Ergonomic Desk:

Before selecting an Ergonomic Desk for your computer workstation, you should keep in mind its design and space. The Desk should provide enough leg space, adequate space for other components and accessories and should help you minimize awkward postures and exertions. The installation, setup, and configuration of relaxed and productive workstations involves the following considerations:

• Ergonomic Desk or work surface areas
• Areas under the Ergonomic Desk or work surface

Ergonomic Desk Quick Tips

• Ensure that the Ergonomic Desk surface is capable of keeping the monitor directly in front of at a distance of at least 20 inches away.
• Do not keep items like CPU under the Ergonomic Desk.
• The Ergonomic Desk should allow you to work in various comfortable postures.

Ergonomic Desk or Work Surface Areas:

Probable Risks

When the Ergonomics Desk doesn’t have enough space to accommodate all the components and accessories, you tend to place them in unfavorable positions. This in turn leads to awkward postures when you have to access a pointer/mouse or look at a monitor that is placed to the side.

Feasible Solutions

• Ensure that at least your mouse and keyboard are placed conveniently so that you don’t have to sit in awkward positions every time you access them.
• Ensure that your work surface allows you to see the screen at a distance of at least 20 inches (50 cm), and position it to achieve the appropriate viewing angle, which is generally directly in front of you.
• Frequently used devices such as keyboard, phone, and mouse should be kept in the most easily accessible positions.

Probable Risks

There are some workstations where the desks and certain equipments have hard edges that usually touch the arm or wrist of the user. This, in the long run, may lead to contact stress affecting the nerves and blood vessels, causing tingling and sore fingers.

Feasible Solutions

Reasonably priced materials like pipe insulation can be padded on the hard edges of the table to reduce contact stress. Also use wrist rest and select only furniture with rounded desktop edges.

Probable Risks

Discomfort and inefficient performance of the computer operator may be due to insufficient clearance under the work surface. Some common discomforts are Shoulder, back, and neck pain due to the long distance of the users from computer components, causing them to reach to perform computer tasks; and generalized fatigue, circulation restrictions, and contact stress due to limitation of movement and inability to frequently change postures.

Feasible Solutions

• Give enough clearance space for users to frequently change working postures. Items like files, CPUs, books, and storage should not be kept there.
• Ensure that the clearance spaces under all working surfaces accommodate at least two of the three seated reference working postures, one of which must be the upright-seated posture.

Probable Risks

Too high or too low desk surfaces can lead to awkward postures such as extending your arms to reach the keyboard or raising your shoulders to get the job done. This may lead to muscular fatigue of the arms and shoulders

Feasible Solutions

• Risers like boards or concrete blocks can be inserted under the Ergonomic Desk legs to lift the work surface.
• Certain conventional desks have center drawers that block your thigh space. This can be removed for free movement of your thighs.
• Cutting off the legs of the Ergonomic Desk, if required can lower the work surfaces. If this does not work, the chair can be rose a little depending on the height of the user. A footrest, if necessary, can be used to support the user’s feet.

Always select height-adjustable desks. Normally, the desk should be between 20-28 inches (50-72 cm) high.