Implications of product/process design on human and robotic workstations

This paper covers some of the steps taken by IBM to recognize the increased importance of Human Factors/Ergonomics in an automated manufacturing environment. Utimately, the performance of automated systems depends on people; from product and process designers to maintenance, from managers and quality inspectors to the manual workstation operators where automation may be unreasonable. Described is an automated manufacturing process which combines humans with robotic workstations and emphasizes the use of human-factors-design criteria to enhance job satisfaction.