A hybrid approach to the evaluation and design of workstations for manufacturing industries: a tuscan case study

Theaimofthestudywastheexperimentationwithahybridapproach for the evaluation of some workstations of 5 Tuscany manufacturing companies, with the aim of defining standard operating guidelines for the improvement of safety and usability of the industrial machinery and workstations, and to improve the working conditions of the operators of all ages. 3 mechanical companies and 2 fashion-leather companies took part in this study. 37 users with variable age, gender and experience were involved. The study, financed by INAIL Toscana, bases its scientific reliability on the integration of skill and methodologies of two different fields of ergonomics, such as occupational ergonomics (curated by INAIL) and Human-Centred Design (curated by LED). The heuristic approach involved the application of a series of methodologies and the direct participation of operators to assess, identify and explore possible problems and discrepancies from the point of view of human-workstation interaction and workers’ perceptions. The following methodologies have been used: User Observation, Thinking Aloud, Interview, Questionnaire, Workstation Observation and Work Environment Observation. The data emerged were compared and evaluated also in consideration of the results of the evaluation carried out by INAIL experts within the framework of Occupational Ergonomics. The use of this hybrid approach allowed the researchers to collect qualitative and quantitative data, such as opinions, thoughts, expectations and critical points experienced by operators, sometimes silent and hidden due to the low participation of the operators in the company decisions. This article shows the methodology used and the findings.