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.
As an ergonomist, I am often asked what my opinion is on post-offer, pre-work (POPW) screens for new hires. My first response is to ask why they are asking that question. The normal answer is because they have a injury rate higher than what they’d like and wonder if it’s related to their workers’ fitness for work. I have several follow up questions that help me understand the root cause of their injuries. As much as possible work should be designed so that the majority of the population can perform the job. This is becoming more and more important and imperative to organizations due t
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
Today I want to share with you a guest blog that highlights an important ergonomic issue in schools–the desks. Enjoy!
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.
In my last blog I stated that I attended the Ergonomics Applied to Retail and Distribution conference in Minneapolis. One of the people I met there was the Steve Lippert from Hamilton Caster. As an ergonomist working on material handling issues a question that frequently comes up whenever material is pushed or pulled is “what is the best equipment/wheel/caster combination for this situation?” I learned from Steve that Hamilton Caster had published a white paper on Rolling Resistance and Industrial Wheels. The paper provides an overview of rol
