Harts Interiors: Office Ergonomics Experts

With 5 million working days a year lost through back pain, can you really afford not to be sitting comfortably?

If you are suffering in your present office chair or you simply require a quality office chair with good posture support for home or business, then Harts Interiors can help.

Harts Interiors have been working for many years with Occupational Therapists and the governments Access to Work programme. We offer the very best selection of ergonomic office seating and accessories on the market from leading, cutting edge manufacturers. 

Harts Interiors offers a try before you buy service which allows you to find the right chair that is right for you - whatever your shape or size.  Please enquire as sample chairs are available. 

Ergonomics.. what is it, the regulations and guidance

More people than ever carry out their activities in a seated position and this lack of physical movement is one of the causes of many illnesses. Increased use of technology combined with the disappearance of muscular activity is having a significant impact on our health and well-being.

The minimum requirement of office furniture has therefore had to change from simply providing comfortable chairs of various sizes, to the provision of a sophisticated products that will provide dynamic posture support in the many different tasks now required to be undertaken at the workstation.

An effective prescription is to sit in an office chair which provides dynamic support, meaning that the chair safely allows the change in sitting position, varying between forward-leaning, backward-leaning and sitting upright. This prevents strain and ensures the healthy interplay of stress and relaxation between the muscles and the spinal column.

The seat has changed to reduce the pressure under the lower thigh and a contoured 'posture' seat to spread the weight of the upper body over as wide an area as possible.

The back of the office chair has also changed, almost beyond recognition, with positive adjustable lumbar depth and positioning becoming almost standard on many modern chairs.

The key here is to once again provide control of the users spine, often directly by the curvature of the back pad itself, but once again on a few newer chairs, by the control of the pelvis and in particular the prevention of the backwards tilt, retaining the lazy S curvature of the spine and a better posture as a result.

Of course it is important here that, in all cases, the back is adjusted to each individual user so that the back pad fits naturally into the curve of the spine.

Regulations and Standards

The changing office environment and the rise in health-related problems associated with the increasing use of personal computers, led to the introduction by the European Commission of Directive No: 90/70/EEC of 29th May 1990 on the minimum health and Safety Requirements for Work with Display Screen Equipment or Video Display Terminals (VDTs).

This was implemented in the UK by the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 and was incorporated in the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974. These regulations were amended in 2002.

Before selecting an office chair ensure that it has been manufactured to all UK and European performance standards and has been manufactured under a recognised and registered quality assurance standard to maintain the quality levels.

These performance standards include:

• BS 5940 part 1 – Office Furniture; office swivel chairs; safety requirements, testing
• BS EN 1335 – 1 – Office Furniture – Office work chair. Part 1 (1999) Dimensions
• BS EN ISO 9241 Part 5 – Ergonomics of design and use of visual display terminals (VDTs) in offices, Part 5: 1999 Specifications for VDT workstations
• BS 5459 Part 2, Level ‘S’ – Specification for performance requirements and tests for office furniture Part 2: 1990 Office Seating requirement: Level ‘S’ (Severe contract use)
• BS 4875 Part 1 and 2 – Strength and Stability of furniture. Requirements for the strength and durability of the structure of domestic and contract seating
• BS 7176 – Specification for resistance to ignition of upholstered furniture for non- domestic seating by testing composites
• The manufacturer should comply with a recognised Quality Management System as part of ISO 9000 series

Health & Safety

Minimum requirements for Workstations (Work Desk or Work Surface)

These are the minimum requirements that should be provided by an employer to an employee, if that employee is classified as a ‘display screen user’.

The work desk or worksurface shall have a sufficiently large, low reflectance surface and allow a flexible arrangement of the screen, keyboard, documents and related equipment.

The document holder shall be stable and adjustable and shall be positioned so as to minimise the need for uncomfortable head and eye movements.

There should be adequate space for operators or users to find a comfortable position.

Work Chair

The work chair shall be stable and allow the operator or user easy freedom of movement and a comfortable position.

• The seat shall be adjustable in height
• The seat back shall be adjustable in both height and tilt
• A footrest shall be made available to any operator or user who wishes one

The Health and Safety Executive have also issued guidance on these regulations:

These guidance notes further explain the regulations as follows:

Work Desk or Work Surface

Work surface dimensions may need to be larger than for conventional non-screen office work, to take account of:

• The range of tasks performed (for example screen viewing, keyboard input, use of other input devices, writing on paper, use of telephone, etc);
• Position and use of hands for each task;
• Use and storage of working materials and equipment (documents, telephones, etc).
  Document holders can be useful for work with hard copy.

Guidance on Regulations for Work Chairs

• The primary requirement here is that the work chair should allow the user to achieve a comfortable position.
• Seat height adjustments should accommodate the needs of the users for the tasks performed.
• The Schedule also requires the seat to be adjustable in height (i.e. relative to the ground) and the seat back to be adjustable in height (also relative to the ground) and tilt.
• Provided the chair design meets these requirements it is not necessary for the height or tilt of the seat back to adjustable independently of the seat.
• Remember that users may need training on how to adjust their chairs.
• Footrests may be necessary where individual workers are unable to rest their feet flat on the floor.

Adjusting your Workstation

Arrange your working area to suit you.

Change the height of the chair so that your forearms are approximately horizontal, shoulders and elbows are completely relaxed and wrists not excessively bent (up, down or sideways)

Adjust the back of the chair so that the back fits naturally into the curve of your spine and provides support along the length of your back, while allowing freedom of movement for your shoulders and upper arms.

Thighs should be at an approximate right angle to your body or sloping slightly down.

There should be no excess pressure on the underside of your thighs and back of knees.

If your feet are not flat on the floor, use a footrest to provide support.

The top of the screen should be at horizontal eye level. Use a monitor arm if necessary.

The screen and keyboard should be directly in front of you. Place the screen at arms’ length.
Change position every 20 minutes, if you are seated try standing, stretching or walking.

Adjust the tension of the chair mechanism to be in balance with your body to provide sufficient support, without excess force pressing you forwards.

Use the full range of the chair movements, leaning back and forwards to avoid staying in a rigid position for long periods.

Click here to find out about workanomics and to carry out a free workstation assessment http://www.fellowes.com/workanomics/index.asp