ErgonomicsErgonomics, as defined by the Board of Certification for Professional Ergonomists (BCPE), "is a body of knowledge about human capabilities, human limitations, and human characteristics that are relevant to design. The Ergonomic design is the application of this body of knowledge to the design of tools, machines, systems, tasks, jobs and environments for safe, comfortable and effective human use." The term ergonomics comes from the Greek word ergos meaning "work" and nomos meaning "natural". laws of" or "study of". The profession has two main branches with considerable overlap. One discipline, sometimes called “industrial ergonomics” or “occupational biomechanics,” focuses on the physical aspects of work and human capabilities such as strength, posture and repetition. A second branch, sometimes referred to as "human factors", is oriented towards psychological aspects of the job such as mental load and decision making. The profession is made up of practicing engineers and academics, safety professionals, hygienists industrialists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, nurses, chiropractors and occupational health doctors. History of ergonomics Christensen, an expert in the said field, emphasizes that the importance of a "good fit" between man and instruments has probably been realized all along. In fact, cavemen are known to have selected stone tools and created shovels from antelope bones in a clear demonstration of object selection/creation to make tasks easier to perform. In the work environment, the selection and creation of tools, machines and work processes continued. Over the centuries the effectiveness of hammers, axes and plows has improved. With the Industrial Revolution, machines such as spinning mills (a machine that produced yarn to make fabrics) and rolling mills (a method of flattening iron ore into flat sheets) were developed to improve manufacturing processes. This is the same motivation behind much of ergonomics today. The association between occupations and injuries to the muscles and bones of the body was documented centuries ago. Bernardino Ramazinni (1633-1714) wrote about work-related ailments (which he saw in his medical practice) in the 1713 supplement to his 1700 publication, "De Morbis Artificum (Diseases of Workers)." Wojciech Jastrzebowski created the word ergonomics in 1857. ...... middle of paper ......Technical controls) Pull-out steps, external handles and multi-level shelving were installed in delivery trucks to facilitate access to checkouts of drinks. Counterbalancing devices have been added to improve the stability of the hand truck. Beverage cartons have been redesigned for easier handling. The total weight was reduced by replacing some glass containers with plastic. Ergonomic solution (advantages) Reduced exposure to risk factors. Employee satisfaction. Improvement of physical and psychological comfort. Ergonomic solution (method proven to be effective) Quantitative testing of heart rate, stress/fatigue levels and reports of discomfort showed statistically significant improvements in physical and psychological comfort, providing scientific justification for the changes.ReferencesR.S . Bridger. (1995) Introduction to ergonomics. International Editions McGraw-HillK.HE Kroemer & E. Grandjean. (1999) Fitting the Task to the Human Taylor & Francis Publishings, Human Factors Section, Health, Safety and Human Factors Laboratory, Eastman Kodak Company. (1983)Ergonomic design for people at work Van Nostrand Reinhold, New Yorkwww.ergoweb.com