Human Factors As part of the structured approach the human element is then broken down into a number of domains. Although the formal domain titles vary slightly depending where in the world you are, they are consistent in the themes they address. Here we refer to seven domains: Manpower, Personnel, Training, Human Factors Engineering, System Safety, Health Hazards and Social and Organizational. The themes in the U.S. for example are consistent, but the titles differ slightly. The key point is not the definitions of the domains—it is the necessity to break the human element down into manageable chunks if it is to be dealt with on a practical level from a designers and operators perspective.
Manpower Manpower plays a critical role in any given situation and so the cost of personnel is significant. Therefore it’s important for organizations to feel confident that they have the optimum number of people with the right set of skills to do the job effectively and safely and identify what opportunities there are to reduce manning levels supported by the latest technology.
personnel To achieve optimum system performance we must remember that although there is a basic build standard for humans, individuals vary in their experience and other human characteristics, including body size and strength. Still we see designs where control panels or critical valves are positioned where they cannot be reached by everyone. Designing equipment with a detailed understanding of body size, and how it moves, as well as what people can realistically see from their height and location will result in enhanced performance and fewer errors.
Training In general too much reliance is placed on training and procedures as a means to mitigate fundamentally poor system design. Sometimes, training and procedures are the only tools we have and indeed, it’s not to say that training is not required. However, if we as an industry want to bring the human error rates down we have to recognize that training is one of the weakest mitigations for human error, and design the wider system and checks and balances accordingly.
HuMan FacTors engineering People are extremely adaptable and will cope with bad design/equipment or with the most horrendous conditions, but that doesn’t mean that they’re doing well—it just means they are coping. During design, considerable time is spent with the integration of “unchangeable” components of the system. They have a known specification, interface requirements and limiting factors and have to be used as they are. The same is true of humans. If you treat the human in a similar systems engineering approach then it is far easier to integrate HSI into engineering programs. The reference data is different, but conceptually the approach is very similar. When human element issues are put in engineering terms they often become more easily explained and managed. For example, you don’t ask an electrical circuit to take more load than it was designed for because it will break. The same logic is true of people when it comes to lifting equipment or stores. Equally, it is common to find attention quickly given to the necessary cooling of equipment to keep it within its cleared limits, yet people have similar environmental limits too but these are often overlooked—with potential performance and safety impacts. The person is as much a part of the system as the lines of code or the shiny hard metal and plastic. That includes leaving space for
them to be in the necessary posture for maintenance tasks. If you put a person in an uncomfortable position and ask them to carry out an intricate task then it is reasonable to expect the job will not always be done as well as imagined— regardless of the amount of training and procedures you put in place. Small things that might be considered obvious are still routinely missed. HSI therefore de-risks the design early and helps avoid costly re-design work later on in the design program.
sysTeM saFeTy It is something of a paradox that the human element of the system is a causal factor in the majority of accidents, yet is also one of the most widely cited safety mitigations. Indeed it is true to say that too much time is spent discussing the purely negative aspects of being human; the human in the system is in fact one of the best and most effective mitigations for a wide range of failures and accident sequences. The capacity for creative problem solving has saved the day on so many occasions, yet those events are rarely newsworthy and therefore feature less highly in people’s perceptions of human risk.
Accidents rarely happen as a result of a particular action so it’s important to pick up the things that could trip up human performance and deal with them It is important to approach discussions on the probability of a given human outcome with a robust knowledge base, logic and a clear head. Of course, it’s impossible to cater for everything—it’s about identifying what is an acceptable level of risk and putting measures in place to help minimize those risks. Even where equipment cannot be modified during the design process it remains important to understand any deficiencies and confirm that appropriate mitigations are in place.
HealTH Hazards Linked to system safety, it’s important to go through the process of identifying and addressing conditions inherent in the operation or use of a system (e.g. vibration, fumes, radiation, noise, shock, etc.) that can cause death, injury, illness, disability or reduce the performance of personnel.
social and organizaTional This particular domain is inextricably linked with all of the other areas and is the application of tools and techniques from organizational psychology, management studies, social science, information science and the system of systems approach in order to consider the organizational configuration and social environment. That is everything from measures to increase retention, job design and effective communication—even the selection of people. Managing human factors in a structured and coherent way is vital for success—be precise, thorough and rigorous. Experimenting around the edges or tinkering in the middle will not bring to the fore the total life cost and performance benefits. A systematic and structured approach to human system integration will help to minimize the opportunities for error and provide the best possible chance of optimizing the performance of your key assets—your systems/ equipment and your people. ■ January 2014 MARINE LOG 31