Nordic
BUS I NESS
PROMOTION PRODUCED BY CALCUS GROUP
control room operator has to per-
ceive and process vital informati-
on and warnings. For the operator
to respond rapidly and effective-
ly, an optimised loop between a system and
its user is essential. To achieve this, the user
has to be at the heart of the control roomde-
sign. The Norwegian company Human Fac-
tor Solutions (HFS) are masters at this; un-
derstanding the details of who a system’s
users are, their characteristics, which tasks
they need to perform and what their re-
quirements are.
HFS specialise in improving the interac-
tion between people and technology. Hav-
ing obtained an exceptional reputation by
years of working for the oil and gas indus-
try, the company is rated among the leading
professionals.
Development Director
Haakon Augens-
en
describes the composition of the HFS
team:
-
We employ psychologists and designers
as well as engineers. This makes us differ-
ent to our competitors. An offshore control
room and its software under development
and construction is a complex project that
requires the involvement of several different
disciplines.
The oil and gas industry are the main re-
cipients of HFS’ services, though their skills
and the principles of logical design and sim-
plicity cancontribute tomost industries and
products.
-
Imagine buying a travel ticket from a
ticket machine and you repeatedly have
to ponder what to press. This is just one of
many real-world examples where human
factors thinking is missing in design. Failure
to correctly understand the users needs can
result in products that exclude people and
leavemany frustrated.
In many cases, system designers forget
that the average user is not an engineer, Au-
gensen says, and points to the car industry:
-
Car manuafacturers are among the best
when it comes to holistic thinking; once you
have mastered one car model you can al-
most immediately drive any other. For dec-
ades the manufacturers have used unwrit-
ten standards and conventions to ensure
consistency; there is little deviation when it
comes to placement of the accelerator ped-
al relative to the break pedal, for example.
Deviation from conventions can lead to fa-
tal accidents, as a number of industrial acci-
dents have proven.
WHY CONSIDER HUMAN FACTORS?
-
It’s about ensuring the best possible so-
lution or product, one that is functional,
usable and desirable, safe and efficient to
use, avoiding costly re-design, increasing
user satisfaction, delivering something all
are capable of using, increasing profita-
bility, delivering to the market at the right
time and to the right cost…Why wouldn’t
you think about human factors?
Q
TEXT: JOSTEIN MOSNES
Managing director Haakon Augensen together with a 3D model of a control room seen from
above.
A
Considering the human factor
WHENEVER WE COME INTO
CONTACT WITH TECHNOLOGY,
WHETHER IT BE A MOBILE
PHONE OR IN A COMPLEX
CONTROL ROOM ENVIRONMENT,
ENSURING THAT IT MATCHES
OUR CAPABILITIES, NEEDS
AND LIMITATIONS IS KEY TO
MAINTAINING ATTENTION,
MOTIVATION, SAFETY AND
EFFICIENCY.
Facts
HUMAN FACTORS
SOLUTIONS AS
•
Consultancy providing analyses
and design services based on hu-
man factors
•
Goal: risk reduction
• 18
employees
•
Founded in 1988
•
Certified by Achilles Joint Qualifi-
cation Systems (JQS)
•
Working worldwide
Contact:
HFS
Jernbaneveien 4, P.O. Box 661
N-1401 Ski, Norway
Tel: (+47) 64 91 44 40
PHOTO: FREDRIK WARBO
