office ergonomics - the impact of new technology on offices - levent caglar - fira
DESCRIPTION
Adapting the office environment for new technology in back care. What organisations want - Creative and engaged employees who: • are motivated by their work environment • have choice and control over how and where they work • can collaborate with colleagues in person and remotely. Levent Çaglar Ergonomist [email protected]TRANSCRIPT
Adapting the office environment for
new technology in back care
Levent Çaglar
Ergonomist
Ergonomics Unit
Increased use of technology
• The use of technology in the
office has increased almost
exponentially in the last 40
years.
• Developments in technology
have allowed an increasingly
mobile workforce within the
office and beyond.
From calculators and main frame
computers to:
• Individual personal
computers
• Laptops with docking
stations
• Tablets with wi-fi
From telephones with switchboards
and operators to:
• Portable phones
• Mobile phones
• Smartphones
Storing and sharing information
• Mainframes
• PC hard discs
• Portable storage
• Wired networks
• Email and dial-up
• Internet
• Remote conferencing
• Wireless networks
• Cloud
Breaking away from the desk
All of these developments enable us to work
anywhere.
Time spent in the office
Depends on:
• Nature of the
organisation’s work
• Workers’ roles
• Teamwork
• Tasks
The lean approach
• Optimising office
space by finding tasks
that can use shared
space, even for
eating and working
• Taking account of
time spent away from
the office
Work styles
People move rapidly between:
• individual work
• remote communication – audio and video
• meetings in pairs or small groups (some
planned and others impromptu)
Many work in more than one location.
The right workspace and access to tools and
documents is more important than a fixed
desk and filing cabinet.
What organisations want
Creative and engaged employees who:
• are motivated by their work environment
• have choice and control over how and
where they work
• can collaborate with colleagues in person
and remotely.
Design needs for workspaces
• Spaces that encourage a variety of postures –
standing, sitting, perching, walking, relaxing
• Settings that encourage socialisation,
collaboration and learning/mentoring
• Environments that convey company ethos, that
employees are valued, and a sense of belonging
• Contrasting zones that support quiet
concentration, collaborative work and bustling
activity
Relaxed and more formal zones
Three types of workplace
for the future:
Workstations
General work areas
Informal work areas
Workstations
Fully ergonomically kitted out workstations
for tasks requiring higher concentration
• Height adjustable sit/stand desks
• Dual monitors on adjustable arms
• Adjustable and comfortable chairs
• Communication equipment
• Power access
General work areas
• Support collaboration
• Facilitate team work and meetings
• Short term computer work
• Less concentrated work such as
responding to emails, making calls
Formal and informal
Formal and informal
Formal and informal
Informal work areas
• Support creative, informal work
alone and collaboratively
• Also used for socialising, eating
or relaxing
• Quiet areas for reflection or
private conversations/calls
Radical approaches
• Ergonomics already has well tried and
proven answers for dedicated computer
workstations and general work areas.
• New work areas need to change
continuously to respond to the new
technology and to the work style of the
Millennials and Z generation.
Bringing the home to the office
• Innovative
• Attractive
• Less adjustable
• More comfortable
• More flexible
• Mobile
• Multi purpose
• Adaptable to new
technology
• Power enabled
A new ergonomics approach using furniture in
the way you do at home:
Typical Furniture
• Tables (sitting and standing height)
• Benches
• Stools (high and low)
• Perches
• Chairs
• Sofas
• Pods
Shedding light on the matter
New approach to lighting in these environments
• Locally adjustable
• Task lights at work areas
• Directional
• Soft
• Mobile
What next?
• Ergonomic guidelines on how to minimise
adopting unhealthy postures
• Strategically designing furniture and creating
environments which will automatically
encourage people to keep moving and
change postures
Any Questions?
Levent Çaglar
Ergonomist [email protected]
The latest in mobile office options!
Ergonomics Unit