Ergonomic approaches in product development of protective and

functional clothing
Shuswalini Shadangi and Taniya Meena
National Institute of Fashion Technology, Mumbai

Abstract

Keywords

Introduction

Literature of Review (body)

Whenever a product is designed in apparel sector the design is focused on a particular
category of the society. With the implement of ergonomics in product development stage, the
product can become more user friendly.In this research we want to come with how critically
important ergonomics is. While we researched about the various uses of ergonomics in
product development, we found out that ergonomics has a huge impact on protective
clothing. This area of apparel needs special concern as any mistake in the development of the
product will directly harm the consumer. Ergonomically approved protective clothing will
also increase the productivity of the worker.

Fashion Ergonomics
[A] What is fashion ergonomics?
(1) Human shape and motion mechanism, psychological and physiological function.
(2) The relationship between the body and the clothing hygiene, physiological reaction,
involving the skin and clothing material, clothing pressure, pollution, such as static
electricity.
(3) The relationship between the body and the packaging materials, varieties and high-tech
materials to human body engineering value, human and material suitability, coordination of
materials and styles, the application research in the clothing of the climate and human body
heat exchange environment.
(4) The relationship between human engineering and apparel modelling of quantitative
change, how to achieve human dignity and style structure of trochaic clothing logo, graphics
and engineering requirements of human psychological responses to colours.
(5) The body shape measurement and statistical value orientation in the batch clothing and
high fashion in clothing, CAD 3D space efficiency, evaluation models and specifications.
(6) The relationship between the body and the special occupation clothing, work space and
clothing requirements.
Problems of non- ideal protective clothing
[C]When we were going through various case studies, we came across various examples-

1. Women are nowadays joining construction field and due to this the safety concern of
this field has elevated.

2. It was also mentioned that women were found to be uncomfortable with the uniform
the construction male workers usually wear.Working in construction sites or in
manufacturing plants requires protective wear that should be designed to with keeping
in mind - comfort, protection, and durability and should allow the employee to do
their tasks effectively.

3. As working in a construction site was male dominating, therefore the uniform is also
male worker friendly and is made by keeping the working and functioning of a male
worker. Now when a female worker joins and is made to wear the same uniform, they
feel a problem. As a protective wear / any garment should be made according to user.
Here we are forcing a product made on the basis of male user onto a female user.
Which creates a problem.
Making of ideal protective garment
[C]Every manufacturer has different ways of producing ideal protective wear.
1. The user-centred design theory emphasises that “if an object, a system or an
environment is intended for human use, then its design should be based upon the
physical and mental characteristics of its human users.

2. The 3D body scan data can be very helpful to understand better the issues related
to mobility and restrictions imposed by the clothing. This data is then matched
with the movement and mobility required in the work station and then ideal
protective wear is made.

3. [D]The functionality of the components of protective clothes should be linked to

the complexity of the actions the worker must perform, this functionality should
be associated with the comfort perceived by the worker in terms of thermal
conditions, anthropometric and visual appearance.

4. [D]Many manufacturers send their designers to the workplace to have more clarity
in the working ergonomics of the workers. They observe the workers for a day or
two and note each and every action they undergo in their work life.

Requirements of functional clothing

[B]These considerations can be classified into four categories:
1. PHYSIOLOGICAL REQUIREMENTS - These relate to human physiology and
anatomy – shape, size, mass, strength, and metabolic activities of the body or the
need of the human body to feel comfortable in the clothing system.
The primary factors affecting the physiological needs are the energy
metabolism, clothing thermal properties (as determined by the heat and mass
transfer characteristics of clothing assemblies) and the ambient climatic
conditions.
2. BIOMECHANICAL REQUIREMENTS - Biomechanics deals with the
mechanical characteristics of the human body as well as the kinematic dynamic
and behavioural analysis of human activity. Its applications address mechanical
structure, strength and mobility of humans for engineering purposes – the
unusual postures and movement of the users.
3. ERGONOMIC REQUIREMENTS - Ergonomic is defined as the science of
work; of the people who do it and the ways it is done, of the tools and
equipments they use, the places they work in and the psycho social aspects of
the working situations. Ergonomic considerations dictate that the mechanical
characteristics of clothing match the motion, degree of freedom, range of motion
and force, and moment of human joints. The working postures, material
handling, movements, workplace layout, safety and health considerations should
be given due consideration while developing the style, cut and features of a
functional garment.
 4. PSYCHOLOICAL REQUIREMENTS - Psychological aspects relate to how
human beings feel, think, act and interact under a given a set of circumstances.
As clothing is an extension of one’s persona, strong feelings are often associated
with its appearance and aesthetics. Considerations in term of user’s
psychological and social behaviour in response to events, people and
environments. These considerations are of vital importance when clothing is
designed for special groups such as disabled or elderly. Clothing items have
been known to be often not accepted by the target groups as it makes them stand
out from the rest. These groups prefer clothing which has enabling features for
their needs but does not look different and helps them to appear “normal”. In
other words, people prefer the functionality to be unobtrusive.

Process of Clothing Design

 [B] Material Selection
Stretch Fabrics
Smart textiles
Biomimetic Textiles
E-textiles
Nanotechnology in Textiles
 [B] Use of Air in textiles

Conclusion

References
A. Research on application in fashion design clothing ergonomics -
https://www.tsijournals.com/articles/research-on-application-in-fashion-
design-clothing-ergonomics.pdf

B. Design and Engineering of Functional clothing -

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8574/408e4794e7ed04d9cb268b2e96423
94a49ce.pdf

C. Ergonomic considerations for the design of women's functional protective

wear for the local construction industry -
http://etd.cput.ac.za/bitstream/handle/20.500.11838/1328/201100924_Kol
isi_B_Mtech_design_2015.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
D. Ergonomics principle in design clothing work for electrical workers in
Colombia
E. Ergonomics and Comfort in protective and Sport clothing -
https://www.longdom.org/open-access/ergonomics-and-comfort-in-
protective-and-sport-clothing-a-brief-review-2165-7556.S2-005.pdf