Office of People and Capability, Safety, Emergency and Wellbeing Charles Darwin University

1. Workstation Ergonomics
Office of People and Capability, Safety, Emergency and Wellbeing

2. Objectives
 Understand the basic principles of ergonomic workstation setup
 Conduct the ergonomic workstation setup on your own workstation
 Know how to source additional assistance as required

3. Common problems
• neck, shoulder, back pain
• headaches
• eye strain
• tendonitis (“tennis elbow”)
• bursitis
• fatigue
• poor concentration
Consequences
• treatment required
• time off work
• loss of productivity
• errors
• Impacts on home life and
leisure activities
• increase risk of injury
• feeling unhappy & ‘cranky’

4. Lifestyle, Fatigue and Poor
Concentration
The brain requires a constant supply of
oxygen to keep it functioning
• Healthy diet, keep hydrated
• Limit tea, coffee & alcohol
• Adequate quality sleep
• 30 min moderate physical activity
daily
• Vigorous activity once a week

5. Static and Sustained Postures
Even when posture is good, staying in one
position (static posture) for too long can
cause problems (e.g. prolonged sitting or
standing)
• Muscles and other soft tissues can fatigue
• Smaller muscles fatigue earlier
• More proximal muscles (shoulders and
back) are used to sustain smaller muscles
so they can used (e.g. fingers and hands)
• Repetitive Movements - may be
underestimated - small muscles and joints
can be easily overused

6. Monitor your posture and Movement
Human Body is designed for movement
(dynamic)
• Encourage dynamic movement in the
workplace e.g. stand up / walking meetings,
pick up printing, get a glass of water, stand up
when on phone, walk to rubbish/recycle bins,
walk and talk instead of email, lunch time walk,
change posture, do a few stretches, shake, etc.
• Vary your work tasks during the day

7. Posture
 Equipment is important but the way
you use it is critical
 Good posture creates good balance,
flow, improves comfort and increases
blood flow to the brain
 Poor posture is felt over a period of
time
What is good posture?
 Sit upright; weight balanced on
bottom and thighs
 Knees slightly lower than hips
 Feet supported
 Look forward with chin tucked in
 Shoulders relaxed; shoulder blades
down & symmetrical

8. Office Chair
• Familiarise yourself with your chair
adjustments
• Seat height adjustments
• Back height
• Lumbar adjustment
• Seat tilt adjustment
• Arms are not recommended for computer
based tasks

9.  Seat height
 Feet flat on floor
 Thighs comfortable on the seat pan
 Backrest
 Adjust the backrest angle 90° - 110° for most work
actions
 Lumbar Support
 Feel for the deepest part of the low back curve
 Adjust the height of the lumbar support to match
the deepest part of the curve
 Adjust the lumbar support tension for comfort

10. Seat pan adjustment
• MUST ALWAYS place backside as far back into the
chair as possible and adjust position from there
• Thighs comfortable on the seat pan
• Tilt is best adjusted forward (front down) for
concentrated work at the desk as it brings you
close into the workspace
• Seat tilted back (seat front upwards) may be
used for conversation / non workstation tasks

11. Office Chair and the Desk
 Move into the desk; Re-adjust your seat
height to ensure that the elbows are just
slightly lower than the wrists and the
shoulders feel comfortable (keyboarding)
 The feet should sit comfortably on the
floor; if your feet are not able to take some
weight on the floor, then a footrest may be
required
 Remove all under desk clutter – there
should be no obstructions to allow free
movement of feet and legs

12. The Monitor
• If using two monitors equally, place yourself (chair) in between the
monitors so that equal distance exists between you and each screen
• If using one main monitor, and the other as a secondary screen, place
yourself midway in front of the main screen (as per single monitor) and the
second screen to the side slightly at an angle 00 – 150 tilt is preferable to
minimise glare
• Adjust your monitor height by sitting up in the chair and matching the
height of the top of the screen with the middle of your forehead (this may
need to be lower if you wear bifocals)
• Sit comfortably in your chair and reach forwards with one hand and
outstretched fingers toward the monitor
• The point at which your fingers touch the screen is usually the best focal
length for you to use your screen (this may change if you have glasses / contacts
or a non standard size screen)

13. The Keyboard
 Place the keyboard in front of the screen with the centre of the keyboard in
line with the centre of the monitor/s
 Place the keyboard close and parallel to the edge of the desk with a good gap
between the keyboard and the monitor
 If, after some time, the keyboard is not parallel to the edge of the desk, you
are not in line with the screen; adjust accordingly to centre yourself, the
keyboard and the monitor
 If you use a document holder, place it between the keyboard and monitor

14. The Mouse
 Keep the mouse close to the side of the keyboard at all
times
 Keep your hand/wrist position straight / neutral; aim for
less than ten degrees angle at the wrist
 Try to use a mouse that fits the size of your hand
 Consider alternate right / left use
 Avoid holding mouse when not in use
 Learn keyboard shortcuts
 Vertical or upright mouse may assist in wrist or forearm
symptoms
 Novelty type mouse are not usually practical for long term
use

15. Accessories
 Place the phone on the dominant hand
side of the desk
 Headset can go either side
 Place all other tools and work material that
is used frequently within an arm distance
arc from your body
 Place less used tools outside the arc

16. Laptop Computers and Mobile Devices
• Initially designed for short term use; now used
frequently
• Issues stem from proximity of laptop (and similar
mobile devices) monitor & keyboard
• to position the laptop monitor at the right
height for your back and neck, you have to lift
your arms and shoulders too high, causing
shoulder and neck problems
• to position laptop keyboard at the best height
for your arms and shoulders, you must hunch
your shoulders and neck to see the monitor

17. Laptop Computers and Mobile Devices
• Advice is similar to that of standard workstations
• Use a correctly set-up desktop computer instead
of a laptop / mobile device as often as you can
• Use peripheral equipment, such as a docking
station, separate keyboard, mouse and laptop
stand
• Take frequent breaks
• Carry your laptop in a backpack or in wheel-along
luggage

18. Components of Ergonomic
Workstation Setup:
 Good Posture
 Seating
 Desk
 Keyboard
 Mouse
 Equipment placement
 Adequate desk and under desk space
 Incorporation of dynamic movement
into work day / tasks

19. What Next?
• Now you are ready to use the Self-Setup Guide to setup your own workstation
• New adjustments may feel a little strange at first (as you are changing the
way you have previously been asking your muscles to work), so give it a little
time for you to adjust
• You may wish to revisit from time to time and check your adjustments with
the self-setup guide to confirm your adjustments remain in place
If you continue to have issues, view / review the ergonomic workstation
Self-Assessment Tool.
• Choose the assessment that best matches your problem (neck, forearm, etc.)
- follow through the steps and record your actions in the space provided
• Make the advised changes, and trial for 2 to 3 weeks to determine if this
alleviates your problem

20. Thank you