The College of Engineering

[IE 386] Work Analysis and Design I

IE386
Lecture 8 Design of Work Areas, Tools, and Equipment Chapter 3
Dr. Mustafa Sendil, Dr. Takeaki Toma, Dr. Hadi Jaber
Primary reference textbooks:
Stephan Konz & Steven Johnson, “Work Design” (7th edition)
Mikell P. Groover, “Work Systems & Methods, Measurement, and Management of Work”
 APPLIED ANTHROPOMETRY
• Relate basic measures of human size, strength, and bodily motion to design criteria used
by designers interested in creating things that fit or otherwise better match the size or
other aspect of the human body.
• Some of these basic measures and design criteria are shown in Table 3.1.
• Design criteria of “Fit” anthropometric measures are size/shape of body, hands, feet,
head, nose, ears, and the length of fingers. The first criteria, fit, is especially appropriate
for describing more intimate types of items, which are worn by a person such as clothing,
ear plugs, gloves, or helmets. As such, fit requires body shape to be considered.
• Clearance requirements are often described in terms of the height and width of a
rectangular opening.
• Accessibility requirements is a somewhat overlapping criterion that refers to how easy it
is to reach something.
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 APPLIED ANTHROPOMETRY
• Inaccessibility requirements refer to situations where it is important to make sure something is
far enough away to make sure it might not be accidentally contacted.
• Postural criteria refer to the way particular combinations of design elements and human bodily
measures interactively affect objectives such as the need to reduce bending, twisting, or
awkward sustained postures.
• Visibility criteria are for the most part concerned with blockages of vision as a function of
expected eye positions and the location of obstacles.
• Mechanical advantage criteria describe how characteristics of particular design affect the forces
people can exert.
• Adjustability criteria refer to how variability in particular bodily dimensions is accommodated by
particular design elements.
• Anthropometric Data Sources:
• US military (MILT 1452)
• NASA (STD-3000A)
• OSHA (CFR 1910) Table 3.1 Examples of Anthropometric Measures
and Criteria mapped to Design Elements and Objectives
pg:87
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 Work Height
• Set the work height using the elbow height.
• Work height is not table height.
• Optimum height is slightly (5 cm) below the elbow for light work.
• High precision work should be closer to a person’s eyes for clearer vision,
up to 10 cm higher than the elbow height
• Heavier work needs to be lower in order to bring stronger arm muscles into
play, as much as 20 cm below elbow height
• Bench heights for standing works:

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 Work Height

Recommended heights of benches for standing work. The reference line (±0) is
the height of the elbows above the floor, which averages 1050 mm for men and
980 mm for women.
 Work Height
• Solutions for Work Height:
• Change machine height.
• Adjust elbow height.
• Adjust work height on machine.
 Practical Guidelines for Work Layout
• Office VDT Workstations:
• Key items: screen, keyboard, document, eyes,
hands
• Make sure workstation furniture is adjustable.
• Locate the primary visual element first: ahead
of the eye, perpendicular to the line of sight.
• Train the operator in adjusting equipment.
• Provide a wrist rest.

• Too much wrist movement, extension, flexion,

ulnar or radial deviation causes pressure build
up in carpal tunnel so that medial nerve is
threatened.
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 Neck and Head Postures
• Eye-ear plane and Frankfurt plane of
the human head
• The Frankfurt plane goes through the
human head passing through the ear
canal holes and going through the
skull bonal structure at the bottom of
the eye sockets.
• Because of the bonal landmarks, this
plane is easily found and the line of
sight can be easily set at 10 to 15
degrees below the Frankfurt plane.

Figure 3.9 Eye-ear and

Frankfurt planes
Figure 3.8 Neutral Posture,
Good Driving Position (NASA)

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Neck and Head Postures

Figure 5.9 The cone of easy eye rotation.

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 Design of Seating
• The design should allow the sitter to change posture.
• Muscles need to relax occasionally to keep from some of
the cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs)
• Posture changes are necessary for blood to flow properly
to different parts of the body
• The height of the seat should be adaptable to specific
users if possible
• More seat depth is needed for long-term seating than for
short-term seating
• The bottom of the seat normally is tilted slightly (3–5°) from
front to back
• Automobile seating requires comfort over long time
periods of driving.
• Fast food restaurant chairs are shorter to motivate .

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 Design of Seating
• The chair should provide support in the
lumbar region of the of the sitter’s back.
• Space should be provided under the seat
and in front of the person for their feet
• Flat footrests should be provided for
stools and high chairs

• Most ergonomic designers would probably

select the ability to change posture as the
most important of the chair design
principles but some may select the lumbar
support principle. Both are very important.

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 Ergonomic Design
Considerations
• 7 guidelines concerning the physical design of the workstation

• Emphasis on repetitive work

• Product/equipment
• Job aids
• User selection
• Training of user

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 Practical Guidelines for Work Layout
1 Avoid any kind of bent or unnatural posture. Bending the trunk or the head
sideways is more harmful than bending forwards.

Strongly bent posture

while cleaning a casting in
a foundry. If the casting
was placed vertically it
could be cleaned with
substantially less static
load on the muscles of the
back.
 Practical Guidelines for Work Layout
2 Avoid keeping an arm outstretched either forwards or sideways. Such
postures not only lead to rapid fatigue but also markedly reduce the precision
and general level of skill of operations using the hands and arms.

Fitting components onto a machine with the arm continuously outstretched. The static loads on the
right arm and on the shoulder muscles are tiring and reduce skill. The machine should be
redesigned so that the operator can work with the elbow lowered and bent at right angles.
 Practical Guidelines for Work Layout
• Hands/Arms
• An arm weighs about 4.4 kg.
• Avoid using the hand to hold up a tool or
work piece.
• Avoid working with elevated hands.
• Support the arms on the work surface or
chair arms.
• Consider using magnification.
• The armrests height of a chair should
be at elbow height
• Don’t bend your wrist.
• Don’t lift your elbow.
• Don’t reach behind your back.
• Follow guidelines for hand and arm
motions.

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 Practical Guidelines for Work Layout
3 Work sitting down as much as possible. Workplaces where the operator
can choose to either stand or sit are recommended.

Figure 5.7 Alternately sitting and standing at work

(Dimensions are in cm).
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 Practical Guidelines for Work Layout

4 Arm movements should be either in opposition to each other or

otherwise symmetrical. Moving one arm by itself sets up static loads
on the trunk muscles. Furthermore, symmetrical movements of the
arms facilitate nervous control of the operation.

Use 2-hand motions rather than 1-hand motions

• Cranking with 2 arms is 25% more efficient than with one.

• Using 2 hands is more productive despite taking more time and effort.
• Don’t use the hand as a fixture.
 Practical Guidelines for Work Layout
5 Hand grips, operating levers, tools and materials should be arranged in such a
way that the most frequent movements are carried out with the elbows bent
and near to the body. The best position for both strength and skill in the hands is
to have them 25-50 cm from the eyes, with the elbows lowered and bent at right
angles.

Grasp and reach envelopes

 For Tools, Materials, and Controls
• Tools, materials, and controls should be located close to the
point of use
• More frequently used items should be in the normal or
primary area of the reach envelop
• Less frequently used items should be placed in the
maximum (or secondary) region if space is limited
• Items that are very infrequently used may be placed
outside the secondary region
• However, extreme reaches should not be required
• There should be a definite and fixed place for all tools and
materials
• Gravity feed bins and containers should be used to deliver
materials close to the point of use.
• Materials and tools should be arranged in the sequence of use

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 Practical Guidelines for Work Layout
6 Use the feet as well as the hands

• The leg is slower and less dexterous than the hands.

• The legs can provide 3 times the power of the arms.
• Use pedals for power and control.
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Practical Guidelines for Work Layout
7 Use gravity; don’t oppose it

• Make movements horizontal or downward; avoid lifting.

• Consider using the weight of the body to increase mechanical
force.
• Use gravity to move material to the work.
• Use gravity as a fixture.
• Use gravity in feeding and disposal. 21
 G1: Use Special-Purpose Tools
• Benefit: Performs well tasks that are repeated many times/week
• Costs: Capital, maintenance, utility
• Analysis:
 Estimate years of use and usage/year
 Divide total cost by usage
 Compare to savings
• Tool Selection:
 Whether a tool is expensive depends on a detailed analysis, not just
capital cost.
 Benefits include savings beyond just labor savings (capability, quality,
etc.)

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 G2: Design Tools to Be Used by Either Hand
• For greater hand strength, design the tool
so that the dominant hand can use it.
• Design for use by either hand. Benefits:
 Includes the 10% of the population that
is left-handed.
 Allows nonpreferred hand to be used
when the preferred hand is engaged or
resting.

Handgrip Strength

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 G3: Use the Proper Grip
• Power grip: Tool handle perpendicular to the forearm axis. Direction of
force:
Parallel to forearm: electric iron, wood saw, Y-handle shovel
At an angle to forearm: hammer, hand axe, ice pick, chisel, pizza
cutter, pliers, power screwdriver
Applied as torque about forearm: screwdriver, allen wrench,
corkscrew
A power grip is 5 times stronger than a precision grip

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 G3: Use the Proper Grip
• Semipower grip: Fingers act as a group but thumb position changes.
 Oblique grip (Thumb aligned along tool axis): golf club
 Hook grip (Fingers wrap around tool, thumb is passive): scissors,
carrying a briefcase, lifting a box without handles
 Hook grips are preferable to pinch grips.
• Precision grip: About 20% strength of a power grip.
 Internal precision grip: table knife, toothbrush, bladerazor
 External precision grip :pencil, pen, spoon, chopsticks
 Forearm or tool may be supported
• Power grips wrap the whole hand about the tool grip, whereas precision grips
hold the tool with the fingers and the tool merely rests against the hand for
steadiness.

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 Precision Grip

Precision grips: Internal & external to the hand

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G4: Make the Grip Surface Smooth,
Compressible, and Nonconductive
• Smoothness reduces pressure points.
• Compressibility minimizes pressure on the hand.
• Nonconductivity reduces heat and cold problems and risk of
electric shock.
• Wood is a better material for tool handles than plastic because it
both absorbs heat more slowly and gives up heat more slowly
• Grip Diameter
 For power grip, 35 mm to 45 mm is optimal.
 For precision grip, use 9.5 mm to 12.7 mm

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G5: Consider the Angles of the Forearm, Grip, and Tool

• Grip design should create a sense of tool orientation from the feel
of the grip
 Asymmetrical design so person can hold the tool in correct way without
looking
• Good hand tool design provides adequate mechanical advantage
in applying forces
 Forces should be applied with the body part in its natural
orientation.

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G5: Consider the Angles of the Forearm, Grip, and Tool
• Angle
 Keep the wrist in neutral position.
 Best angle varies with posture.
 Consider changing the job to improve angle.
 Consider pistol-grip or bent tools.

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 Benefit / Cost Analysis of Tool Change
• A new manufacturing tool is expected to cost $150,000.00 but it would change the production rate
from 15 assemblies per day (in two daily shifts) to 40 during a single shift. Profit per each product is
$0.5. The expected lifetime of the tool is 6 years.
• The power for the machine is expected to cost $0.25 per hour and maintenance is priced at $1000 per
year.
• Currently three operators are needed for this process, but only one is expected to be required with
the new machine.
• Assume that the company uses $ 5 per hour for an employee.
• Should you as the manager of the ergonomics department recommend this purchase?
Cost: Benefit:
Capital: 150000/6 = 25000 /year Profit: 0.5x(40-15)x5x50 = 3125 /year
Maintenance: 1000 /year 1 worker replaces 6 workers
Utility = 0.25 /hour? Worker: 5x5/hourx2000hour/year = 50000/year
8 hour/day x 5 day/week x 50 week/year Total : 53125 /year
= 2000 hour/year
Utility = 0.25x2000 = 500 /year B/C = 53125/26500 = 2
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Total = 26500 /year 2>1 Make Purchase
Thank you for your attention ...