Ergonomics Contributions to Company Strategies

Managers usually associate ergonomics with occupational health and safety and related legislation, not with business performance. In many companies, these decision makers seem not to be positively motivated to apply ergonomics for reasons of improving health and safety. In order to strengthen the position of ergonomics and ergonomists in the business and management world, we discuss company strategies and business goals to which ergonomics could contribute. Conceptual models are presented and examples are given to illustrate: (1) the present situation in which ergonomics is not part of regular planning and control cycles in organizations to ensure business performance; and (2) the desired situation in which ergonomics is an integrated part of strategy formulation and implementation. In order to realize the desired situation, considerable changes must take place within the ergonomics research, education and practice community by moving from a health ergonomics paradigm to a business ergonomics paradigm, without losing the health and safety goals.

[1]  Canan Ceylan,et al.  Can the office environment stimulate a manager's creativity? , 2008 .

[2]  R. Wells,et al.  Roles and Relationships for Making Ergonomics Change: Results of a 2-Day focus session with industry personnel , 1999 .

[3]  Rabindra Nath Sen,et al.  Cost effectiveness of ergonomic redesign of electronic motherboard. , 2003, Applied ergonomics.

[4]  Peter Vink,et al.  Enhancing the impact of ergonomic interventions , 2003 .

[5]  L. Pepper,et al.  Downsizing and health at the United States Department of Energy. , 2003, American journal of industrial medicine.

[6]  Greg R. Oldham,et al.  Enhancing Creativity: Managing Work Contexts for the High Potential Employee , 1997 .

[7]  Göran M Hägg,et al.  The impact on musculoskeletal disorders of changing physical and psychosocial work environment conditions in the automobile industry , 2001 .

[8]  R. Gourlay At the interface , 1996, The Lancet.

[9]  Paul Lanoie,et al.  Costs and benefits of preventing workplace accidents: The case of participatory ergonomics , 1996 .

[10]  Sean A. Way High Performance Work Systems and Intermediate Indicators of Firm Performance Within the US Small Business Sector , 2002 .

[11]  Martin G. Helander,et al.  A Guide to Human Factors and Ergonomics , 2005 .

[12]  M. E. Philips,et al.  Dialog och uppslutning : Arbetsorganisatorisk förnyelse i industriarbetet , 1990 .

[13]  Jaana Pentti,et al.  Effect of organisational downsizing on health of employees , 1997, The Lancet.

[14]  J. Pfeffer Producing sustainable competitive advantage through the effective management of people , 1995 .

[15]  Computer Staff,et al.  The Machine That Changed the World , 1992 .

[16]  R. Eisenberger,et al.  Perceived Organizational Support and Employee Diligence, Commitment, and Innovation , 1990 .

[17]  Gil A. Preuss High Performance Work Systems and Organizational Outcomes: The Mediating Role of Information Quality , 2003 .

[18]  Robert B Tate,et al.  The three-year economic benefits of a ceiling lift intervention aimed to reduce healthcare worker injuries. , 2005, Applied ergonomics.

[19]  Danny Miller,et al.  The people make the process: commitment to employees, decision making, and performance , 2001 .

[20]  Per Langaa Jensen,et al.  Human factors and ergonomics in the planning of production , 2002 .

[21]  Maurice Oxenburgh,et al.  Increasing Productivity and Profit through Health and Safety: The Financial Returns from a Safe Working Environment , 2004 .

[22]  Patrick Neumann,et al.  Production Ergonomics: Identifying and Managing Risk in the Design of High Performance Work Systems , 2004 .

[23]  Alison M. Dean Links between organisational and customer variables in service delivery: Evidence, contradictions and challenges , 2004 .

[24]  J Petzäll,et al.  Ergonomics in parallelized car assembly: a case study, with reference also to productivity aspects. , 1996, Applied ergonomics.

[25]  Kwangtae Park,et al.  An international comparison of the effect of manufacturing strategy-implementation gap on business performance , 2001 .

[26]  C. Markides Strategic Innovation in Established Companies , 1998 .

[27]  Jeffrey K. Liker,et al.  The Toyota way : 14 management principles from the world's greatest manufacturer , 2004 .

[28]  G. S. Dangayach,et al.  Manufacturing strategy: Literature review and some issues , 2001 .

[29]  Patrick Neumann,et al.  HUMAN FACTORS TOOL USE AMONG SWEDISH ERGONOMISTS , 2007 .

[30]  J. Barney,et al.  On becoming a strategic partner: The role of human resources in gaining competitive advantage , 1998 .

[31]  Abby Ghobadian,et al.  TQM implementation: An empirical examination and proposed generic model , 2001 .

[32]  Martin G. Helander,et al.  Cost effectiveness of ergonomics and quality improvements in electronics manufacturing , 1995 .

[33]  Anders Sundin,et al.  A different perspective in participatory ergonomics in product development improves assembly work in the automotive industry , 2004 .

[34]  W. Karwowski International encyclopedia of ergonomics and human factors , 2001 .

[35]  L Abrahamsson,et al.  Production economics analysis of investment initiated to improve working environment. , 2000, Applied ergonomics.

[36]  Anders Eriksson,et al.  Corporate ergonomics programme at Volvo Car Corporation. , 2003, Applied ergonomics.

[37]  G. H. Tuinzaad,et al.  A participatory and integrative approach to improve productivity and ergonomics in assembly , 2003 .

[38]  S. Parker Longitudinal effects of lean production on employee outcomes and the mediating role of work characteristics. , 2003, The Journal of applied psychology.

[39]  B. L. Miles,et al.  Design for Manufacture and Assembly , 1998 .

[40]  Tomas Engström,et al.  Reflective Production in the Final Assembly of Motor Vehicles - An Emerging Swedish Challenge , 1992 .

[41]  Ole Broberg,et al.  Integrating ergonomics into the product development process , 1997 .

[42]  Jose Ignacio Castresana Ruiz-Carrillo,et al.  Theoretical foundation of the EFQM model: the resource-based view , 2005 .

[43]  Bradley S Joseph,et al.  Corporate ergonomics programme at Ford Motor Company. , 2003, Applied ergonomics.

[44]  Cary L. Cooper,et al.  The effects of lean production on worker job stress , 2006 .

[45]  Henry Mintzberg The Strategy Concept I: Five Ps for Strategy , 1987 .

[46]  H Hemingway,et al.  Organisational downsizing and musculoskeletal problems in employees: a prospective study , 2001, Occupational and environmental medicine.

[47]  Kim J. Vicente,et al.  The Human Factor - Revolutionizing the way people live with technology , 2004 .

[48]  E. Hippel,et al.  Lead users: a source of novel product concepts , 1986 .

[49]  Wallace J. Hopp,et al.  On the Interface Between Operations and Human Resources Management , 2003, Manuf. Serv. Oper. Manag..

[50]  Hal W Hendrick,et al.  Determining the cost-benefits of ergonomics projects and factors that lead to their success. , 2003, Applied ergonomics.

[51]  Hulda Ólafsdóttir,et al.  Increase in musculoskeletal symptoms of upper limbs among women after introduction of the flow-line in fish-fillet plants , 1998 .

[52]  Harry Sminia,et al.  Strategy formation as layered discussion , 2005 .

[53]  K S Lee,et al.  Ergonomics in total quality management: How can we sell ergonomics to management? , 2005, Ergonomics.

[54]  Axel Brassler,et al.  Valuation of strategic production decisions , 2001 .

[55]  J. J. Dahlgaard,et al.  A causal model for employee satisfaction , 2000 .

[56]  M. Robson International marketing research , 2005 .

[57]  P Carayon,et al.  Macroergonomics and total quality management: how to improve quality of working life? , 1999, International journal of occupational safety and ergonomics : JOSE.

[58]  John R. Wilson,et al.  Human factors in organisational design and management , 1985 .

[59]  T. A. Wright,et al.  When a happy worker is a productive worker: A preliminary examination of three models , 2002 .

[60]  D. D. Hartog,et al.  High performance work systems, organisational culture and firm effectiveness , 2004 .

[61]  R A Haslam,et al.  Processes, barriers, and outcomes described by ergonomics consultants in preventing work-related musculoskeletal disorders. , 2004, Applied ergonomics.

[62]  V. Swaen,et al.  See How 'Good' We Are: The Dangers of Using Corporate Social Activities in Communication Campaigns , 2003 .

[63]  Paul H.P. Yeow,et al.  Quality, productivity, occupational health and safety and cost effectiveness of ergonomic improvements in the test workstations of an electronic factory , 2003 .

[64]  Hal W. Hendrick Hfes Presidential Good Ergonomics Is Good Economics , 1996 .

[65]  Jan Dul,et al.  The Position and Success of Certified European Ergonomists , 2005 .

[66]  Peter R. Magnusson,et al.  Users as a Hidden Resource for Creativity: Findings from an Experimental Study on User Involvement , 2002 .

[67]  Gary W. Loveman,et al.  Putting the Service-Profit Chain to Work , 1994 .

[68]  M. Porter Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance , 1985 .

[69]  T. Hardjono,et al.  Introduction on the European Corporate Sustainability Framework (ECSF) , 2004 .

[70]  J. Barney Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage , 1991 .

[71]  Chih-Hsing Chu,et al.  An online ergonomic evaluator for 3D product design , 2005, Comput. Ind..

[72]  P. Adler,et al.  Ergonomics, Employee Involvement, and the Toyota Production System: A Case Study of Nummi'S 1993 Model Introduction , 1997 .

[73]  長町 三生,et al.  Design for manufacturability : a systems approach to concurrent engineering and ergonomics , 1992 .

[74]  J A Eklund,et al.  Relationships between ergonomics and quality in assembly work. , 1995, Applied ergonomics.

[75]  Martin G. Helander,et al.  A guide to human factors and ergonomics (2. ed.) , 2006 .

[76]  J. W. van Rhijn,et al.  Efficient flow and human centred assembly : the succes of an interactive approach , 2000 .

[77]  D. Beevis Ergonomics--costs and benefits revisited. , 2003, Applied ergonomics.

[78]  B Kirwan,et al.  Soft systems, hard lessons. , 2000, Applied ergonomics.

[79]  T Björkman,et al.  The rationalisation movement in perspective and some ergonomic implications. , 1996, Applied ergonomics.

[80]  C. Shalley,et al.  The Effects of Personal and Contextual Characteristics on Creativity: Where Should We Go from Here? , 2004 .

[81]  Gil Preuss,et al.  Manufacturing Advantage: Why High-Performance Work Systems Pay Off , 2001 .

[82]  Svend Erik Mathiassen,et al.  A case study evaluating the ergonomic and productivity impacts of partial automation strategies in the electronics industry , 2002 .

[83]  A. Burdorf,et al.  Health problems lead to considerable productivity loss at work among workers with high physical load jobs. , 2005, Journal of clinical epidemiology.

[84]  Gary P. Pisano,et al.  Toward a Theory of Behavioral Operations , 2008, Manuf. Serv. Oper. Manag..

[85]  E A P Koningsveld,et al.  Enhancing the impact of ergonomics interventions , 2005, Ergonomics.

[86]  Nadia Bhuiyan,et al.  Implementing concurrent engineering , 2006, IEEE Engineering Management Review.

[87]  Teresa M. Amabile,et al.  Assessing the Work Environment for Creativity , 1996 .

[88]  J. Dul The Strategic Value of Ergonomics for Companies , 2003 .

[89]  E. Scalia OSHA’s ergonomics litigation record: Three strikes and it’s out , 2001 .

[90]  Colin Potts,et al.  Design of Everyday Things , 1988 .

[91]  Colin G. Drury,et al.  Ergonomics and quality in paced assembly lines , 2001 .

[92]  C. Drury Global quality: Linking ergonomics and production , 2000 .

[93]  James Guthrie,et al.  HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND LABOR PRODUCTIVITY: DOES INDUSTRY MATTER? , 2005 .

[94]  Svend Erik Mathiassen,et al.  Production system design elements influencing productivity and ergonomics - A case study of parallel and serial flow strategies , 2006 .

[95]  Martin G. Helander Seven common reasons to not implement ergonomics , 2000 .

[96]  P. Landsbergis,et al.  The impact of lean production and related new systems of work organization on worker health. , 1999, Journal of occupational health psychology.

[97]  Shrawan Kumar,et al.  Effects of progressive levels of industrial automation on force and repetitive movements of the wrist , 2000 .

[98]  W. Bodmer Principles of Scientific Management , 1993, FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

[99]  Andy C.L. Yeung,et al.  The impact of employee satisfaction on quality and profitability in high-contact service industries , 2008 .

[100]  C. Perrow The organizational context of human factors engineering. , 1983, Administrative science quarterly.

[101]  J. Wiley,et al.  Driving service effectiveness through employee-customer linkages , 2002 .

[102]  Richard O. Mason,et al.  The Virtuous Organization:: The Value of Happiness in the Workplace , 2004 .

[103]  Tomas Engström,et al.  Empirical Evaluation of the Reformed Assembly Work at the Volvo Uddevalla Plant. Psychosocial effects and performance aspects , 1995 .

[104]  Ole Broberg,et al.  The OHS consultant as a ‘political reflective navigator’ in technological change processes , 2004 .

[105]  James Campbell Quick,et al.  Healthy, Happy, Productive Work: A Leadership Challenge. , 2004 .