Ergonomic design of non-powered hand tools: An application of quality function deployment (QFD)

Abstract

Quality function deployment (QFD) is a design method that can be used to improve the quality of products. A QFD application aimed at improving the ergonomic quality of pruning shears is presented. User needs for pruning shears, as well as the design aspects which have the greatest influence on the ergonomic quality of pruning shears were defined. This information was entered in the house of quality (HOQ), which is a QFD tool. The HOQ results are represented in the form of relative importance of design aspects. The results of HOQ and user interviews show that both the approaches give the most important design aspects that are same. QFD is considered a suitable method for the ergonomic design of hand tools. The QFD application provides valuable information in the design process for hand tools and it can be used in the decision-making process during the design of hand tools.