PHYSICAL ERGONOMICS
Work as EXERCISE. The things that we touch, what we do, where we do it, and how we move affects our health and wellbeing.
ViBody adopts a holistic approach to evaluate the physical requirements of work, product interaction, and environments and, through design, achieves the “just right” degree of physical conditioning.
The ViBody services:
- Manual task risks of musculoskeletal disorder including exertion, repetition, awkwardness, duration, vibration, acoustics, pinch points, cognitive demands or distractions, and other factors
- Anthropometrics (body shape and measurements) and functional movement patterns
- Job fit-to-work (are the jobs designed well to fit the range of people expected to be hired into these positions)
- Physical health conditioning opportunities to be active at work through environmental design
- Participatory ergonomics
- Equipment and tool design for optimum human-equipment interaction
- Environmental design
ViDesign helps examine the physical demands of work to condition the workforce, construct health, and reduce risk of work-related musculoskeletal disorders.
ViDesign champions team work to design for improved work environments, tasks, and jobs: A collaborative, participatory approach.
Discovery of physical work examines work-to-rest ratios, exertion levels, repetition rates, movement patterns, awkwardness, duration, environmental factors, combined with cognitive and psychosocial factors. It can include:
- Task and job analysis, including review of workflow and systems
- Review strategies to address manual task risk management
- Vehicle ergonomics assessments– when the vehicle cab is the “office”
- Event analysis to determine factors of causation or system erosion leading to injuries, illness, disease, fatality, &/or productivity loss
- Work climate survey administration relating to physical health and safety
- Pre-Employment anthropometric and functional movement assessments
Good design of physical work creates tasks that permit the “just-right degree” of exertion that conditions versus that which could lead to an injury, or involve sedentary behaviours that lead to ill-health metabolic disorders.
- Job and work re/design to support work performance and physical conditioning
- Design for diversity strategies that help businesses enact their inclusivity policies by developing accessible work solutions for different people
- Establish environmental design strategies to support metabolic health conditioning (movement to the “just-right” degree)
- Product, task, or equipment design concept and strategies for optimum human interface
- Control room design strategies
- Vehicle ergonomics and design to inform procurement specifications
Realising good physical work leads to an improved health status through job performance! It requires ongoing training and complementary health services to support the personal health journey.
- Hazardous Manual Task risk management training
- Participatory ergonomics training and team development
- Organisational training: facilitate learning or innovation teams, like when making improvements in injury causation and prevention
- ViToolbox Talks (paper-based or video-based) about manual task risk management, hydration, postural reversal strategies, ergonomics and glove wear, and more
- ViCare health care ergonomics and patient handling training service
- ViVroom vehicle ergonomics
- Onsite hands-on soft tissue mobilisation
- ViLearn and training (face to face and/or online modules) for health & well-being, such as upper quadrant (upper limb) self-management strategies (“Straighten up to Power Up”), mind-body services: yoga, relaxation, meditation, flexibility, Pilates, mindfulness, general fitness, and on-site soft tissue management services
ViWork Design Champion Level 1 – foundation-level certification program to continually re/design manual tasks