Harry Blanchard, Principal Consultant, Ricardo Rail, will talk about human factors.

Human behaviour is recognised as a vital part of the safety and efficiency of all technical organisations. This appreciation has emerged from painful experience. Incidents such as the Piper Alpha disaster, the Kegworth air crash, the wreck of the Torrey Canyon and the Paddington rail crash have demonstrated the important role of the “human factor” in system safety. The discipline of human factors is often cited as the next big thing in engineering design and safety. However human factors, or ergonomics, has a history of at least 65 years and has made a notable improvements in the safety of transportation, industry and consumer products, and contributed to the digital economy.

This presentation will provide a background to Human Factors by discussing its origins in military aviation, and reviewing some concepts that have emerged – such as user-centred design, human error, and safety culture – through case studies drawn from a range of industries.

Date: Wednesday 17 February 2016

Time: Buffet at 18:00, talk starts at 18:30.

Venue: Granta Room, TWI Ltd, Granta Park, Cambridge CB21 6AL. Note that following the recent opening of the new Granta Centre, visitor parking arrangements at TWI have changed (directions).

PLEASE PRE-REGISTER FOR THIS MEETING - see the organiser's webpage.

RSVP (and for more information and directions) to: Alan Shand (Lloyds Register) Tel: 0207 423 2833 Email: alan.shand@lr.org

A poster for this talk can be downloaded here.

This event is organised by the Eastern Counties Branch of The Welding Institute.