Ergonomics

Introduction

This article presents an overview of the relationship of Ergonomics (also known as Human Factors) to occupational safety and health (OSH). It describes briefly the historical background of Ergonomics. It describes how ergonomics can be applied to OSH and how it fits with the legislative framework for OSH in the European Union. It summarises the application areas of Ergonomics that relate to OSH and lists professional bodies in ergonomics and current sources of information.

Definition

According to the official definition of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA)[1], ‘Ergonomics (or human factors) is the scientific discipline…