Happy Seat for employees at Ford
Ford gathered a team of occupational therapists, production specialists, labour groups and representatives for disabled employees to make aware of issues on Ford’s production line such as an ageing workforce and the physical tolls of long-term working on the line and improve ergonomics, safety and productivity.
This meeting led to the ‘Happy Seat’- a swivel chair attached to a rod-shaped suspension, which enables workers to sit in comfort on the production line while assembling cars. The seat allows workers to sit and glide into the car while fitting pedal boxes, instead of bending over. The first ‘Happy Seat’ was installed at the workstation wiring roof antennae at Genk, Belgium, in 1998, followed by Cologne, Germany in 2002. Today, the ‘Happy Seats’ are used at Valencia, Spain, and Saarlouis, Germany.
Given the ageing European population and increases in retirement ages in some countries, Ford’s ‘Happy Seat’ has become especially relevant to the 21st Century workplace.
Eilis Carey, senior ergonomist for Ford of Europe, said: “It’s called the “Happy Seat” for a good reason – it makes a tough job easier for workers in our plants. Operations which previously required awkward postures to be maintained for prolonged periods can now be performed in a seated position with adequate lumbar support.”
Martin Chapman, operations manager in Cologne plant, where Ford produces the Ford Fiesta for Surrey and rest of UK, adds: “Employees just push themselves back and forth and the chair swings in and out of the cabin – very simply and not requiring much physical effort. And their back feels fine, allowing employees to remain in employment longer to the benefit of Ford.”
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