Participatory development of ergonomic design-for-fixture guidelines - A case study

This paper describes one initiative in a 3 year-collaboration between Research In Motion (RIM) and Ryerson University, the goal of which is to integrate human factors (HF) considerations into the process of designing assembly systems. The RIM-Ryerson steering group suggested this initiative because the engineering group was formalizing their fixture development process with the goal of improving the quality and timeline for fixture design. To incorporate HF into design, research has suggested that the combination of a few specific HF design criteria and active involvement of HF specialists are both critical for positive outcomes. In this initiative, Ergonomists analyzed current assembly fixtures for ergonomics-related concerns. These were shared with nine design engineers in a workshop with a goal of translating the concerns into design guidelines that would prevent the concern. The workshop resulted in 12 design guidelines that are now ergonomic requirements for internal or external vendors. The new fixture development process now includes four process stages where the Ergonomist, working proactively as a design team member, ensures the design meets ergonomics requirements. The stages are: fixture design kick-off meeting to clarify design requirements and initiate the DFMEA (design failure modes effects analysis); the fixture design review; the production tool design sign-off; and lessons learned. The combination of ergonomic design-for-fixture guidelines and the participation of Ergonomists in the fixture design process have the potential for improving assembly ergonomics and quality across thousands of workers.