WORK STUDY IN ENGINEERING DESIGN

 Definition of work study

 Importance of work study
 Objectives
 Work study procedure
 Human considerations in work study
 Work study & the management
1  Work study and the workers
 Requirements & qualities of a work
study man
 Ergonomic considerations in work study
 Introduction
2  Work study is a method of analyzing and improving the
efficiency and effectiveness of work processes and
systems. It involves observing, measuring, and recording
the activities, tasks, and operations involved in
performing a certain work.
 It also involves identifying and eliminating the
unnecessary or wasteful elements, and proposing and
implementing the best ways of doing the work.
 Work study is related to design in several ways.
 First, work study can help to inform and guide the
design process, by providing data and insights on the
current and desired state of the work, the needs and
preferences of the workers and customers, and the
opportunities and challenges for improvement.
  Second, work study can help to evaluate and test the
design outcomes, by measuring and comparing the
3
performance, quality, and satisfaction of the work
before and after the design intervention.
 Third, work study can help to optimize and refine the
design solutions, by identifying and resolving the issues
and problems that may arise during the implementation
and operation of the work.
 Work study is a useful and powerful tool for design, as it
can help to create work processes and systems that are
more productive, efficient, effective, and satisfying for
both the workers and the customers.
 Work study can be applied to various fields and
domains of design, such as product design,
service design, system design, and organizational
Some examples of work study in relation to design are:

4
 Designing and testing mechanical systems and
components: Work study can help mechanical engineers to design
and test mechanical systems and components using software tools like
ANSYS or MATLAB. Work study can help them to create realistic and
detailed models of their designs, enabling visualization and simulation.
Work study can also help them to perform various types of analysis, such
as structural, thermal, fluid, electromagnetic, and multiphysics, and to
display the results in a clear and understandable way, using elements
like graphs, charts, and diagrams.
 Designing and implementing workplace design: Work
study can help workplace designers to design and implement workplace
design solutions that support the needs and preferences of the workers
and the organization. Work study can help them to understand the work
activities, situations, and environments of the workers, and to create
workspaces that afford the appropriate levels of privacy, interaction,
exposure, and atmosphere.
  Work study can also help them to evaluate the impact of the
5 workplace design on the work performance, quality, and
satisfaction of the workers and the organization.
 Designing and improving service delivery: Work
study can help service designers to design and improve
service delivery processes and systems that meet the
expectations and requirements of the customers and the
service providers.
 Work study can help them to map and analyze the service
journey, touchpoints, and interactions of the customers and
the service providers, and to identify the pain points, gaps,
and opportunities for improvement.
 Work study can also help them to prototype and test the
service design solutions, and to measure and monitor the
service quality and satisfaction of the customers and the
service providers
6
7
8
9
10
 Work study can affect the productivity of
11
mechanical engineering design in various ways
 Work study can help to identify and eliminate unnecessary or
inefficient steps in the design process, such as excessive calculations,
drawings, revisions, or approvals. This can reduce the time and cost
of design projects and improve the quality and reliability of the final
products.
 Work study can help to optimize the use of resources, such as
materials, machines, tools, and human skills, in the design process.
This can increase the output and performance of the design team and
reduce the wastage and errors.
 Work study can help to enhance the creativity and innovation of the
design team, by encouraging them to explore different alternatives,
methods, and solutions for the design problems.
 This can lead to more effective and efficient designs that meet the
customer needs and expectations.
12
13
14
15
16
17
 The human context of work
18  study
The human context of work study in mechanical
engineering design refers to the consideration of human
factors, such as physical and psychological
characteristics, capabilities, limitations, and needs, in
the design of products, processes, and systems that
involve human-machine interactions.
 Human factors engineering (HFE) is the science and
practice of applying human factors knowledge to the
design of human-machine systems.
 HFE aims to improve the safety, comfort, performance,
and satisfaction of human users and operators, as well
as the efficiency and economy of the situation.
19
20
21
22
 Ergonomics: Definition
23
 It is defined as the relationship between man & Machine and
the application of anatomical, physiological & Psychological
principles to solve the problems arising from man-machine
relationships.
 Ergonomics is defined as the scientific study of the man-
machine-working environment relationship and the
application of anatomical, physiological, and psychological
principles to solve the problems arising from the relationship.
 Ergonomics is related to the comfort between the man and
machine while operating the machine.
 The objective of ergonomics is to make the machine fit for the
user rather than to make the user adapt himself or herself to
the machine.
 Communication between man and machine
24
 The machine has a display unit and a control
unit.
 A man (user) receives the information from the
machine display through the sense organs.
 He (or she) then takes the corrective action on
the machine controls using the hands or feet.
 This man-machine closed-loop system is
influenced by the working environment
factors such as lighting, noise,
temperature, humidity, air circulation, etc.
 Lighting in the machine environment

25
 The amount of light that is required to enable a task to be
performed effectively depends upon the nature of the task, the
cycle time, the reflective characteristics of the equipment
involved, and the vision of the operator.
 The intensity of light in the surrounding area should be less than
that at the task area. This makes the task area the focus of
attention.
 Operators will become less tired if the lighting and color schemes
are arranged so that there is a gradual change in brightness and
color from the task area to the surroundings.
 The task area should be located such that the operator can
occasionally relax by looking away from the task area towards a
distinct object or surface. The distinct object or surface should not
be so bright that the operator’s eyes take time to adjust to the
change when he or she again looks at the task.
 Noise

26

 The noise at the workplace causes annoyance, damage

to hearing, and reduction of work efficiency.
 Noise caused by equipment that a person is using is
less annoying than that caused by the equipment
being used by another person because the person has
the option of stopping the noise caused by his
equipment.
 If the noise level is too high, it should be reduced at
the source by maintenance, by the use of silencers and
by placing vibrating equipment on isolating mounts.
 If required, earplugs should be provided to the
operators to reduce the effect of noise.
 Silencers and machine isolating
27
pads
 Temperature
28

 For an operator to perform the task efficiently, he should neither

feel hot nor cold. When heavy work is done, the temperature
should be relatively lower and when the light work is done, the
temperature should be relatively higher.

 Humidity and Air circulation

 At high temperatures, the low humidity may cause discomfort due

to drying of throat and nose and high humidity may cause
discomfort due to sensation of stuffiness and over sweating in an
ill-ventilated or crowded room.
 The proper air circulation is necessary to minimize the effect of
high temperature and humidity.
 Ergonomics considerations Examples

 For assembly jobs, material should be placed in a position such that the worker’s
29
strongest muscles do most of the work.
 For detailed work which involves close inspection of the materials, the workbench
should be lower than for heavy work.
 Hand tools that cause discomfort or injury should be modified or replaced. Workers are
often the best source of ideas on ways to improve a tool to make using it more
comfortable. For example, pliers can be either straight or bent, depending on the
need.
 A task should not require workers to stay in awkward positions, such as reaching,
bending, or hunching over for long periods.
 Workers need to be trained in proper lifting techniques. A well-designed job should
minimize how far and how often workers have to lift.
 Standing work should be minimized since it is often less tiring to do a job sitting than
standing.
 Job assignments should be rotated to minimize the amount of time a worker spends
doing a highly repetitive task since repetitive work requires using the same muscles
again and again and is usually very boring.
 Workers and equipment should be positioned so that workers can perform their jobs
with their upper arms at their sides and with their wrists straight.
Ergonomics in the
workplace
30
 Ergonomics consideration in the design of the Lathe
31 machine.
 The controls on lathe should be easily accessible and
properly positioned.
 The control operation should involve minimum motions.
 Height of lathe should be matched with the worker for
operation
 Lathe machine should make less noise during operation.
 Force & power capacity required in turning the wheel as
per operation or human being can apply normally.
 worker should get the required accuracy in operation.
 Lathe machine controls
32
 Design of hand levers and handwheels
33
 The controls used to operate the machines consist of levers, handwheels,
knobs, switches, pushbuttons, and pedals. Most of them are hand-
operated.
 When a large force is required to operate the controls, levers and
handwheels are used. When the operating forces are light, push buttons or
knob are used.

 The ergonomic considerations in the design are as

follows:

 The controls should be easily accessible and logically positioned.

 The shape of the control component, which comes in contact with the
hands, should conform with the anatomy of human hands.
 Proper color produces beneficial psychological effects. The controls should
be painted with a grey background of machine tools to call for attention.
 Hand levers, hand wheels, push
34
buttons
 Aesthetics in automobile Design
35  The appearance should contribute to the performance
of the product, though the extent of contribution
varies from product to product.
 For example chromium plating of automobiles
components improves the corrosion resistance along
with the appearance.
 Similarly the aerodynamic shape of the car improves
the performance as well as gives the pleasing
appearance lesser air resistance resulting in the lesser
fuel consumption.
 The appearance should reflect the function of the
product for example, the aerodynamic shape of the
car increases the speed.
 Aesthetics in
36
automobile
Design
 Importance of Aesthetic considerations in design

37
 Each product is to be designed to perform a specific function or a set of
functions to the satisfaction of customers. In the present days of the buyer’s
market, with several products available in the market are having most of the
parameters identical, the appearance of the product is often a major factor in
attracting the customer.
 For any product, there exists a relationship between the functional
requirement and the appearance of a product. The aesthetic quality
contributes to the performance of the product, through the extent of
contribution varies from product to product. The job of an industrial designer is
to create new shapes and forms for the product which are aesthetically
appealing.

 For example. (1) The chromium plating of automobile components improves

the corrosion resistance along with the appearance.
 (2) the aerodynamic shape of the car improves the performance as well as
gives the pleasing appearance.
38

END OF
TOPIC