Ergonomics is to the process of arranging systems, furniture, and flow of a workplace in order to help improve both comfort and efficiency for you and members of your team. It actually plays a huge role not only in productivity, creativity and even safety, plus it can also help to improve co-worker engagement and increase their levels of happiness and satisfaction.
Another huge benefit of optimizing ergonomic processes is that it can save costs, not only directly, but by helping to prevent a range of ergonomic injuries in the workplace.
There is a lot of information online relating on how to improve ergonomics in the workplace. We've selected the most powerful office ergonomics tips that can be used to update your place of work.
These changes do not necessarily cost a lot of money either, in fact, many can be made on a small budget. These simple adjustments will save your business plenty of money in the long run. Implement some of the ideas listed below and you'll sure to notice a difference in how your employee’s work habits and productivity.
1. Understand Common Injuries in The Workplace
The first step to truly optimizing any workplace is to first understand the common injuries which typically occur in this type of setting.
For example, in offices, you can expect to see repetitive strain injury things like back pain from poorly designed chairs, as well as musculoskeletal disorders, tissue damage, eye issues, and even spinal disc issues.
Of course, the type of issues will vary depending on the type of workplace you have. So for example, office workers will be more prone to different injuries compared to people that work as mechanics.
Understand the issues in your sector and you will be much more likely to create an optimised and safe work environment for your staff and yourself. A great to research is to simply ask your employees what issues they are having at work, what could be improved, what do they think needs changing?
2. Pay Attention to the Four Points of Contact
Once you have identified the main challenges within the workplace, you can then go about creating solutions for them. One of the most popular models when it comes to ergonomics is called the ‘four points of contact’ model.
This applies to anyone who works in some sort of office setting. The four points of contact are;
● The eyes to the source which refers to the way that the computer screen is positioned in relation to the office worker’s face and eyes.
● The body to the chair, and this is also related to the seating area.
● The hands to the input device which refers to the mouse and keypad.
● The feet to the floor.
3. Know What to Consider When Buying Office Furniture
Nowadays, almost all office furniture is labelled as ergonomic, so it can be confusing to know what would be best for your work as needs. However, there are a few things to take into consideration. You can take these considerations and adjust them into your own checklist.
● All chairs should be able to offer a height adjustment option.
● All chairs should offer padded backrest that can tilt both forward and backwards and has adequate lumbar support.
● Any piece of furniture that is in the workplace station should be adjustable and have enough space for employees to safely and efficiently perform their tasks.
● Standing on your feet too long can sometimes create a variety of foot problems, so be aware of this if you want to replace seated desks for standing ones. Consider using the sit-stand ones (sit-stand-active ones would be the best) that allow you and you team members to use both functions interchangeably.
● Make sure that monitors have adjustable brightness and contrast settings, and are free from any form of flickering which causes eye issues.
● You may want to think about bringing in some extra furniture such as footrests to improve comfort, headsets or even better lighting in the office space.
4. Educate Your Staff about Good Posture
You can also help to better your office ergonomics by training up your staff. There are a number of different types of training that can help to educate your staff on how to best use their equipment and their bodies to prevent injury.
It is important that employees know to frequently take a small break - even if it's just to stretch their body. Educate them how long to stand if they’re using the standing desk, how to use a sit-stand desk, as well as to mix up their movements so they're not doing the same thing again and again day after day is this it can cause injury regardless of what type of equipment they are using.
5. Add Some Light Workout Sessions
You can also try things like having weekly yoga teachers come in and teach yoga classes to help your employees move their body.
Pilates on the mat is also very good choice. Mat Pilates is a way to stretch and strengthen your body, primarily the muscles of the core, which span from your hips to your shoulders. This should improve the body composition and lessen chances of getting injured from sitting for long hours.
There are also things like meditation classes which can encourage more efficiency and productivity too.
Follow the above tips and you'll be making a huge change to your workplace ergonomics. And remember, these systems and techniques are continuously changing updating as more and more data on the study of ergonomics is released. So be sure to review and renew your systems at least on an annual basis.
About the Author: Victoria Hill has been writing as a ghostwriter ever since she was in college. Her favorite topics are human development, business communication, modern and pop art, minimalism, and self-development.
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