need to
include strategies to transition research findings into practice to ensure that
the intended users benefit from the outputs.
The “tools” used
to disseminate ergonomics research findings need to be in a language and format
to suit the intended users. These include websites; checklists; media releases;
guidance documents and software based on usability principles.
Further research
is required to define holistic models of ergonomics methodologies that embrace
the diversity of ergonomics areas of research and application to assist
external stakeholders understand the core elements of the ergonomics domain.
References:
Ball, R., 2008.
SizeChina.com. Polytechnic University, Hong Kong.
Dul, J.,
Neumann, W.P., 2008. Ergonomics contributions to company strategies.
Applied
Ergonomics doi:10.1016/j.apergo.2008.07.001.
HFESA, 2008. A
New Alliance: WorkSafe, Safety Associations, Educators. Human
Factors and
Ergonomics Society of Australia.
www.ergonomics.org.au/news.
HWWE, 2007.
International Ergonomics Conference. Central Institute of Agricultural
Engineering,
Bhopal, India.
International
Ergonomics Association, 2008a. EQUID Committee.
http://www.iea.cc/browse.php?contID¼standing_committees.
International
Ergonomics Association, 2008b. Global Ergonomics Month.
http://www.iea.cc/browse.php?contID¼global_ergo_month.
International
Labour Office, 1996, Ergonomics Checkpoints, Geneva Switzerland
.
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