“Derived from the Greek ergon (work) and nomos (laws) to denote the science of work, ergonomics is a systems-oriented discipline which extends across all aspects of human activity. Practicing ergonomists must have a broad understanding of the full scope of the discipline. That is, ergonomics promotes a holistic approach in which considerations of physical, cognitive, social, organizational, environmental and other relevant factors are taken into account.”

Achieving best practice in the design of safe systems of work is no mean task, and Ergonomists and Human Factors Specialists synthesize a complex array of data from:

• Psychology: individual differences, memory, decision-making, cognition, systems and performance, perception (i.e. hearing, vision, taste, smell, touch), measurement, testing and statistical analysis.
• Social Psychology: groups, communication, norms, culture, learning, fear, behaviour, group comparison, survey design and analysis.
• Anthropometry: stature, body shape, anatomy, population data, variations and percentiles.
• Biomechanics: the forces applied to, and on, the body i.e. muscles, levers, forces and strength, postural analysis, and
• Environmental Physics: noise, light, heat, cold, radiation, vibration, and weather.

An ergonomics investigation is a fact-finding process of logically, methodically, and lawful gathering and documenting information for the specific purpose of objectively developing a reasonable conclusion based on the facts learned through this process