LA ERGONOMÍA COMO ESTRUCTURA PARA LA INNOVACIÓN EN LA INGENIERÍA DE PROYECTOS DE ORGANIZACIONES PRODUCTIVAS

Abstract

This paper presents three ergonomic approaches and how they promote innovation in productive organisations’ project engineering. Ergonomics integrates design variables and offers methodological approaches that favour innovation processes, beginning on a technological and organisational level and afterwards on a social and cultural level. In line with this, ergonomics contributes to solve the traditional error of production engineering that centres design on technology, frequently ignoring not just human interaction analysis but sociotechnical characteristics of work systems. Based on macroergonomics, anthropotechnology and participatory ergonomics, four principles are set out as an innovation structure: systemic approach with emphasis on complexity, scalability, human activity and participatory processes. Examples that support this theoretical approach are presented, showing how ergonomics can contribute to innovation processes. Innovation should not be oriented exclusively to the market: with ergonomics it is possible to innovating production processes, work systems and management, improving competitiveness, wellbeing and life quality at work. Keywords: macroergonomics; anthropotechnology; participatory ergonomics; innovation; productive organisations