human performance

This is the fourth blog in the series on deer hunting and Lean, Ergonomics (Human Factors, Six Sigma and Systems Thinking (L.E.S.S.).

In my last blog I explained how a couple of Lean principles are used pre and post-hunt.  Well, those same principles can be used once the hunter arrives in the woods.  As a reminder, two of the primary principles Lean are to reduce waste and non-value added activities.  The goal of hunting is to spend as much time as possible hunting, i.e. in the stand/blind, and minimize the time spent on preparation.

Final pre-hunt preparation

This is the third blog in the series on deer hunting and Lean, Ergonomics (Human Factors, Six Sigma and Systems Thinking (L.E.S.S.).

This is the third blog in the series on deer hunting and Lean, Ergonomics (Human Factors, Six Sigma and Systems Thinking (L.E.S.S.).

In my last blog I spent time talking about how I adjusted my rifle to fit me.  In this blog I want to discuss two other items—tree stands (physical ergonomics) and my crossbow (human factors).

This is the second blog in the series on deer hunting and Lean, Ergonomics (Human Factors, Six Sigma and Systems Thinking (L.E.S.S.).

There are many factors deer hunters must consider when choosing their equipment—their own body and physical characteristics as well as the environment in which they hunt, i.e. location (woods vs. swamp, brushy vs. clear), temperatures, hunting from the ground or a stand, etc.  A hunter must be keenly aware of their physical size and abilities when choosing equipment so that it fits and supports their hunting abilities instead of being a hindrance.

One of the things that I and my company specialize in is “Do More with L.E.S.S. (Lean, Ergonomics/Human Factors, Six Sigma and Systems Thinking).  It’s a unique approach to solving business problems related to organizational system and employee performance, efficiency and safety.  This same Do More with L.E.S.S.

Pushing and pulling is involved in many tasks and jobs in a wide variety of industries.  In order to avoid injuries and optimize efficiency it is important to properly design pushing and pulling tasks.  A good online resource that explains the ergonomics of material handling in general and then goes into the details of pushing and pulling tasks is called “

Light—it’s necessary for humans.  It effects people mentally, physically, physiologically and their overall performance.  The impact of lighting in the workplace is very important to understand—not only to achieve energy savings but also to influence worker performance.  Intuitively we know that lighting is of value but it is often overlooked in the workplace, especially the value related to productivity.

The challenge for balancing productivity and safety exists for all industries but especially in the tree care industry where there are many variables that impact both.  Tree care companies experience costs related to incidences involving damage to their own property and/or that of the client as well as employee injuries.  Often times these incidences are accepted as the normal cost of doing business.  The bills are paid and business continues as usual.  However, these costs have a significant impact on the amount of extra business a company has to bring in in order to cover these costs.  Th

Productivity and efficiency—two buzz words that are talked about and heard continually from large to small businesses.  Why?  The productivity and efficiency of people and operations can make or break a business.  Unfortunately we can’t snap our fingers and make high productivity happen all by itself.  However, significant improvements are common when you apply the right principles, guidelines and tools to your business systems and processes.

Although sit-stand workstations have been around for several years their popularity has only recently grown.  This has been primarily due to research on the negative effects of prolonged sitting which has been labeled “Sitting Disease”.   To combat sitting disease in an office/computer work environment employers and employees should modify the work environment and tasks to allow for a reduction in the amount of time spent sitting and increase the amount of time spent standing and/or walking—hence the upsurge in demand for and use of sit-stand computer workstations.