Osmond Ergonomics

This article was originally emailed as issue 168 of our monthly eBulletin at 11:30 on 08/11/2023. You can register here to receive them monthly.

AS YET UNTITLED

My podcast has finally arrived and the first episode is now available on Spotify, Audible and Apple. You can select your platform here. New instalments will be available from 6:30am on the first Monday of each month and you can follow/subscribe to be notified as they drop. The overarching theme is inclusive wellbeing and we shall be inviting guests from a broad range of backgrounds to discuss physical, mental, emotional and design issues in the workplace. A key factor will be that we shall also broaden the conversation out beyond the workplace to explore the value of our knowledge and experience in the wider community. As the heading infers, we do not yet have a permanent title and we are seeking your suggestions, with an Amazon voucher if we use your idea. This page also provides details of how to submit your proposal(s).

3D PRINTED FURNITURE

I have been exploring this concept with growing interest recently. Initially, I was curious about opportunities for the new installation at our sister company MSA Manufacturing. However, with increasing knowledge, it is clear that there is plenty of scope to create brand new products from recycled waste. You may already know that the finished article starts out as a hopper full of pellets that are then heated, but you may not know that this raw material may be post-consumer or post-industrial waste – or even wood-based. Back in February, I mentioned 3D printing in the context of circular design and now I can see it has real potential. Email me if you would like to know more.

CHILDREN, SCREENS & ERGONOMICS

Last month, we were blogging about Supporting the Ageing Workforce so it is appropriate to follow that with a discussion about ergonomics for children, especially those in education. Although we are not commercially active in the education sector, as a father, grandfather and former school governor, I am agitated by the lack of awareness about children’s posture when using portable electronic devices. In the use of laptops, tablets, smartphones and hand-held gaming devices, all sorts of terrible postures are adopted. These are bad at any time in our life but especially bad for young bodies that are still growing and developing. Read more here.

WORKPLACE TRENDS

Regular readers will know how much I enjoy the WT conferences and the October event was better than ever. Apart from the obvious (and enormous) benefit of interacting with people face-to-face (and enjoying great catering), The Office as a Desired Destination provided a platform for a diverse array of latest thinking. This time, regular topic updates such as the circular economy and designing inviting offices were joined by fascinating insights into designing for neurodiversity and living with ADHD. I have already booked for the next Research Summit in April 2024!

MORE TRAINING CHOICES

Although DSE-related training is still our bread and butter business, the enquiries we receive and services we provide are now covering a broad spectrum of inclusive wellbeing topics. We are working towards a structured portfolio of assessment, awareness and support training which will be launched early in 2024. In the meantime, contact Stuart Entwistle, our Training Manager, about all Equality, Diversity & Inclusion topics. If we don’t already have an answer or a partner we can introduce, we will definitely be able to redirect you to an excellent provider.