ERGONOMICS in the Office Environment

Managing Preventable Injuries In the Office Environment

Ergonomics
From the Greek Ergo (Work) and Nomos (Law)

Means fitting the work and the worker together so that both are well matched to one another.

Fictional Computer Villains

Plot to take over the world

Enslave people to serve machines

Passionlessly terminate opponents

See and Know everything

Real Computer Villains

Create physical, emotional and mental pain gradually

Enslave users through promised (though never realized) productivity Easily loose critical information

The Worker
The average office worker rarely receives instruction how to properly set up her area for comfort and efficiency Normally she has arranged her area by trial and error Or she has left it very close to the arrangement of the person who just clocked out (Who also never adjusted it)

Sitting Posture

Back rest adjusted to provide good lumbar support

Seated
Good Seating is foundational to overall good office worker posture and position. Trunk upright or slightly reclining (10 degrees or less)
One fist width (3-3 1/2) knee to chair edge

Rule of 90s

Seated
Elbows at 90 degrees or slightly less with a neutral shoulder

Knees hips and ankles at 90 degrees or slightly less

Neutral Neck

Seated or Standing
Neck should be neutral to slightly forward flexed

Neck should never be held in extension while working

Dynamic rotation of the head should be limited to 30 degrees side to side Static rotation of the head to face the monitor or work is not acceptable

Look familiar?
This posture should be corrected with a headset or use of a speaker phone.

Twisting and Bending

Seats should pivot, not backs or hips May be a clue the space is too restricted May indicate flaws in workstation setup or work flow May relate to bad habits and require education of staff

Static Working Postures

Static loading causes an anaerobic condition in skeletal muscle. Sustained hold of limbs or objects against gravity or resistance creates resting tension. Symptoms of fatigue, stiffness and pain result from doing little or nothing at all. Workers should vary tasks at least every two hours.

Interface Pressures
32mm of mercury is sufficient to cut off capillary blood flow

Nerve is unforgiving of sustained pressures in every case

Reach and Excursion

How far is too far to reach when seated?

Comfort Zone
Horizontal Arc of Grasp
Optimum Working Distance 30 wide x 17 forward reach

10

12 17

22 26

20

39 63

Maximum vs. Comfortable Reach

63 inches

As as general rule forward reach should be limited to 2/3 of maximum for routine seated work

0 32 inches

Appropriate Breaks
Breaks are not always rest periods

Balance work activities with worker biorhythms

Change position and tasks at least every two hours Tasks must use different muscle groups and vary requirements for posture, pinch and grip

The Workstation

Ideal

VS

Reality

Maximum Adjustability

Since workers vary in shape, size, gender and stature the workstation needs to be flexible

The Worker and Workstation should fit one another

Desk Height

Sitting

30-33 inches for writing desk 23-29 inches for keyboarding*

* An add on adjustable keyboard tray may often be used to correct desk height

Establish right to left work flow

The workstation should accommodate logical flow of work and be able to contain all routinely used items without extended reach. As a rule, when using things infrequently, get up and take a break from the workstation to retrieve them.

Proper Mouse Placement

The mouse should always be positioned on the same level and as close to the keyboard as possible (NOT ALONE ON THE DESKTOP!) It should never require extended reach or contact with the edge of any surface It is often necessary to add an additional mousing surface to keyboard drawers or trays.

Keyboards
In most cases keyboards should be flat or declined not inclined to achieve neutral wrist flexion Never use split or folded keyboards with typists that need to look at the keys Wrist rests are not recommended Inclined keyboards are a throwback to typewriters

Monitor
Monitor distance should be a minimum of 20 inches (no more than 30) Brightness needs to be about 10x greater than a sheet of paper held to the screen. Position so that no light source reflects from its surface when it is off Flat screens provide a much smaller footprint

Bad isnt Always Bad :

A brief disclaimer:
If a workstation is rarely used throughout the workday (less than 2 hours total) and/or the worker is at the keyboard for a few minutes at a time and constantly changing position an ergonomically awful setup may be fine for the present.

Stretches
Stretches and desk exercises are controversial Theory: Unused muscle gets a chance to lengthen and rest, blood flow is increased. Why not take a walk down the hall, file reports or do other productive tasks instead?