Creating The Right Ergonomic Office Workstation

The thing to keep in mind when creating an office workstation for your employees is that what is ergonomically right for one person won’t necessarily be the same for someone else. And even though this makes creating a suitable ergonomic workstation more difficult, it is important to do so as it will help to prevent injury throughout your office.

The most common injuries found in the office are known as repetitive strain injuries (RSI’s) and can be a direct result of a bad workstation. And, while once buying an ergonomic office workstation would have been highly expensive, the demand for these products today has meant that they are available at a very affordable price.

Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) provisions are now in place to ensure that everyone has access to an ergonomic office workstation. The things to look for in office furniture are: the angle of arms and wrists; the angle and height of computer monitors; cabling requirements (there should always be easy access to the mouse and telephone); the height of keyboards; the seat height in relation to the desk height; and that office furniture has a matte finish that minimises glare.

There are a range of ergonomic office workstation solutions on the market that can be combined to suit almost everyone’s needs. Chairs are easy to adjust – the height, seat and back can be moved at the touch of a lever. Changing the height of an office desk is a little more difficult, but there are workstations on the market that have adjustable legs, which are handy for overly tall or short people. Customising an office workstation to suit the needs of its user is becoming easier than ever.

It was once thought that the office chair was one of the main perpetrators of an uncomfortable workstation, but the desk also plays an important role in making your workplace ergonomic. A desk should have adequate clearance for legs underneath, and there should not be anything stored underneath a workstation that would hinder this. The surface of the desk should allow for the proper placement of a computer and its accessories, and if there is limited desk space a corner or L-shaped workstation should be purchased. If the office workstation has sharp edges, look into padding or supplying a wrist rest for employees to protect their arms.

You will find that creating the right ergonomic office workstation for your employees will have vast improvements for your business. There may be fewer sick days and an overall increased rate of productivity, so why wait?