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The food processing industry is a subset of the manufacturing sector with unique challenges. Among these, ensuring food hygiene and preventing contamination are two issues of prime importance. Hence, designers have to overcome such challenges when designing facilities suitable for food processing. The paper formulates a model that simplifies the layout planning process for the food processing facilities (FPF) in order to help the designers. A generalised framework that helps to visualise the Facilities Layout Problem (FLP) was initially developed. A layout model for FPF was then developed considering the unique features that need to be present in the layout. The model classifies the areas of FPF into five: primary, secondary, utilities, warehouse, and administration based on the activities and the level of risk present in food processing. It further proposes specific locations for the five sections in the factory layout. In order to test the performance of the framework and the model, a case study was conducted in a malted milk powder processing facility in Sri Lanka by changing its layout according to the proposed model. The framework and the model showed promise in its implementation. However, the approach and the layout model need to be evaluated in further cases in order to ascertain their usability and performance.

BACKGROUND: Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs) affect the well-being of workers. Unfortunately, user requirements for design to reduce workplace risk factors for MSDs are not always effectively communicated to designers creating a mismatch between the user requirements and what is ultimately produced. OBJECTIVE:To understand the views of practitioners of design and ergonomics regarding tools for participatory design and features they would like to see in such tools. METHODS:An online questionnaire survey was conducted with a cohort of practitioners of ergonomics and design (n=32). In-depth interviews were then conducted with a subset of these practitioners (n=8). To facilitate discussion, a prototype integrated design tool was developed and demonstrated to practitioners using a verbalized walkthrough approach. RESULTS:According to the results of the questionnaire survey, the majority (70%) believed an integrated approach to participatory design would help reduce work-related MSDs and suggested ways to achieve this, for example, through sharing design information. The interviews showed the majority (n=7) valued being provided with guidance on design activities and ways to manage and present information. CONCLUSION:It is believed that an integrated approach to design in order to help reduce work-related MSDs is highly important and a provision to evaluate design solutions would be desirable for practitioners of design and ergonomics.Keywords: design process; participatory design; design methods IntroductionWork-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) affect the health and well-being of workers and can hinder growth in the industrial sector causing staggering expense [1]. Attempts have been made to reduce MSDs in the working population, for example, intervention programs [2-5], standards [6] and guidelines [7,8] have been developed to try to eliminate workplace risk factors, but they are still commonplace. Research suggests that more intervention approaches are required and that methods currently being used to reduce the risk of MSDs among workers could be improved [9,10]. Adherence to ergonomics in design together with a full assessment of work systems would help curb work-related MSDs [1].A drawback in the design process is the mismatch between user requirements to reduce workplace risk factors for MSDs and what is ultimately produced [11,12]. Stakeholders in the design process include users that directly interact with equipment and processes and practitioners such as engineers, designers and others such as ergonomists, occupational health professionals and health and safety personnel that may be involved in the design process and influence design decisions. However, the involvement of such professionals varies [13] and 2 user focused design requirements to reduce workplace risk factors for MSDs are not always effectively and efficiently conveyed preventing appropriate solutions being incorporated in the next generation of designs. Thus, a mechanism to fill this void between the users and the ...