Ergonomics and Human Factors
Prioritising user-centric design
Human Factors experts study cognitive, physical and organisational influences on human behaviours to improve the design of the environments around us and the products and processes we engage with.
We work with all areas of the rail sector to put the needs of people first and foremost.
Our human factors experts bring international experience of working with railway operators, manufacturers and regulators across Europe and Asia, with previous assignments that include vehicle design, wayfinding, behaviour modelling, workload assessments and human-machine interaction audits.
Whether working from the viewpoint of passengers, traffic control managers or maintenance crews, we help rethink practices and introduce changes that deliver efficiencies and enhance individual experiences of rail travel.
Our support can be provided as a stand-alone advisory project or as part of a wider systems engineering or independent assurance assignment.
All of our Consultants are either Fellows of the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors (CIEHF), Chartered, or working towards gaining chartership.
Projects
Researching optimised use of audible train warnings
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Ricardo's UK rail team awarded Human Factors 'Accredited' status
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Ricardo undertakes safety assessment of popular Kent tourist railway
Read insightIntegrating human factors into operations
From the earliest stages of the design process, we will use proven, evidence-based techniques to understand the circumstances, characteristics and limitations of the end-user.
We will then help to create environments, products and processes that prompt the behaviours you want to see from users, as opposed to designs determined by engineering conventions. We will also draw on our wealth of experience to introduce measures that go beyond relevant standards and specifications, and ensure they are integrated safely and with positive impact.
In this way, we will help you provide workplaces that empower staff to perform their roles to the best of their ability, and create passenger environments that are safe, comfortable, easy to navigate and, above all, showcase all that is best about rail travel.
Example analysis tools and methods we use
- Organisational culture assessments
- Task and link analysis
- Usability studies
- Wayfinding and passenger flow modelling
- User research and engagement
- Objective and subjective workload assessments
- Heuristic analysis for User Interface Design
- Human reliability analysis
Ergonomics and Human Factors Resources
