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What is Ergonomics?
Who is Ergoweb?
What is the purpose of ergonomics in the workplace?
What do Ergonomists do?
How does one become certified in the field of Ergonomics?
Which Universities offer Ergonomic Programs
Are there any current ergonomic standards?
Where can I find additional ergonomics information?
What is Ergonomics?
Ergonomics is the science of work. Ergonomics removes barriers to quality, productivity and human performance by fitting products, tasks, and environments to people.
Who is Ergoweb?
Ergoweb® Inc., "the place for ergonomics™," is a full service occupational ergonomics company, providing innovative software solutions, professional consultation and training, and valuable, credible information to a worldwide audience.
Our company was established January 1, 1995 to market, distribute, maintain, and improve the software products resulting from research in the Ergonomics and Design group at the University of Utah's Department of Mechanical Engineering. In 1992, fueled by substantial contracts with the American automobile industry, the University of Utah group began developing an extensive compilation of ergonomics knowledge and computerized methods used in proactive design environments. Foreseeing the potential in the Internet's World Wide Web, the group began developing an extensive Web-based system, which soon became known to our world-wide audience as "Ergoweb: the place for ergonomics." Focusing on occupational ergonomics, the Ergoweb web site continues to be the most popular ergonomics site on the Internet, and is accessed by many hundreds of individual users each day. Our web site and our company have developed an excellent reputation for quality and service among industry, government, and academic clients around the world. As a natural outgrowth of these activities, we also provide professional consultation and training to a variety of industries.
What is the purpose of ergonomics in the workplace?
The goals of ergonomics are to:
Decrease risk of injury/illness
Enhance worker productivity
Improve quality of work life
What do Ergonomists do?
Ergonomists use information about people (height, weight, their ability to handle information and make decisions, their ability to see and hear and their ability to work in extremes of temperature) to make the workplace safer, more comfortable, and more productive. An ergonomist studies the way that these things vary in a group of people. With this information, the ergonomist, working with designers and engineers, ensures that a product or service will be able to be used comfortably, efficiently and safely. This design must be for the whole range of people who use the product - including perhaps, children, the elderly and the disabled. An ergonomist can also assess existing products and services, showing where they fail to 'fit' the user (in every sense of the word) and suggesting how this fit may be improved.
How does one become certified in the field of Ergonomics?
The BCPE or Board of Certified Professional Ergonomists is the recognized organization that deals with professional certification in this field. Some businesses have also begun to offer and charge for their own certifications.
For information about specific certification requirements please visit the BCPE Web Site.
Universities offering Ergonomic Programs
Ergonomics and Human factors are now being taught in Universities across the globe. In the United States, an increasing number of Universities are offering graduate and post graduate degrees in Ergonomics/Human Factors. Here are links to some of the Universities.
Aston University www.aston.ac.uk/psychology/home.htm
Birkbeck College www.bbk.ac.uk/
Cardiff University of Wales (formerly UWIST) www.cardiff.ac.uk/uwcc/psych/
Carnegie Mellon University www.ece.cmu.edu/afs/ece/usr/ego/ergo/ergo_manual.html
Center for Ergonomics, University of Michigan
Cornell University ergo.human.cornell.edu
Cranfield University www.cranfield.ac.uk/coa/postgraduate/courses.htm
Georgia Tech eoeml.gtri.gatech.edu/index.html
www.engin.umich.edu/dept/ioe/C4E
Harvard School of Public Health - www.hsph.harvard.edu/ergonomics/
London Guildhall University www.lgu.ac.uk/psychology/
Loughborough University www.lboro.ac.uk
Louisiana State University www.imse.lsu.edu
Napier University www.napier.ac.uk/depts/biohome.html
North Carolina State University www.ie.ncsu.edu/ergolab
Ohio State University osuergo.eng.ohio-state.edu
Penn State www.ie.pse.edu
San Jose State University www-engr.sjsu.edu/~svei
State University of New York at Buffalo www.eng.buffalo.edu
Texas A&M University www-nuen.tamu.edu/~ergocent
Texas Tech University www.coe.ttu.edu
Tufts University www.tufts.edu/central/pubsafe/index.html
University College London www.ergohci.ucl.ac.uk
University of Aberdeen www.abdn.ac.uk/deom
University of Birmingham www.bham.ac.uk/ManMechEng
University of California ergonomics.ucla.edu
University of California, Berkeley www.me.berkeley.edu/ergo
University of Cape Town www.bme.uct.ac.za
University of Central Florida pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/%ekaplanm/ICOCE
University of Cinncinnati oz.uc.edu/~bhattaat/biomech.html
University of Hull www.hull.ac.uk/psy/homepage.html
University of Iowa info.pmeh.uiowa.edu/iprc/iprc.htm
University of Louisville www.spd.louisville.edu/~ergonomics
University of Lulea www.luth.se
University of Maryland www.inform.umd.edu/CampusInfo/Departments/EnvirSafety
University of Miami, Ohio MiaVX1.MUOhio.Edu/~PSY4CWIS/CER.HTM
University of Minnesota www.dehs.umn.edu
University of Nebraska, Lincoln www.engr.unl.edu/erc/centers/cesr/cesr.htm
University of Nottingham www.nottingham.ac.uk/School4m
University of Pennsylvania www.cis.upenn.edu/~hms
University of Surrey Robens Institute www.eihms.surrey.ac.uk/robens/erg
University of Texas, Austin www.lib.utexas.edu/Pubs/etf/index.html
University of Twente reddwarf.wmw.utwente.nl/pub/www/ergonomics.html
University of Virginia minerva.acc.Virginia.EDU/~enhealth/ERGONOMICS/toc.html
University of Wales www.swan.ac.uk/psychology
University of Washington www.depts.washington.edu/envhlth
University of Wisconsin www.engr.wisc.edu/ie
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University hci.ise.vt.edu/hfec
Wright State University wwwcs.wright.edu/bhe/general.html
Are there any ergonomic standards or guidelines?
Yes! Several organizations at the national and international level write ergonomics-related standards and guidelines. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) are the main groups who create the standards/guidelines in the U.S.
Guidelines have also come from trade organizations or standardized industry practices.
At the U.S. federal level, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has several times attempted to promulgate an "Ergonomics Program Rule," but has failed to reach a stage at which regulation is formerly pending. On November 14th, 2000, OSHA published an ergonomics program standard in the Federal Register under the Clinton administration. On January 16, 2001 the program took effect. It was repealed 63 days later on March 20, 2001, by the Bush Administration. (More about the political process involved with creating and repealing the ergonomics standard can be found in Ergoweb's News section.)
There are also many standards in places out side of the United States.
Where can I find additional ergonomics information?
The ergoweb.com site supports key-word searches. Enter a word of phrase in the search box and everything from journals, books, and products will be returned. If you still have questions, please feel free to call us toll free at 1.888.374.6932 to consult with a professional ergonomist.
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