Although ergonomics is about all the elements in a standard office environment which includes good quality office furniture, lighting, equipment, tools and even flooring and aesthetics, the ergonomic office chair does receive more attention than most other elements in an office. The reason as to why the chair receives more attention compared to other elements can be easily justified because it is the chair that office employees use more than any other furniture or tool in the office.
Although some may say that ergonomics is not only about the chair which is true to a certain degree, but rest assured, 70 % of ergonomics is about the chair that employees sit on during office hours for 80 % of the total working hours. Based on this it is important to understand why ergonomics is so important and in this article we will walk through each of the factors in the equation of the purpose of an ergonomic office chair which are comfort, support, posture perfection and wellbeing.
Comfort
Comfort is critical towards avoiding exhaustion and lethargy as doing anything from an uncomfortable position causes our body to become tired quickly. In contrast, when we are comfortable, we tend to endure longer simply because our bodies are not being subjected to strain.
What comes out of comfort is beneficial to both employee and employer, employees do not exert themselves or strain various body parts which in turn allow them to focus better and longer on their respective tasks and this leads to higher productivity which is always good for the employer.
Towards achieving this comfort, the solution is good quality ergonomic office chairs that are finely tuned and adjusted to the user’s anthropometrics which leads us to the second factor in the equation which is ‘support’.
Support
Ergonomic office chairs are designed in such a way that they practically cradle the body of the user and support the vital areas of our body that will be affected by long hours of sitting down. This includes the lumbar region, shoulders, neck, pelvic region and legs.
A good quality ergonomic office chair even offers a tilt function and depth function of the seat which allows users to snuggly fit their pelvis and lower back ‘into the chair’ which brings us to the third factor which is posture perfection.
Posture Perfection
Maintaining good or healthy posture becomes very easy with the support of an ergonomic office chair which is undoubtedly among the most important factor towards reducing the risk of musculoskeletal problems down the road.
Users of good quality ergonomic chairs are able to easily refrain from slouching or slumping forward when they are seated on an ergonomic chair and this factor brings us to the final factor which is enhanced wellbeing
Enhanced Well being
When the above three factors are put together they lead to well being simply because discomfort is minimised, good posture is promoted, stress and strain on body parts and joints are minimised drastically.
All of these sums up the equation of what a good office ergonomic chair have to contribute to the employee’s overall health and well being.