Title: A multipath methodology to promote ergonomics, safety and efficiency in agile factories

Authors: Silvia Ceccacci; Marco Matteucci; Margherita Peruzzini; Maura Mengoni

Addresses: Università Politecnica delle Marche, via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy ' Università Politecnica delle Marche, via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy ' Università Politecnica delle Marche, via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy ' Università Politecnica delle Marche, via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy

Abstract: An important area of risk management practice for manufacturing companies relates to the prevention of injuries and musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The greater benefits can be achieved where a preventive approach is used, based on ergonomic design of workplaces and attention to human requirements and limitations as well as human-machine interaction principles. The research aims at providing a pragmatic approach to support the application of ergonomic risk management in practice. It defines a multipath methodology to investigate human factors impacting on safety by considering the specific workspace, the adopted tools, the overall production environment and the workers' activity. An industrial case study is described to illustrate the methodology and demonstrate the benefits for companies. Results suggest that the proposed multipath methodology allow to effectively assist analysts in the definition of crucial risk factors and selection of proper ergonomics assessment and measurement tools according to the specific context of application.

Keywords: ergonomics; human-centred design; HCD; risk management; design methods; digital manufacturing.

DOI: 10.1504/IJASM.2019.104582

International Journal of Agile Systems and Management, 2019 Vol.12 No.4, pp.407 - 436

Received: 14 Oct 2017
Accepted: 23 Sep 2018
Published online: 21 Jan 2020 *

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