This article was originally emailed as our monthly eBulletin at 11:30 on 14/06/2017. You can view older eBulletins here and register to receive them monthly.
In comments about Clerkenwell Design Week 2015, I noted that ergonomics is an essential subject for some, a relevant topic for others and a misunderstood and inconsequential distraction for the rest! In this short article, I shall be expressing my subjective observations about how this is evolving in wider workplace attitudes as reflected during CDW2017. [more]
ADVANCED DSE ASSESSOR TRAINING:
We still have some space on our 2 day DSE Assessor Course in London on Wednesday and Thursday June 28-29, 2017. Once again, this will be delivered for us by Human Applications and the content has recently been reviewed and extensively updated. The location is the boardroom of the Pledge/Edge Design showroom in Clerkenwell – an ideal venue close to Farringdon station. To find out more and/or register your interest, visit our booking page at ergonomics.events.
As well as working on significant plans to update our website, we have been reviewing and updating our literature and resources recently. There have also been some additions to the collection. You probably know most of our ‘purple pages’. These all relate to our traditional activities in the ergonomics, occupational health and safety market. ‘Blue’ materials are targeted at broader workplace requirements and project needs. The whole portfolio is freely available to download here.
At the recent ThinkFM conference, there were some thought-provoking presentations about how technology continues to influence workplace design and management. Whilst Agile Working is still the ‘hottest topic’ at the moment, future technologies and some very clever products that already exist will change the way we occupy buildings and, more significantly, the way our buildings respond to our occupancy. Most dramatic of all was the keynote presentation by Ben Waber of Humanyze who gave us some stunning insights into behavioural analytics.
Regular readers will know that I love technology! As well as ThinkFM, I have attended a number of recent presentations about new developments that impact our behaviour and, indeed, our lives. However, I frequently find myself torn between thinking ‘this is brilliant and really useful’ and ‘do I really want to surrender so much information about myself?’. I know there is nothing I can do about it but my privacy seems to be constantly eroded and I have no control. However, there is one technology this Grumpy Old Man is really looking forward to: Smart Contact Lenses! Wouldn’t it save a lot of embarrassment to see a person’s name appear beside them in augmented reality as they walk towards you?
Osmond Ergonomics 