According to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Agency (OSHA), ergonomics is the science of fitting the job to the worker. The term comes from the Greek words ergon, meaning "work," and nomoi, meaning "natural laws." The goal of ergonomics is apply scientific information about human capabilities and limitations to design of work environments, systems, and tools in order to make them as safe, comfortable, and efficient as possible. Ergonomics thus seeks to minimize the physical demands on workers and optimize system performance. An ergonomist is a scientist who studies physiological, psychological, and engineering design aspects of a job, including such factors as fatigue, lighting required, tools used, equipment layout, and placement of controls.

Principles of Ergonomics

Although ergonomics officially came into being just 50 years ago, the principles have been understood for thousands of years. One just has to look at ancient hand tools to see how...