Human Factors Problems in Heavy Manufacturing as Perceived by Manufacturing Engineers

Abstract

Most literature on the application of human factors engineering in industry has described problems from the viewpoint of the seller of human factors technology, that is, the human factors engineer. It is also important that the seller learn to identify human factors problems as perceived by the buyers, that is, those who design and operate production hardware and software systems. This paper describes the author's experience in teaching a graduate level course in human factors engineering to a group of 30 manufacturing engineers and soliciting their perceptions of human factors problems in manufacturing operations in the form of team reports. The results indicate a sample of the depth and scope of human factors problems in modern manufacturing. They also indicate directions and trends in the vast area of industrial application as related to heavy manufacturing.