Centrada em uma análise macroergonômica, esta pesquisa teve como objetivo identificar os problemas mais importantes e propor soluções de melhoria nas condições de trabalho no setor de cortes de um frigorífico de aves, focando principalmente a redução dos Distúrbios Osteomusculares Relacionados ao Trabalho. O diagnóstico das atividades desenvolvidas na unidade teve como base a observação direta e os Itens de Demanda Ergonômica (IDE’s) identificados por uma amostra de trabalhadores. Os principais itens apontados envolvem aspectos do posto de trabalho como o acesso a botas térmicas, organização do rodízio de cadeiras, afiação de facas, quantidades de cadeiras, distância para chegar ao refeitório, além de se ter que caminhar por um caminho sem cobertura contra intempéries. Em seguida, são citados problemas ambientais tais como: o frio no local de trabalho (que é climatizado com temperatura entre 10 e 12°C, atendendo à legislação do Ministério da Agricultura) e o ruído elevado (até 92 dB(A)), originado pelos exaustores e ventiladores do sistema de refrigeração que foi destacado como causa de dores de cabeça. As questões relativas à organização do trabalho dizem respeito ao ritmo de produção da nórea transportadora, principalmente no final da jornada, quando os trabalhadores estão mais cansados, e ao acúmulo de produtos na esteira. Também foi salientada a pressão para maior produção por parte das chefias, falta de preparo das chefias, falta de organização do rodízio de funções e a cobrança de produção excessiva para os novatos que necessitam de um melhor treinamento. A dor nos braços, pernas e coluna, que pode estar associada ao trabalho repetitivo em posição estática, é o registro que mais aparece nos relatórios médicos, e foram apontadas no diagrama de desconforto/dor adaptado de Corlett e Bishop (1976). / Based on a macroergonomic analysis, this study identifyed the most significant problems of the work carried out in a cutting sector of a poultry slaughterhouse and proposed solutions for reducing Work Related Osteomuscular Disorders. Ergonomic diagnosis was based on direct observation as well as on the identification of the Ergonomic Demand Items by a sample of workers. The main items highlighted involve aspects regarding the workstation, such as the access to thermal boots, access to chair (for alternating standing and sitting postures during work), quality of knife sharpening, distance to reach the cafeteria, and also the need to walk on an uncovered path (therefore being exposed to bad weather). Environmental problems were also pointed out, such as the cold in the working site (where the temperature varies between 10 to 12ºC, in compliance with Agriculture Department legislation), and the loud noise (reaching 92 dB(A)), originated from exhausters and fans of the cooling system which is considered the cause of headache. Work organization problems are mainly related to the conveyor belt’s production speed (especially at the end of the shift, when workers are more tired), and to the accumulation of poultry on the belt. It was also mentioned the pressure for an increase in production (this is especially true in the case of new workers who require a better training), and the lack of managers ability for dealing with people and organizing the chair rotation scheme for work posture alternation. Sore arms, legs and spine, possibly associated to repetitive work in static position, are the most common complaints in medical records, and were shown on Corlet and Bishop’s adapted diagram of discomfort/pain (1976).

Master of Science

Organizations increasingly use work groups to perform process improvement tasks. Little research exists about groups assigned complete tasks such as process improvement which involves completing all group processes, such as: generating, selecting, negotiating, and executing. This research tested the impact of decision aids on work group processes and work group performance. Laboratory and field experiments were performed. Decision aids were shown to impact work group processes. Decision aids increased the number of ideas considered by the work group, increased the equality of participation in the work group, decreased the overall level of conversation, and reduced consensus during evaluation of sensitive issues. No significant difference was found between decision aid types and work group performance. A regression model was identified which predicts group performance. Two variables were high predictors of work group performance: the level of conversation occurring in the group and the range between high and low idea contributors. The range between high and low idea contributors was correlated with the skill level of participants in the group. / Ph. D.

The construction industry leads the private sector with the most fatalities of any industry in the United States. With an expected growth of the industry in the next century, safe work environments are imperative. They will impact the bottom line of the industry through the reduction of fatal and non-fatal injuries. Although the causes of injuries and illnesses in construction have long been tracked, reported and researched, the industry continues to lead in occupational related fatal and non-fatal injuries. It is critical to understand if a tradeoff exists between safety and productivity to avoid shortcut behaviors in the field. This is specifically important due to the number of contractors, subcontractors and laborers that participate in the different projects. The overall objective of this research was to increase the understanding of the relationship between perceived and observed safety and productivity and to understand the variability in perception and behavior between crews working for the same general contractor in the homebuilding construction industry. For this research, questionnaires and behavioral observations were employed. The results demonstrated a significant moderate positive relationship between safety climate and perceived risk behavior at the crew level. A model was developed that suggests that safety climate and work ownership are predictors of perceived risk behaviors. This relationship is important to understand since employee attitudes, safety commitment and organizational factors may affect acceptability of safety processes and procedures. The differences among construction crews were evaluated at two levels, individual crews and critical path groups. All tests were significant for differences among crews. To further understand these differences, crews were grouped in accordance with the critical path of a homebuilding schedule. A significant difference existed for risk behavior, productivity loss and work ownership. Behavioral observations were used to evaluate crew performance. Top contributing behaviors of productivity, safety and waste were identified. The top behaviors provide improvement areas for productivity, safety and waste. Overall, learning from this research provided insight into the relationships between safety climate, risk behavior, productivity and work ownership. Understanding this relationship can contribute to the design of safety interventions, and consequently, the reduction of injuries and fatalities. / Ph. D.

This research examined human-machine performance in a General Aviation (GA) environment under dynamic conditions using a combination of field study and laboratory experimentation. Using this combination of methods, the functional system of pilots performing a landing approach (both instrument and visual) with a Cessna 172 to the Roanoke Regional Airport (ROA) was described and analyzed. In the field study, data collection was guided by an integrative method based on macroergonomics (ME) and distributed cognition (DC), allowing the cognitive aspects of a sociotechnical system to be treated as equally important as the organizational components. Also of interest was how pilot performance was affected by the introduction of nighttime and deteriorating weather conditions to this GA environment. Few statistically significant differences were found between pilots who flew by visual flight rules (VFR) and those who flew by instrument flight rules (IFR) or within each of these pilot groups in terms of objective flight performance. However, there were several significant differences between VFR and IFR pilots and within each pilot group in terms of workload and especially situation awareness across conditions; situation awareness for VFR pilots was found to be significantly reduced compared to situation awareness for IFR pilots in nighttime and deteriorating weather conditions (p < 0.05). In addition to these statistical findings and the methodological contribution of a joint systems/cognitive method, contributions of this dissertation include a greater understanding of the GA pilot/cockpit system and a systems-oriented cognitive model of this aviation environment as described by the ME/DC method for both VFR and IFR pilots. Further, procedural comparisons were performed between the flight simulator and the actual Cessna 172 used in the field study to increase our understanding of how to improve the validity associated with using simulators in research. Findings from both the laboratory and field studies in this research support new designs and technologies envisioned for future aviation systems that would assist the pilot during a landing approach such as weather information systems, head-up displays, synthetic vision, three-dimensional auditory displays, increased automation, and communications filters. Potential future applications of this research are also explored. / Ph. D.

Human-building relationships impact everyone in industrialized society. We spend approximately 90% of our lives in the built environment. Buildings have a large impact on the environment; consuming 20% of worldwide energy (40% of U.S. energy) annually. Buildings are complex systems, yet architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) professionals often perform their work without considering the human factors that affect the operational performance of the building system. The AEC industry currently employs a linear design and delivery approach, lacking verified performance standards and real-time feedback once a certificate of occupancy is issued. We rely on static monthly utility bills that lag and mask occupant behavior. We rely on lawsuits and anecdotal business development trends as our feedback mechanisms for the evaluation of a complex, system-based product. The omission of human factors in the design and delivery of high performance building systems creates risk for the AEC industry. Neglecting an iterative, human-centered design approach inhibits our ability to relinquish the building industry's position as the top energy consuming sector. Therefore, this research aims to explore, identify, and propose optimizations to critical human-building relationships in the multifamily housing system. This work is grounded in Sociotechnical Systems theory (STS). STS provides the most appropriate theoretical construct for this work because 1) human-building interactions (HBI) are fundamentally, human-technology interactions, 2) understanding HBI will improve total system performance, and 3) the interrelationships among human-building subsystems and the potential for interventions to effect the dynamics of the system are not currently well understood. STS was developed in the 1940's as a result of work system design changes with coal mining in the United Kingdom. STS consists of four subsystems and provides a theoretical framework to approach the joint optimization of complex social and technical problems. In the context of this work, multidisciplinary approaches were leveraged from human factors engineering and building construction to explore relationships among the four STS subsystems. An exploratory case study transformed the work from theoretical construct toward an applied STS model. Data are gathered from each STS subsystem using a mixed-methods research design. Methods include Systematic Review (SR), a descriptive case study of zero energy housing, and the Macroergonomics Analysis and Design (MEAD) of three builder-developers. This work contributes to bridging the bodies of knowledge between human factors engineering and the AEC industry. An output of this work is a framework and work system recommendations to produce human-centered, adaptive buildings. This work specifically examined the system inputs and outputs of multifamily housing in the United States. The findings are supportive of existing scientific society, government, and industry standards and goals. Relevant standards and goals include the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) Macroergonomics and Environmental Design Technical Groups, International Energy Agency's Energy in Buildings ANNEX 79 Occupant Behavior-Centric Building Design and Operation, the U.S. Department of Energy's Building America Research to Market Plan and zero energy building goals of the American Society of Heating Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). / Doctor of Philosophy / We spend approximately 90% of our lives in the built environment. Buildings have a large impact on the environment; consuming 20% of worldwide energy (40% of U.S. energy) annually. As we work to reduce energy use in buildings, new challenges have emerged. As buildings become more complex, the architecture, engineering, and construction industry (AEC) must adapt. The industry historically employs a linear design and delivery approach, lacking verified performance standards and real-time feedback once a certificate of occupancy is issued. We rely on static monthly utility bills that lag and mask occupant behavior. We rely on lawsuits and anecdotal business development trends as our feedback mechanisms for the evaluation of a complex, system-based product. The omission of human factors in the design and delivery of high-performance building systems creates risk for the industry and occupants. To better understand that risk, a comparative analysis of zero energy housing explores the relationship between humans and the buildings of the future. A second case study explores the work systems of builder-developers by using the Macroergonomic Analysis and Design method. The work reports risks and barriers in the system, as well as opportunities to create human-centered, adaptive housing. Specifically, this project enhances our understanding of 1) high performance housing, 2) their occupants, and 3) the builder-developers that produce high performance housing.

By definition, a system is comprised of hardware, software and "liveware". It also interacts with other systems composed themselves of those elements. However, the "human" element tends to be neglected in many projects, leading to unsafe or inefficient systems. Although some studies have shown that sociotechnical approaches to project management can generate economic gains of 20%, not to mention social gains, in practice, few projects integrate human factors correctly. Many reasons can explain this lack of integration. Humans alone are much more difficult to model and understand than technology. When considering groups or organizations, the problem increases exponentially. Hence, traditional engineering and risk management methods cannot be used to address the human side of a system. There exist approaches and methods to use our current understanding of human behavior, however these tend to be understood and used only by a small number of specialists. Most project managers, designers and engineers have insufficient knowledge of their existence or do not understand how to make good use of them. There are two major challenges in the integration of human factors. The first one is to justify an interest in such an approach. Given the educational background and experience of many engineers, this is no easy task. The SNCF (French Railways) has chosen to face this challenge and achieved quite good results. However, this does not solve the problem, as project managers and engineers then request tools and methods. Fulfilling this need represents the second challenge. This is the subject of this study: to make a shift from technology-centered approaches to design and risk management to a more sociotechnical approach thanks to a macroergonomics project framework. Human factors engineering and ergonomics is a multi-disciplinary domain. It goes from human resources management to physical ergonomics and integrates such subjects as psychology, sociology and human reliability. To improve the reliability or efficiency of systems, one approach is to develop a single tool addressing one aspect of human factors or integrating it with one kind of activities. However, many of those tools already exist, even if they have remained at the state of research results yet or been applied only in some very specific sectors. Hence, for this research, it was decided to develop a method that covers the whole process of a project and contains the different considerations related to human factors as well as the activities required to ensure the safety of the system. Recent research led by the US Army and adapted by the UK and Canadian Armies as well as Eurocontrol have lead to the emergence of a new discipline called Human Factors Integration (HFI). This discipline proposes a project management process that covers different domains of human factors: manpower, personnel, training, ergonomics, safety, health and hazards, survivability. HFI is a good starting point but it responds only partly to our expressed need. Indeed, the SNCF requires a more general approach, easily accessible, with a greater emphasis on organization and risk management. During this study, the HFI method was extended based on recent research results, especially in human and organizational reliability. The main improvements made are the addition of the "organization" domain and the development of safety-related activities. Many other principles were also integrated including barriers, prescribed vs. real tasks, redundancy, recovery, degraded situation, system dynamics and measurement. Some interests of this method are its inheritance from systems engineering, its capacity to be utilized by users from different cultures and experience, and its independence from specific models of human behavior or task processing. The main output of the study is a documentation of this method defining the activities and tasks for each phase of the project as well as the composition of the team. The method was evaluated based on its application on the "Sécurité des Travaux Organisation Réalisation Préparation" (STORP) project. This project aims at redesigning the infrastructure maintenance system of the SNCF, modifying the concepts, principles, guidelines and documentations, in order to improve its efficiency and safety. This application enabled to test the coherence and usability of the method, as well as highlight its main advantages, while underlining and improving the human factors integration in STORP. Through this evaluation, this study constitutes one of the first attempts to apply HFI to a non-military domain and to non-specific projects. / Master of Science

Esta dissertação foi idealizada a partir da busca de elementos que permitissem a introdução de melhorias duradouras e de maior porte nas organizações através da ergonomia. Os principais objetivos foram, primeiro, analisar os benefícios do desenvolvimento de ações ergonômicas em um nível mais elevado da organização e mais próximo àqueles que a gerenciam. Posteriormente, descrever e analisar os benefícios da presença de trabalhadores com um alto grau de emancipação em uma intervenção ergonômica. Como referencial teórico partimos da introdução da temática da ergonomia do trabalho, passando pela questão da emancipação no trabalho, e enfim pelo assunto da participação do trabalhador sob a ótica das teorias organizacionais. Um projeto de pesquisa ação numa instituição pública da área da saúde se constituiu um meio útil para o levantamento dos dados, obtidos sobretudo através de entrevistas semi-estruturadas e da participação efetiva do pesquisador nos processos de implantação dos dispositivos de melhoria. Em uma primeira parte foi avaliado e analisado o trajeto das ações ergonômicas desenvolvidas na instituição em estudo, enquanto na segunda parte dos resultados foi analisado o grau de envolvimento dos trabalhadores no processo de melhoria na organização em um nível mais abrangente da instituição. Este trabalho permitiu concluir que um papel proativo dos sujeitos visando uma efetiva transformação do trabalho pode propiciar resultados positivos e duradouros em intervenções ergonômicas, assim como é fundamental para a construção de um processo de emancipação dos trabalhadores (em vários níveis da organização). Fortemente relacionada à conclusão anterior é a confirmação de que quanto mais elevamos a discussão e quanto maior o apoio em níveis elevados de decisão sobre a ergonomia na hierarquia organizacional, maior é o sucesso na implementação de políticas de melhoria. / The aim of this dissertation was to look for elements that allow organizations to introduce important and lasting improvements through ergonomics. Two main strategic goals have been pursued during this work. The first aim analyzes the benefits of ergonomics developed on high levels of organization, closer to managers. The second, instead, investigates the importance of a presence of workers with an high degree of emancipation within ergonomic approaches. From a theoretical point of view, the starting point consists of the introduction, in the working system, of ergonomic themes, worker emancipation and worker participation (analyzed within organization theories). The practical results have been achieved through an action research project applied to a public care organization. The outcomes were achieved mainly through the adoption of semi-structured interviews and the participation of the researcher during the processes of improvement implementation. First of all, the course of ergonomic actions developed in the institution under study have been evaluated and examined. Then the research focused on the degree of employee involvement in this process of improvement in a larger scale. This study revealed that a proactive role carried out by people looking for an effective transformation of the work provides positive and lasting results within an ergonomic intervention. At the same time this is fundamental to build a process of emancipation of workers in the different levels of organization. Therefore, on the basis of this conclusion, the more ergonomics is applied to higher levels of discussions and decisions in the organization hierarchy, the greater the success in implementing improvement policies is.

Esta pesquisa trata de uma análise do trabalho de dez eletricistas que atuam em espaços confinados de redes subterrâneas de distribuição de energia, na Companhia Estadual de Energia Elétrica, Porto Alegre, RS. Foi identificada a demanda ergonômica dos eletricistas, com base em um método participativo (Análise Macroergonômica do Trabalho) de levantamento e avaliação dos dados, que gerou insumos para a melhoria das condições de trabalho e segurança e, conseqüente, promoção de prevenção de acidentes. A pesquisa revelou que os eletricistas consideram como aspectos mais positivos do trabalho os relacionamentos entre chefia, supervisores e colegas. Em contrapartida, apontam problemas críticos de diversas naturezas: biomecânico/posto, organização do trabalho, ambiental e relacionados à empresa. Também foram identificados níveis elevados de demandas físicas e mentais do trabalho, concluindo-se que o medo, evidenciado no discurso dos eletricistas, é referente ao trabalho com eletricidade e não ao trabalho em espaços confinados. Além disso, a pesquisa apontou cinco procedimentos, considerados como padrões mínimos, para a realização de trabalhos seguros em espaços confinados: reconhecimento, monitoramento da atmosfera, ventilação, treinamento e resgate.Apesar dos eletricistas não terem ciência da existência destes procedimentos, os mesmos foram citados, direta ou indiretamente nas entrevistas, como aspectos relevantes ao trabalho, sendo atribuído a maioria deles um baixo nível de satisfação. Com isso, conclui-se que a implantação de um programa de permissão de entrada em espaços confinados, além de promover a segurança neste ambientes tem relação direta com a satisfação dos trabalhadores. / The focus of this dissertation is the work analysis of ten electricians who act in confined space at underground power lines at the Estate Electricity Company in Porto Alegre, RS. It was identified the electricians’ ergonomic demand items. The research was carried out according to the participatory methods of survey and assessment of data, to improvement of safety and work conditions and, therefore, to prevent accidents. The research disclosed that the electricians have the relationship with their superiors, supervisors, and workmates as the most positive aspect of the job. On the other hand, they point out critical problems from different causes: biomechanical, task organization, environmental, and the ones related to the company. Overload regarding physical and mental work demand has been identified, proving that the fear, evident in the professionals’ speech is about the electricity, and not related to confined underground spaces. Besides, the research also displayed five procedures regarded as minimal standards to execute safe work in confined spaces: recognition, testing and monitoring atmosphere, ventilation, training and rescue. Despite the little knowledge electricians have on this criteria, some points of it were reported, some in an indirect way, during the interviews as relevant aspects to the work, being attributed to most of them a low level of satisfaction. Therefore, it comes to the conclusion that the implantation of a Permit-Requires Space Program, besides promoting accidents prevention in these spaces, has a direct relationship with the workers’ satisfaction.

Esta tese aborda o trabalho de cirurgiões de um hospital de Porto Alegre, RS, durante procedimentos eletivos de pequeno, médio e grande porte, visando o estudo das possíveis relações entre as demandas física e mental e a idade e a experiência do cirurgião. Inicialmente, foi feito um mapeamento de constrangimentos ergonômicos relacionados ao trabalho cirúrgico e, num segundo momento: i) o nível de demanda física imposta aos cirurgiões eletivos por meio de uma técnica de avaliação de posturas (REBA – Rapid Entire Body Assessment) (HIGNETT & McATAMNEY, 2000), da Freqüência Cardíaca (FC), da Pressão Arterial (PA) (sistólica e diastólica) e do nível de hormonal (Noradrenalina) e; ii) o nível de demanda mental envolvida no trabalho por meio do nível hormonal (cortisol, Adenocorticotrófico – ACTH e Adrenalina e, também, por meio da FC e PA). De maneira geral, ficou evidente que, independentemente do tipo de cirurgia, há a presença de carga física de pouca intensidade e de carga mental de média intensidade entre os cirurgiões. Os resultados apontaram, também, que os cirurgiões mais jovens (menos experientes) apresentam mais esforço mental do que físico, principalmente nas cirurgias de grande porte, e os mais experientes têm mais esforço físico nas cirurgias de pequeno porte e menos esforço mental, em comparação aos mais jovens (menos experientes), nas cirurgias de grande porte. / This research has as its main objective to evaluate the relationships between both physical and mental workloads and age and experience related to surgeon’s work. The data collection was conducted at a hospital in Porto Alegre, State of RS, during elective surgeries of low, moderate and high levels of complexity. At first, a survey of ergonomics constraints related to surgical work was carried out. The objected were: i) to investigate the physical demand level by means of posture assessment technique (REBA – Rapid Entire Body Assessment) (HIGNETT & McATAMNEY, 2000), Heart Rate (HR), Blood Pressure (BP) (systolic and dyastolic) and cathecolamines (Noradrenaline); ii) to investigate the mental demand level through assessment of hormonal levels (cortisol, adenocorticotrophic - ACTH and cathecolamines – adrenaline) as well as HR and BP. The results indicated low physical workload and moderate mental workload amongst surgeons. It was found that the workload (physical and mental) was not dependent on the type of surgery performed. Also, the results suggested that the youngest surgeons (novice) have more mental effort than physical effort, mostly in surgeries of high complexity level, as opposed to the oldest surgeons (seniors) who have more physical effort during surgeries in low level of complexity and low mental effort in surgeries in high level of complexity.