ISE - The Ergonomics behind Height Adjustable Desks

The Ergonomics behind Height Adjustable Desks	Friday, March 19, 2010




	Tables (and the work or equipment on them) should be at a height where you can easily key with straight wrists and read or write without either slumping forward too much or hunching up your shoulders. For most people, keying and writing are done at different heights --- many people prefer a writing surface that is a little higher than the typical keyboard surface. Getting a worksurface at the best height for you is more difficult than it sounds. There may be three different "right" heights: the right height for your forearms and shoulders (no pushing up of shoulders), the right height for your eyes and head (putting the work at a good viewing distance that avoids slumping), and the right heights for your legs (allowing you to sit the way you like, which may including crossing your legs). The right height for you may be very different from the right height for another person who is as tall as you. A lot depends on whether you are long-waisted, nearsighted, short-armed, and so forth.
	Height range (from a few inches to full sit-stand range) should be matched to the situation. Generally, a person changing from sitting to standing needs a maximum of 20 inches of height adjustability from their seated elbow height to their standing elbow height. Also, a diverse group of seated people has about a 5 inch difference between the lowest elbow height and the highest elbow height in the group. Maintenance adjustability is usually acceptable for people who do the same task most of the time. Multiple users at the same workstation should have user adjustability rather than maintenance adjustability. (Options include from crank, electrical, or counterbalanced mechanisms.) Especially for multiple operators, tables that display the height setting make it easy to find a favorite setting.

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