Development of a database for capability-appropriate workplace design in the manufacturing industry

BACKGROUND: Due to demographic change, less young workers are available and the overall number of workers will decrease. The length of absenteeism, especially due to musculoskeletal disorders, increases with higher age. OBJECTIVE: The range of performance between individuals grows wider although there are exceptions for different capabilities and elderly workers. Therefore, a capability-appropriate workplace design is necessary to meet physical workplace demands in the manufacturing industry and in order to preserve the workability of the workforce. METHODS: The human-centred design process was used to provide a design solution that meets the needs of the workplace designers. The design solutions are evaluated three times. RESULTS: The high number of capabilities with a wide range of individual performance can be best captured and represented in a database. Therefore, a database is developed in which relevant physical manufacturing capabilities are collected and processed for workplace designers. Based on this information, design solutions for a prospective capability-appropriate workplace design can be derived relative to the age structure of the manufacturing plant. CONCLUSIONS: This gives the workplace designer propositions on how to plan their workplaces so as to avoid excessive stress and musculoskeletal disorders in the employees.