What are some challenges facing designers in the medical industry?
A. In addition to understanding user needs and appropriate ergonomics, industrial designers have to deal with the complexity of the international marketplace, which requires knowledge of international standards and material development. Generally, people are familiar with how consumer products and appliances work, whereas in the medical area even the companies that focus on medical product development are constantly learning new procedures and new processes. Q. The term ergonomics is used frequently in the industry. Do you have any concern that some people do not have a thorough understanding of it? A. Unquestionably, there’s a concern. My company, Metaphase, describes to our clients something called ergomania, in which people think that if they understand the size of a person’s hand for a handheld product, then they can call it an ergonomic product, and of course that’s not the case. Ergonomics goes way beyond the traditional measure of body parts that came out of the military’s World
