# Presentation: 938879

## 1 - OSHA Update2 - Computer Workstations	Our Experience3 - Ed Boards

**Brett Besser  -  Ergonomist**
**Salt Lake Technical Center - OSHA**

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**Notes:**
Companies are touting products as Ergonomic.
Unfortunately, style, form, and Aesthetics often take precedence.

## OSHA Update

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## Outreach

- e-Tools
- Stand Alone Best Practices
- Safety and Health Topics Pages
- Mini-Google Searches
- Other Products
- Tool Box Talks
- Fact Sheets
- Tip Sheets
- Success Stories

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## Others Working on Ergo

- American Occupational Health Nurses
- Association of Occupational Health Prof
- American Dental Association
- Society for Diagnostic Medical Sonography
- American Forest and Paper and Paper and Pulp Association
- Crane, Hoist, and Monorail Alliance
- Foundry Association of America
- Independent Electrical Contractors
- Precision Metalforming Association

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## E-Tools Review and Modification

- Hospital and Healthcare
- Primary – Workplace Violence, bloodborne, Laser Plumes, Ergo
- AOHP – “Beyond Getting Started”
-  _[http://www.aohp.org/About/documents/GSBeyond.pdf](http://www.aohp.org/About/documents/GSBeyond.pdf)_
- AOHN – “Ergo Resources”
- http://www.ergoresources.org/
- SDMS –  Developing their own module for Hospital eTool

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## E-Tools Review and Modification

- Hospital
- SDMS – “***Industry Standards for the Prevention of Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Sonography”***
- Taking their document and turning it into a stand alone module
- Clinical Services
- Radiology
- Physical Therapy
- Sonography

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## E-Tools Review and Modification

- Electrical Contractors – IEC
- Review e-Tool in 2007
- Baggage Handling
- Alliance Emphasized Employees Helping Themselves
- Stretching
- Not Supported by Literature
- Some Support for** Warm-up**
- Currently trying to come to a consensus on this.

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## Tool Box Talks, Fact Sheet

- Lifting & Carrying – CHMA (crane, hoist, monorail)
- Employee Guidelines for Safe Carrying and Transporting Loads
- Management Guidelines for Safe Carrying and Transporting Loads
- Hazard Evaluation Checklist for Lifting, Carrying, Pushing or Pulling
- Alternates to Manual handling of Individual Containers
- Computer Issues – NTSP
- Laptop Computers

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## Tool Box Talks, Fact Sheet

- ADA - Hand Pain
- Ergo Tips–Hand Pain
- Forging Industry Assoc
- Reduce the Risk of Back Injuries Tips Sheet
- Precision Metal-Forming Assoc.
- PMA Ergonomics Checklist
- PMA Reduce the Risk of Back Injuries

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## Success Stories

- American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) andPulp and Paper Safety Association (PPSA)
- Cart to Transport Heavier Items Long Distances (Aug. 2007)
- Clearing Product Jams (May 2008)
- Emptying Cutter Scrap Receptacles (May 2008)
- Glue Table for Paper Roll Headers (July 2007)
- Inserting Spindle into Paper Roll (July 2007)
- Moving Paper Rolls (May 2008)
- Operation for Cap Sheets and Corner Post (May 2008)
- Plastic Strap Spool Assembly (May 2008)
- Replacing Wire Spool on Baler (May 2008)
- Stacking Corrugated Boxes with Corner Stacker (July 2007)
- Transport and Instillation of Bailing Wire Coil (Aug. 2007)
- Transporting Cutting Dies with Hand Truck (Oct. 2006)

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## Success Stories

- NTSP
- Asset Distribution Facility
- Dual Monitors
- Ladders
- Standard Format – Developed Waiting for Final Approval

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## Success Stories

- Standard Format
- Company Name
- Industry
- Task
- # of Employees
- Success Brief

- Narrative of the Problem
- Narrative of the Solution
- Narrative of Impact
- Pictures
- Before and After

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## Success Stories

- _[http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/ergonomics/success_stories.html](http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/ergonomics/success_stories.html)_
- _[http://www.osha.gov/dcsp/compliance_assistance/success_stories.html#Success](http://www.osha.gov/dcsp/compliance_assistance/success_stories.html#Success)_

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## Computer Workstations

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## Let Me Tell You a Story

- Completely new Building in 2004
- Open Architecture
- Cube Farm

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**Notes:**
Let me tell you a story about our experience when We built a new building in 2003 to 2004
The design was to be an open architecture to improve communication and heating and cooling.

## Our Advantages

- Desks are Assigned to a Person
- No Sharing
- Few People Work Exclusively at the Desk
- Already Had Adjustable Seating
- Ergonomist on Staff

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**Notes:**
We did have some advantages that other employers may not have.  Each employee is assigned a desk.  There is not daily sharing, so adjustments are made infrequently.
Few workers are chained to the their desk.  Lots of freedom to stand, walk, stretch, work out.
We already had ergonomic seating from prior initiatives in the 90’s.  Had fully functional chairs from Ergogenisis (bodybilt), neutral posture, Cramer, Herman Miller, and Steel case.
We had an ergonomist on staff to assist in the appropriate decisions. 

## Our Disadvantages

- GSA
- Provides a Designer Who Has A Supplier
- They come in and Tell you what vendor to use
- #1 - Prison Products
- Little Chance for Specification – Unless You Know What You Want

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**Notes:**
But being a federal agency we had to deal with GSA.  They provide a building designer that has a tie in with a furniture manufacturer.  They tell you what you can get and then you have to play games to get back to what you want/need.  There  is little opportunity for input about what you want.

## Guiding Principle – You Are All Alike Conformity Rules

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**Notes:**
This is the primary view of the staff we are working with.

## The Way We Really Are

- 6’5” to 4’10”
- 30ish to 80ish
- Full Time to 10% Computer Users
- Laptop to Multi Screen Desk Top

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## Standard Paradigm Aesthetics over Functionality

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**Notes:**
We had to mount a major effort to convince management that there was more to a proper work station than esthetics  and we had to convince GSA that low bidder was not going to work in this situation.

## Traditional Approach

- Office Designer Is Turned Loose
- Provide a Standard  (fixed-height Workstation That Looks Great
- Receive Complaints or log injuries
- Modify with Add-ons (Band-Aids) to make furniture useable
- Keyboard tray
- Foot rests

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## We Didn’t Want To Go Down That Road

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**Notes:**
There were significant administrative obstacles to getting what we needed.

## Workstation Guidelines 

- Computer Workstation e-Tool
- www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/
- computerworkstations/index.html
- ANSI-HFES 100-1988
- BSR-HFES 100 - Human Factors Engineering of Computer Workstations – 03/2002
- Final Release - 10/2007
- Personal Experience

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**Notes:**
We based our recommendations on the OSHA Computer Workstation eTool which was based on work done for HFS 100.

## Workstation Guidelines 

- Workstation Guidelines

- Wanted a Workstation to Accommodate These Postures

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## What We Wanted 

- Aesthetically Pleasing
- Adjustable To Fit Staff
- No Keyboard Trays
- Unstable and Puts Monitor too High
- Expensive ($75-$450)
- Good for Multi-User or Current Equip
- No Footrests
- Anchors and Limits Movement

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**Notes:**
From our past experience we decided that we wanted full adjustability for the desk height.  We had not had a good experience with the use of keyboard trays or footrests.
We wanted to maintain neutral body postures
We wanted to utilize a corner placement of the monitors and of course management wanted the whole thing to be pretty.

## What We Wanted 

- Under work surface height 22” to 28”
- Monitor so gaze angle is 15 to 20 degrees below
- Corner Monitor Placement Proper Body Postures
- Straight Leading Edge to Limit Reaches

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## Our Approach

- Basic Premise - Feet flat on the floor
- Test Sit
- We had 3 Stand-Alone Height Adjustable Desks
- Created 24”, 26”, and 28” Sample
- Asked all to test at different heights
- Subtle Counseling on Desirable Parameters -
- Ordered to Their Desires

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**Notes:**
24, 26, 28 was under counter height
Tried to get shorter folks to take shorter desks.

## Whoa – Wait a Minute

- Met With A Little Resistance
- Staff
- Vendors
- Management

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## Resistance

- Staff
- Felt Shorter Desk was Degrading
- Wanted Maximum Storage
- Lower = Less
- Dual Duty – Reading/Writing and Computer

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**Notes:**
“Why do I have to sit at a short desk”
Shorter cabinets had one fewer drawers.

## Resistance

- Manufacture Resisted Lowering
- Also Had Installation Crew
- More Time and Oversight
- Custom Ordering of Equipment

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## Resistance

- Vendor Convinced Management that Rounded was more Feng Shui
- They Had These Pieces in Stock

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## Resistance

- Management
- Management Wanted the Look of Rounded Corners
- Afraid of the Hodge-Podge Look
- Minimize the hassle of special orders.
- There would be Continued special order as employees moved.

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## Address the Resistance – We Split the Baby 

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## Score 1 For Function

- Split the Work Top
- Computer Area
- Paper Work Area
- Storage Area

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## Created a Keyboard Corner

- 24” Floor to Bottom of table – Lowest
- Still Maintained Storage

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## 7 Separate Work Configurations

**24”  Lowest ****	****- 4’10” to 5”6”****	****	****23%**
**25”****	****	****- 4’10” to 5”6” ****	****	****6%**
**26” ****	****	****- 5’4” to 6’****	****	****	****4%**
**27”****	****	****- 5’4” to 6’ ****	****	****	****2%**
**28” ****	****	****- 5’6” to 6” 2”****	****	****4%**
**30”- Std ****	****- ****	****5”10” to 6’4”****	****	****63%**
**31” - ****	****	****- 6’2” to 6’7”****	****	****2%**

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**Notes:**
For one person we could probably even go lower than 24”
Originally started with 2”increments but recently started adjusting to 1”
Many of the 30” could probably be lowered, mine included, if we took the time and if the workers spent more time at their desk. 

## Configurations

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## Score 1 for Aesthetics

- Went on Vacation and the Vendors took Over
- Scramble to Accommodate
- Removed Chair Arms
- Turned Arms Around
- Lowered Arms to Be Same as Desk Height

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## What We Accomplished

- 100% Satisfaction – Especially Shorter
- Reduced Neck Fatigue
- Reduced Wrist and Forearm Pain
- Reduced Pain In Legs
- Fine Tune the Desk Heights and Chairs on an Ongoing Basis.
- Have Lowered 10 More Since Initial Setup

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## OSHA e-Tools and Topics Pages

- You Are The Answer

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## OSHA Electronic Products 

**e-Tools & Topics Pages**
- Help Workers Help Themselves

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## What Are They   (www.osha.gov)

- eTools are "stand-alone," interactive, Web-based training tools on occupational safety and health topics. They are highly illustrated and utilize graphical menus.......

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## What Are They

- The _[OSHA Safety and Health Topics](http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/index.html)__ website has assembled a wide variety of information on more than 150 topics to provide users relevant reference materials including standards, directives, training materials, etc. _

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## Living Document

- We Need Your Help
- Option #1
- 	General Readership Input

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## Living Document

**IF YOU HAVE TECHNICAL QUESTIONS ON USE OF THE OSHA WEB SITE**
- Electronic Mail Form
- Website Error Report

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## Option #2Editorial Boards	

- Living Document

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## Ed Boards

- Federal Employee as Editor
- Anyone With Interest and Knowledge as a Board Member

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## Thank You

**Brett Besser**
- 		Salt Lake Technical Center
-   		8660 South Sandy Parkway
-   		Salt Lake City, UT 84070
-   		801-233-4911
-   		besser.brett@dol.gov

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