Human Factors and Ergonomics

Lean Ergonomics: It's an Efficiency Issue

About the Webinar:

This webinar will review a brief history of the Toyota Production System, the foundation for the University of Kentucky, True Lean Program. Learners will explore the core tenants of True Lean, and how to systematically merge the four categories of risk factors to create measurable process improvement.

Minnesota's Safe Patient Handling Act: Policy, Practice, and Research

About the Webinar:

This session presented by the University of Minnesota and Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry will provide a history of the Minnesota Safe Patient Handling Act, a law designed to protect health care workers from injuries caused by lifting and transferring patients. Learners will explore results from a policy evaluation that measured changes in patient handling injuries before and after the law was enacted. The evaluation also identified characteristics of nursing homes with high injury rates and assessed whether the effects of the law were...

Fatigue, Sleep, and the Consequences of Adverse Work Schedules

About the Webinar:

Adverse work schedules can compromise sleep, leading to fatigue that results in decreased capabilities and increased risk of injury, errors, and vehicle crashes. In this webinar we will explore the factors that constitute an adverse work schedule, what jobs and industries are affected most, the best research on this topic, how to predict the impact of any given work schedule, and what can be done to mitigate the impact of adverse work schedules.

Fatigue in the Workplace: Effects on Health and Performance and Measurement Considerations

About the Webinar:

A leading cause of non-fatal work injuries is overexertion and bodily reaction. What is less understood is the role fatigue plays as a contributing factor. Fatigue in the workplace is a multidimensional process that results in diminished worker performance and is often under appreciated and unrecognized. Reducing the incidence of fatigue-induced workplace injuries and lost productivity depends on accurate and timely detection to allow for appropriate intervention. This webinar will present an overview of worker fatigue and how it may be defined,...

Emerging Technologies: The Future of Ergonomics

About the Webinar:

The field of ergonomics is rapidly changing. Emerging technologies such as exoskeletons, wearable sensors, computer-vision, artificial intelligence, and virtual and augmented reality are being integrated into how companies & ergonomists provide services. From design, to training, to assessments, to solution implementation, these new technologies can help companies optimize business performance. This presentation will provide a “high-level” overview of this topic and will provide some insights into the future of our field of ergonomics (from a...

Considerations in Exoskeleton Human Factors

About the Webinar:

Exoskeletons are a class of wearable technology that have potential to provide significant benefits to users, including increased strength or endurance, improved motor performance, and enhanced capability. Exoskeletons may be passive and provide structural support for the wearer, or active and generate motion using powered components. Enabling the benefits of an exoskeleton requires a good “fit” between the user and the system. In this talk, we will consider three characteristics of fit: (1) static, (2) dynamic, and (3) cognitive. Examples will be provided...

04/19/23: Job Rotation: Considerations for Preventing Musculoskeletal Disorders

About the webinar:

Job rotation is an administrative control strategy that involves alternating work tasks between employees. It is often associated with various benefits, including improved cross-training, reduced monotony, and increased exposure variability that may reduce the risk of overloading musculoskeletal tissues. However, research examining job rotation as a preventative measure for musculoskeletal disorders have had mixed results. In this webinar, Drs. Schall and Vinel will describe a novel optimization framework evaluating the effectiveness of job rotation when considering the...

03/15/23: Experimental Approaches for the Characterization of Prolonged Sedentary Postures Among Sedentary Workers

About the webinar:

The adoption of prolonged sitting posture, which is a condition commonly encountered in several working tasks, is known to induce a wide range of negative effects, including discomfort, which has been recognized as an early predictor for musculoskeletal disorders (particularly low back pain), and impact on cardio-metabolic health. In this regard, the continuous monitoring of worker’s psychophysical state while sitting for long periods of time and throughout the day, may result useful in to preventing and managing potentially risky situations and to promote...

02/15/23: Ergonomics Research Updates from the University of Michigan

About the webinar:

This webinar will explore two unique research topics.

Impact of Disability Incidence & Simulation on Inclusive Mobility Design with Kamolnat (Kam) Tabattanon:

Principles of universal design call for researchers and designers to consider all user populations, however, recent literature has suggested that adults with disabilities are being left behind. This is made evident by the 22% of older adults with disabilities who ceased employment efforts due to discouragement (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2022). This presentation will explore ongoing work...

01/18/23: Home Office Ergonomics Post COVID-19: Carpe Diem

About the webinar:

The COVID-19 pandemic changed how knowledge work gets done. In early 2022, roughly six in ten U.S. workers with jobs that can be completed from home continue to work from home all or most of the time. As more people work from home than ever before, and as the demand for remote work increases, workplaces continue to find optimal balance for collaborating with colleagues onsite. This presentation will discuss how the pandemic changed how we work, and how the home-office work balance will continue to evolve.