ERGONOMIC EFFECTS OF A MANAGEMENT-BASED RATIONALIZATION IN ASSEMBLY WORK - A CASE-STUDY

Due to unsatisfactory productivity, a large company in the Swedish man ufacturing industry decided to rationalize their assembly system. The intended rationalization comprised several changes with deliberate erg onomic implications, The main aim of the present study was to evaluate the impact of the rationalization on the physical work load of the op erators, The work load was assessed before and after the changes using expert observations, company records and direct technical measurement s, The results indicate that the intervention led to only minor change s in muscle load, body postures and movement patterns, Several of the planned initiatives were never implemented, e.g. teaching the workers multiple skills and designing work stations at which a major part of t he assembly sequence could be performed, This was mainly due to a poli cy revision caused by changes in the market situation, In spite of the company's original intentions, the revised production system containe d only minor ergonomic improvements, Thus, the realization of the ergo nomic potential in a rationalization seems to depend on management cul ture, as well as factors outside the company.