Why Is Ergonomics So Important?

Research shows that Ergonomics can improve the health of your employees by reducing work-related injuries, most often caused by strains and over-exertion. 

The health and safety of both office and industrial workers are key to the success or failure of a business, and every employee is a vital part of a functioning business.

This can vary within all sorts of roles from customer service to working assembly lines and surprisingly, the average employee can spend as much as  90,000 hours at work. 

From that perspective, an injured employee’s absence can be one of the costlier aspects to a business demonstrating the importance of good office ergonomics.

The Office Worker And Ergonomics

While workplace ergonomics can be applied to a diverse range of industries such as construction, firefighting, healthcare, transportation and warehousing, the purpose of this article is to focus on the needs of the office worker. 

With a large population working in this environment and the rise in remote working, it is vital to know how to identify your needs around your workstation to ensure you have the most comfortable home office setup.

Due to the unavoidable sedentary nature of the office worker, there are aspects you can zone in on to reduce the risk of injury and improve your comfort levels throughout the day. 

Apart from moving as frequently as possible throughout the day, investing in an ergonomically designed chair is probably the next most important feature to mitigate injury and maintain comfort.

What To Look For In An Ergonomic Chair

Navigating the vast array of ergonomically designed chairs may be overwhelming due to so many available options.

To simplify this, there are key parameters that you need to look for when considering the best chair for your needs. 

Look for a chair with customisable options such as seat height, depth, lumbar support and armrest adjustments. 

A chair with these features means you can fine-tune them to support your body shape properly and offset potential discomfort during the working day.

Base:

DSE regulations require that an office chair has a five-star stable base and swivel capacity to ensure stability and flexibility. Look for smooth rolling casters and when choosing these always take into consideration the floor type (eg carpet, wood, tiles) This is important for your own safety and reducing floor damage.

Seat Depth:

Everybody’s legs vary in length so to have the ability to adjust the seat pan prevents discomfort at the back of the knees while also supporting the back of the thighs optimally. 

Aim for 2-3 fingers of clearance from the edge of the seat and the back of your knee. 

Additionally, the edge of the seat should be soft and contoured in such a way that it cannot cause compression of the thighs and buttocks.

Lumbar Support:

Research shows that the most common workplace complaint is lower back pain. 

Having a good lumbar support feature in your ergonomic chair helps to support the natural curve of the lumbar spine. 

This reduces the stress in this region which can help prevent back pain developing from poor posture. 

Armrest:

Adjustments in height, width and angle of armrests can all help support the arms and shoulders. 

This can reduce strain on the neck and shoulder area and maintain proper alignment of the forearms when typing.

This helps to reduce the chance of repetitive strain injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome.

Back-Rest Adaptability:

Your chair should have a back support that is large enough to provide mid-back and upper-back support to the shoulder-blade level, in addition to good lumbar support which we discussed earlier. 

Other Considerations To Be Aware Of:

Outside The Norm:

In every walk of life, there is a spectrum where most people fall within a certain range of measurements. 

However, there are always exceptions and when choosing an appropriate chair these exceptions may be measurements of height and weight. 

Most chairs with adjustments are built for a range of height from 5’2” to 6’2” and a weight capacity of 120kg so if you fall outside these, rest assured that there are plenty of other options to ensure maximum safety and comfort.

Posture:

Pay attention to your posture even with the correct adjustments applied to your ergonomic chair. 

It’s easy to adopt lazy postures when distracted or fatigued, so try to remember to keep your feet firmly on the floor and try not to cross your legs. 

If you are working from a higher desktop or are of shorter stature, consider using a footrest to ensure your feet are supported. 

Try to keep your work centrally aligned to minimise twisting and bending keep your elbows at 100 to 110 degrees to promote a relaxed position and keep wrists neutrally aligned.

Work Technique

Consider your style of working and work out strategies to prevent repetitive strain injuries. 

Some examples of these are learning how to use sticky keys etc to reduce keystrokes and not hold a pen/pencil when typing.

Consider the keyboard you are using and whether the type you are using fulfils your requirements. 

There are various ergonomically designed keyboards which can help to provide more neutral postures. 

Split keyboards for example can maintain a neutral position of the upper limbs which can prevent the onset of shoulder pain. 

Type the keyboard lightly, believe it or not, but the average typist hits keys 4 times harder than necessary! 

Be conscious of how you hold the mouse, and keep a relaxed grip to prevent wrist and finger pain. 

There are also a variety of ergonomically designed mice to keep the wrist and fingers in a neutral position.

Work Environment:

Be aware of your work and desk layout. 

Keep items such as keyboard, pointing device, files and telephone close to avoid excessive reaching. 

Position the copyholder in line with the keyboard and monitor and if the copyholder is solid it can double as a writing surface. 

Keep the monitor centrally aligned and the top of the monitor should be roughly level with your eyes to reduce the chances of developing neck pain.

Eyes:

Position the monitor to avoid glare from windows and lights or consider an anti-glare screen cover.

Rest the eyes by using the 20/20/20 rule. 

Customise your computer by adjusting screen font, contrast, pointer size, speed and colour to ensure maximum comfort for the eyes.

Lifestyle:

Exercise is probably the best prescription of all to counteract the strain of the sedentary office lifestyle.

Aerobic exercise will improve cardiovascular conditioning while strength and mobility exercises will keep the muscles strong and flexible enough to maintain the best posture and prevent stiffness. 

Together this will help the body stay as strong and healthy as possible and reduce the risk of workplace pain and injury.

Summary:

Remember, incorporating these guidelines can contribute significantly to preventing computer-related pain. 

No one wants to spend their day at work in pain so hopefully these techniques will ensure that you stay a happy, productive employee.

If you're still unsure of your ergonomic requirements, why not talk to an expert?

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