Supervisors everywhere are paying more attention to the science of ergonomics. Making workers happier, both physically and mentally, is good for productivity rates and job morale as well. Here are a few of the ways employers are trying hard to capitalize on the ergonomic properties of their office.
Fun Chairs – some offices are ditching the straight backed desk chair of the past and moving to cooler, more functional office furniture. Nowadays it’s not uncommon to find items like (more…)

There are many benefits that come with the use of ergonomic chairs that most people can well depend on. The main purpose of these chairs are to give you less discomfort on your legs, wrist, back, and neck, while sitting at a desk. These chairs are known for their good advantages.
These types of office chairs prioritize the position of the person. Your position is very important, especially if you are someone who spends all day sitting down. These ergonomic chairs have seats with comfortable cushions. All of the parts of your body that get tired easily, ergonomic chairs (more…)

Work environments effect work performance. That is, if you are in any discomfort, it will distract you from the task you are being paid to do. For this reason many employers are getting on the band wagon for employee comfort. If your employer is not one of the enlightened, there are still some things you can do to increase comfort levels both at work and at home. There were good reasons we were told to sit straight at the table, (more…)

With a growing number of people spending a majority of their workweek in front of a computer monitor, there has been a new focus on developing the proper safety protocols in this area to prevent some of the health risks associated with such a prolonged, rigid working situation. First off, it is important to keep in mind that ideal ergonomic design is individualized; however, these pointers can be used to accommodate anyone with a personal or a shared work space. (more…)

Ergonomics is the science of adapting equipment to the human body. Correct design and proper posture during an activity can reduce an employee’s chance of repetitive stress industries. While most people thinking of ergonomics as applying to the design of office equipment, the science entails far more than just designing office environments. Engineers that design workspace layouts need to worry about the layout as well.

Insurance companies will go out of their way to prove an injury did not happen at work, but this is neither what can nor should occur. If a business (more…)

From its inception, ergonomics was the study of the natural laws of work. Rohmert’s law describes one of those lawsalthough no one’s quite sure who Rohmert is. Simply put, the law states that the maximum force that an individual’s muscles can exert decreases exponentially from the time the exertion begins. Exponential decay is decrease at a rate proportional to its value, modeled by the equation N(t) N₀e(- ?t). Human factors and ergonomics researchers use this law to find the “maximum holding time” in a given situation.The force decays due to the way in which energy is supplied to the muscles. The human circulatory system continuously sends nutrients to muscles so that there is always a ready supply of energy. Any task requiring maximum force will use most of that energy all at once, which the circulatory system will then attempt to replenish. However, it cannot do so at a rate faster than that which the body is using. (more…)

It’s often a joke in office-related humor (“I’m going to get carpal tunnel syndrome going through all these reports”), but as is often the case, the joking hides a grim truth. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) does affect people all over the world, and once detected, the treatment can be quite invasive.CTS affects the median nerve travelling through the carpal tunnel (the passageway in the wrist that connects the forearm to the palm). Specifically, CTS refers to a compression of that nerve, which results in numbness and/or tingling in the fingers, pain in the wrists, and pain in the arm and shoulder. People afflicted with CTS also experience swelling of the hand, which seems to worsen at night. If left untreated, the muscles involved can atrophy. (more…)