A SYMPOSIUM WORKSTATION DESIGN BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN THEORY AND PRACTICE

The Philippine Ergonomics Society (PHILERGO) symposium entitled “Workstation Design: Bridging the gap between theory and practice” was held last November 23, 2011 at Melchor Hall U.P. Diliman, Quezon City. The symposium aims to educate people from the industry and academe on the prevention of back pain and lighting design to enhance performance. 
Dr. Aura Matias current Dean of the College of Engineering in U.P. Diliman talked about Posture Analysis for the Prevention of Low Back Pain. Workstation design encompasses not only the desks and chairs that workers use but the whole working environment such as lighting and thermal comfort. Many Filipino workers are not aware how the design of workstations affects their well being and performance. Based on survey data gathered by the Human Factors and Ergonomics Center of DLSU,  low-back pain is the most common musculoskeletal disease among workers in general. Those who are heavily involved in computing suffer heavily from neck and shoulder pain due to poor posture and lack of exercise while working.

On the other hand  Clifford Hizon, Professional Channel Manager  from Philips Lighting Systems talked about Enhancing human performance through effective lighting. Poor lighting, causes disabling glare and headaches that decrease productivity.