About IHFEA
The Israeli Human Factors and Ergonomics Association was founded in 1981 as a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of ergonomics in Israel. The Association is listed with the Registrar of Nonprofit Organizations as Nonprofit No. 58-000-4547 and fulfills all legal obligations as required. (see Articles of Association)
The Association’s structures include its five-member Managing Committee, including Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer; the Oversight Committee; the Ergonomist Registration Committee; and the Elections Committee. The Managing Committee is elected by Association members once every three years. The current Committee began its acting term in January 2023.
The Israeli HF and Ergonomics Association is a member of the Federated Societies of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA), and collaborates as well with other international bodies, such as the AES Applied Ergonomics Society, the IIES, and other organizations.
Society membership is open to all those interested and involved in the field of ergonomics. Registration with the Association as an ergonomist, whether as a Senior Professional Ergonomist or as Associate Ergonomist, is conditioned upon submission of a request to the Registration Committee and fulfillment of the criteria as listed.
Association members are invited to participate in the various activities of the Association, such as the annual conference, the active Working Groups, and the internship program. They are entitled to vote in the elections for Managing Committee held every three years.
What is Ergonomics?
Ergonomics, or the study of work, is the science which deals with the understanding, analysis and improvement of functional interactions between people and the various components of a system, including tools, environment and tasks. These functional systems may include the user interface at work, at home, or in any other task setting.
Applying the principles of ergonomics – theories, methods and practice – to the design, the organization or the adaptation of tools, environment or tasks will improve user wellbeing, health and safety, as well as the performance and function of the entire system.
The guiding principle of ergonomics is human-centered design: emphasizing the user’s physical and cognitive abilities and limitations while adapting the environment accordingly, to safeguard health, safety and performance.
The science of ergonomics is multi-disciplinary, based upon knowledge and skills from many fields, such as health sciences, engineering and psychology.
Physical Ergonomics takes into account the physical characteristics of humans to optimize system functioning, drawing from the fields of anthropometrics, physiology, kinesiology, biomechanics, etc. These adaptations can mitigate exposure to physical overload and reduce the risk of musculoskeletal injury.
Cognitive Ergonomics examines the mental processes involved in functional interactions, including perception, memory, learning and thought processes, sensory abilities such as visual, audial or tactile. Related fields include human-system
interaction (HIS), human-computer interaction (HCI), mental overload analysis and user experience (UX).
Macro-ergonomics or Organizational Ergonomics focuses on optimization of the organizational aspects of complex systems by analyzing the interactions between system components. Relevant fields include policy analysis, intraorganizational social processes, communication and work organization.