From ergonomics to design specifications: contributions to the design of a processing machine in a tire company

Abstract

The development of ergonomics' recommendations, guidelines and standards are attempts to promote the integration of ergonomics into industrial contexts. Such developments result from several sources and professionals and represent the effort that has been done to develop healthier and safer work environments. However, the availability of large amount of data and documents regarding ergonomics does not guarantee their applicability. The main goal of this paper is to use a specific case to demonstrate how ergonomics criteria were developed in order to contribute to the design of workplaces. Based on the obtained results from research undertaken in a tire company, it was observed that the ergonomics criteria should be presented as design specifications in order to be used by engineers and designers. In conclusion, it is observed that the multiple constraint environment impeded the appliance of the ergonomics criteria. It was also observed that the knowledge on technical design and the acquaintance with ergonomic standards, the level of integration in the design team, and the ability to communicate with workers and other technical staff have paramount importance in integrating ergonomics criteria into the design process.

A six-step model to transform an ergonomic work analysis into design guidelines for engineering projects

“…The development of the guidelines started by screening the existing standards and guidelines for an offshore unit design to identify the following: 1) existing restrictions for the design, and 2) pros and cons of these documents. However, it is important to distinguish between the many ergonomic principles mentioned in different studies, which have a very general formulation (making it hard for designers to find the relevant information) [21,22,[30][31][32][33] and what we propose here, with insights generated from detailed analysis of work practices. Another distinction is what we refer to and discuss here as ergonomic principles and guidelines, versus existing norms and standards, which are internationally recognized regulations with mandatory design criteria and restrictions.…”

Safety of machinery: requirement specification based on functional need and work situations analysis

“…Some papers concerning safety integration at the specification stage recommend considering health, safety and ergonomics as design objectives that should be specified in the requirement document. So requirements should go beyond classical standards on safety and have to take into account of the predictable use of the working equipment by analyzing the activities of the operators on similar equipment and production activities [11,[20][21][22]. In fact these real activities are different from the nominal ones.…”

Méthodologie d’aide à la rédaction d’un cahier des charges basée sur l’usage

“…Ce dernier ne doit pas être considéré comme un simple document de formalisation des besoins ou de consultation de prix mais comme un outil de communication entre le client et les fournisseurs, qui doit pouvoir évoluer tout au long du projet (Tierno et al, 2009); -de donner un véritable statut à la prévention (sécurité et santé) pour que ces spécifications puissent dépasser le stade des références aux normes et autres référentiels de prévention propres à chaque domaine et équipement industriel. -de porter une attention particulière sur les usages et les contraintes des situations « futures probables » en s'appuyant, dans la mesure du possible, sur l'analyse des situations existantes les plus proches (Prudhomme et al, 2003 ;Sagot et al, 2003 ;Moraes et al, 2012).…”