HAVING STUDIED the subject of Human Factors engineering also known as “Ergonomics”, I was able to learn about many new things. I never thought before that environment and the workstation play an important role in quality and performance of the work that we all do. Being a student, I know the feeling of sitting next to a book bored with the pressure of securing good grades. We try again and again to sit and practise math, physics, chemistry, etc but we end up “Blank!” i.e. having no idea about what I have just read.
Today in our ergonomics class we discussed about the computer workstation where we were assigned to search for the characteristics that make it up to be called good. We surfed through the internet, went to library, did research even performed practical experimentation by physically involving ourselves on one of the workstations and taking measures from measuring tape. We toke interview of people using the computers in our labs. We ended up with one thing as a great lesson that the workstation can inject a lot of productivity to a worker. Human beings are not machines and the fact is that the machines also need environment. The coordinate measuring machine will not be able to perform if it is placed in an uncontrolled dusty environment. So, the layout and workplace design of that machine also has great impact on its performance as like human beings.
Ergonomics gave me a brief overview to the unnoticeable hurdle that was the cause of my downfall in academic life. I was always a good student in my school times but in high school the table turned around. The reason is indeed very simple; in fact a “common sense”. The way I was studying today was totally different from the way I used to study in school. In school times I had this little bright blue and red coloured studying table and chair with the perfect fit for my body. The table was a constant source of attraction for me throughout the day and it always allowed me to leave out all of my other activities and actually come to the table to study myself. The table had the perfect lamp with bright white light that always suited my eyes and made the text on the books look so beautiful and crisp that I could never resist myself looking at it. Then when I grew up and went to high school I had shifted to another room and because all of my body measurements changed; the new layout has never fitted me since.
The learning activity that we did in the university helped me identify blocks and problems in my studying table layout. The table I was using then had its design at very awkward angles where I had to sit very close to it, sometimes far from it in a difficult position. The surface was very high where it was always difficult for me to write getting tired all the times. My documents were always messed up with no proper design of placement. No drawers, shelves or anything that would help me organize my desk. It was indeed too much of a simple design for being even called a table, ha-ha. The ergonomic computer workstation gave me many ideas to set up my studying table. I myself drew a new design where I measured my height along with lengths of different parts of my body, placed them at 90 degree angle for the chair. Then I adjusted the height of the table accordingly with a proper foot-rest area which I never had before. I bought a Fluorescent Desk Lamp which did not strain my eyes. The chair was fairly easier for me to buy then because of the ergonomic class. I was able to set up my table entirely to fit my body and today I was able to type this article on to my computer easily because I am using the same table today for my computer as it was based on the concepts of “computer workstation” ha-ha.
It was indeed a great experience to learn about human fit to designs. Even an ordinary ink pen has to follow ergonomic standards and meet the human factors of its user. From the quality of its writing to its body frame and ease of holding there are several aspects of just this pen. From kitchen to our bathrooms human factors engineering is playing a great role in development of products that human beings have created. This is a never ending journey and I am sure with time to come ergonomics is going to create ingeniously what I believe is not any more mere “common sense”.
The writer is an undergraduate student at University of Management and Technology, Lahore, studying bachelors in industrial engineering.HAVING STUDIED the subject of Human Factors engineering also known as “Ergonomics”, I was able to learn about many new things. I never thought before that environment and the workstation play an important role in quality and performance of the work that we all do. Being a student, I know the feeling of sitting next to a book bored with the pressure of securing good grades. We try again and again to sit and practise math, physics, chemistry, etc but we end up “Blank!” i.e. having no idea about what I have just read.
Today in our ergonomics class we discussed about the computer workstation where we were assigned to search for the characteristics that make it up to be called good. We surfed through the internet, went to library, did research even performed practical experimentation by physically involving ourselves on one of the workstations and taking measures from measuring tape. We toke interview of people using the computers in our labs. We ended up with one thing as a great lesson that the workstation can inject a lot of productivity to a worker. Human beings are not machines and the fact is that the machines also need environment. The coordinate measuring machine will not be able to perform if it is placed in an uncontrolled dusty environment. So, the layout and workplace design of that machine also has great impact on its performance as like human beings.
Ergonomics gave me a brief overview to the unnoticeable hurdle that was the cause of my downfall in academic life. I was always a good student in my school times but in high school the table turned around. The reason is indeed very simple; in fact a “common sense”. The way I was studying today was totally different from the way I used to study in school. In school times I had this little bright blue and red coloured studying table and chair with the perfect fit for my body. The table was a constant source of attraction for me throughout the day and it always allowed me to leave out all of my other activities and actually come to the table to study myself. The table had the perfect lamp with bright white light that always suited my eyes and made the text on the books look so beautiful and crisp that I could never resist myself looking at it. Then when I grew up and went to high school I had shifted to another room and because all of my body measurements changed; the new layout has never fitted me since.
The learning activity that we did in the university helped me identify blocks and problems in my studying table layout. The table I was using then had its design at very awkward angles where I had to sit very close to it, sometimes far from it in a difficult position. The surface was very high where it was always difficult for me to write getting tired all the times. My documents were always messed up with no proper design of placement. No drawers, shelves or anything that would help me organize my desk. It was indeed too much of a simple design for being even called a table, ha-ha. The ergonomic computer workstation gave me many ideas to set up my studying table. I myself drew a new design where I measured my height along with lengths of different parts of my body, placed them at 90 degree angle for the chair. Then I adjusted the height of the table accordingly with a proper foot-rest area which I never had before. I bought a Fluorescent Desk Lamp which did not strain my eyes. The chair was fairly easier for me to buy then because of the ergonomic class. I was able to set up my table entirely to fit my body and today I was able to type this article on to my computer easily because I am using the same table today for my computer as it was based on the concepts of “computer workstation” ha-ha.
It was indeed a great experience to learn about human fit to designs. Even an ordinary ink pen has to follow ergonomic standards and meet the human factors of its user. From the quality of its writing to its body frame and ease of holding there are several aspects of just this pen. From kitchen to our bathrooms human factors engineering is playing a great role in development of products that human beings have created. This is a never ending journey and I am sure with time to come ergonomics is going to create ingeniously what I believe is not any more mere “common sense”.
The writer is an undergraduate student at University of Management and Technology, Lahore, studying bachelors in industrial engineering.

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