Sunday Spotlight: Gloves

We use them to protect our hands from rough/sharp surfaces, heat, cold, and harmful chemicals. Gloves of a certain construction allow a user to apply a more forceful grip on a slippery object. In summary, they keep us comfortable and safe when performing difficult tasks. However, gloves can pose problems on top of the issues that they were designed to address. Thus, it is important that the drawbacks of certain gloves be considered before being employed.

Basic Guidelines:

• Gloves should not fit so tight that they constrict blood flow in the hand, yet they should not be so loose that they negatively affect the user's dexterity.

• "Blue-dot", or nitrile gloves should be used in occasions where extra grip is required. The material increases the coefficient of friction between the hand and the object, allowing the object to be held easier, or a fixture to turned with greater ease.

• Gloves with a Kevlar coating should be used in work environment where cuts/abrasions are a risk.

• Silicone gloves protect the user well in areas where burning hot surfaces pose a hazard. Gloves with Thinsulate material (and optimally, moisture-wicking material) work best for the worker confronted with cold conditions.

• Chemical gloves should have an extension at the wrist to cover the lower forearm to protect against "catastrophic" chemical spills.

Overall, a glove will generally decrease manual dexterity (except for nitrile gloves), increasing the force required to perform manual tasks, and increasing the risk of operator error (through accidental triggering of a wrong button, for example). Before employing gloves in a work situation, ensure that the overall force needed to perform manual tasks is reduced as much as possible, and increase the space between controls to compensate for the loss in dexterity in the gloved hands. This way the protective benefits of gloves can be had, while minimizing the drawbacks.

Exercise Programs: Do They Have A Place In Ergonomic Interventions?

In the previous post, I mentioned how the exercise ball had a role in the ergonomics profession (that is, as part of a well-designed exercise program). How does this relate to improved work performance?

Among other benefits, exercise has been shown to:

• Reduce feelings of depression and anxiety
• Promote psychological well-being and reduce feelings of stress
• Help build and maintain healthy bones, muscles, and joints
• Helps older adults become stronger and better able to move about without falling or becoming excessively fatigued

(Source: Center for Disease Control)

By mitigating the effects of depression, and engendering a positive outlook on life, exercise programs can allow a worker to better focus on the task at hand, rather than allowing stress to damage their productivity levels. The occupational health journal Work published an article on occupational stress cessation techniques in 2001, stating that short periods of meditation, the practice of daily exercise programs can be helpful to workers experiencing occupational stress.

(Source: Work, Volume 17, Number 3 / 2001, pg 235-245)

Nevertheless, exercise should not be substituted for ergonomic engineering interventions in a workplace suffering from high levels of occupational injury and illness, just like a band-aid should not be substituted for a proper dressing on a gaping wound. Exercise programs have an optimizing effect on well-being in any work environment, but all the stretching and weightlifting in the world won't prevent a badly-designed assembly line from causing high incidences of back, shoulder and wrist injuries.

As with any post/topic on this blog, debate and discussion is encouraged.

Sunday Spotlight: Exercise Balls

If you are relatively familiar with the latest developments in seating trends in the office, then you may have caught wind of the recent craze surrounding exercise balls. Some consultants have recommended their use over the traditional office chair, citing the active use of muscles to keep the worker stable, reducing static postures.

Yet, as an ergonomic consultant with a degree in Kinesiology, I must come out against the use of exercise balls as a seating option in the workplace.

Why is this?

Since this chair lacks back support of any kind, this means that back muscles are in active contractions for up to 8 hours a day or more, leading to fatigue and IMO, the possibility of overuse injuries. Furthermore, the risk of being suddenly startled could lead to a fall, with consequences ranging from an embarrassing moment, to the risk of incurring an acute injury (think hot coffee spilling everywhere, or hitting your wrist or head on a hard surface). The exercise ball has its role within the ergonomic universe though, as part of a well-designed exercise program. Healthier employees make more productive employees; the exercise ball allows core stabilizers to be strengthened through various routines, thus allowing it to a valuable contributor in this context.

As far as office seating goes, a well-designed chair with adjustable height, armrests, and back support will allow the worker to maintain neutral postures. Combined with regular breaks and microbreaks, this allows the muscles and joints to experience the least stress necessary in the tasks they perform, reducing the chance that a musculoskeletal disorder will develop.

The Definition of Ergonomics, And Why We Need To Be Aware Of Ergo Charlatans

Out of all the questions faced by ergonomics professionals, the one that is posed the most reflects the lack of mainstream exposure that our profession has gotten. That question of course, is what the heck is ergonomics anyway?

Taken literally, ergonomics means "work laws", derived from the Greek term ergo nomos.

Applied practically, it means the study of interactions between humans and the work systems they use everyday. Based on these observations, measures are undertaken in an effort to improve the usability and safety of these work systems, thereby reducing injuries, fatalities and material waste, as well as increasing worker productivity.

These days, ergonomics is starting to become better known in pop culture, through "ergonomically-designed" snow shovels or garden tools. Vigilance must be undertaken by all ergonomics professionals on this point, as failing to point out unwarranted claims of ergonomic compliance by opportunistic marketers will cheapen the "ergo" brand as a whole, which will make it harder to sell our profession as an immensely useful part of the scientific & engineering community.

Welcome To The Industrial Athlete

Through a cursory examination of the science and engineering blogosphere, there seems to be a lack of information regarding human factors and ergonomics. This blog will aim to fill that gap, posting the latest news on topics relating to human factors and ergonomics, providing commentary on various issues within the field, and providing case studies that, in time, will allow collaborative problem solving on various workplace problems.

Feedback is welcome and encouraged from the ergonomics community. Together, let's see where this venture can lead!