Compiled by Ila Elson

When developed with ergonomics in mind, products can be easy to use, comfortable, safe, and effective. You can live a more productive and comfortable life by shopping for products with ergonomic design features. And with your support, the number of products that reflect good human factors/ergonomics principles will continue to grow.

Use this guide to identify annual award programs throughout the world that specify human factors/ergonomics as one of their judging criteria. Then visit the Web site of the award program to learn about the specific products that have impressed the judges and won design acclaim.

Please note that the listing of annual award programs in this guide does not constitute any endorsement by the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society or any representation as to the quality or performance of the winning products.

• www.ammagazine.com The magazine for the appliance manufacturers publishes the winners of the annual Appliance Manufacturer Excellence in Design Awards in March. Typical product entry categories are major appliances, lawn/garden and outdoor appliances; commercial/vending; computers/electronics; communications; floor care; heating/air conditioning; leisure appliances' portable power tools; medical appliances and laboratory equipment; portable appliances/personal care; test, measurement, and inspection equipment; electrical fitness equipment; and peripherals and accessories. The panel of experts evaluates entries according to aesthetics, ergonomics/human factors, and innovative features.
• www.cesweb.org The annual consumer electronics show presents Best of Innovations Awards in January. Typical product categories for this award include accessories, audio, computer hardware and software, digital imaging, electronic gaming, home appliances, home data networking, integrated home systems, mobile electronics, mobile office, office equipment, online/internet, personal electronics, retail resources, satellite systems, telephones, video, and wireless communications. Product evaluations are based on these weighted criteria: user value, aesthetics, contributions to the quality of life, and innovative qualities.
• www.idsa.org and www.businessweek.com The Industrial Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) given by the Industrial Designers Society of America and sponsored by BusinessWeek magazine are announced every summer. Products compete in the following categories: business and industrial products, computer equipment, consumer products, design explorations, digital media interfaces, environments, furniture, medical and scientific products, packaging and graphics, student designs, and transportation.
• www.hfes.org/pdtg/ The User-Centered Design Award is given by the Product Design Technical Group of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society in September. The winner of this award must demonstrate excellence in human factors/ergonomics methods and design.
• www.mdeawards.com Canon Communications announces winners of the annual Medical Design Excellence Awards (MDEA) competition in March. Medical categories include critical care and emergency medical products, dental instruments, equipment, and supplies, general hospital devices and therapeutic products, implant and tissue-replacement products, in vitro diagnostics, finished packaging, over-the-counter and self-care products, radiological and electromechanical devices, rehabilitation and assistive technology products, and surgical equipment, instruments, and supplies. A multidisciplinary panel of jurors uses several criteria, including design and engineering attributes, user-related features that improve health care delivery and change traditional medical attitudes or practices, enhanced benefits to the patient, and the ability of the product development team to overcome design and engineering challenges to meet clinical objectives.
• www.red-dot.de The Red Dot Award: Product Design, a large, prestigious international competition, is organized by Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen in Germany. Winners are typically announced in June or July. The entries are split into the following product groups for assessments by the jury: living rooms and bedrooms; households, kitchens, and bathrooms; leisure, hobbies, and sports; architecture and environment; industry and crafts; public spaces and traffic; trade and trade fairs; medicine and rehabilitation; offices and administration; media and home electronics; and jewelry, fashion, and accessories. The jury makes its selection in accordance with the following criteria: degree of innovation, functionality, formal quality, ergonomics, durability, symbolic and emotional content, product peripherals, self-explanatory quality, and ecological soundness. This competition also chooses a design team of the year.
• http://www.g-mark.org/ The “Good Design Award” is Japan’s only comprehensive design evaluation and commendation system.  All Japanese companies that have incorporated design into their operations and are engaged in state-of-the-art production are participating in this system.  Screening criteria include:  1.  Is it a good design?  2.  Is it a superior design? And 3.  Is it a design that breaks new ground for the future?  Winners are typically announced in early October every year.
• http://www.dba.org.uk/  Design Effectiveness Awards are given in the United Kingdom by the Design Business Association.  This is the only award scheme that uses commercial data as a key judging criteria.  Judges look for designs that prove beyond reasonable doubt that a cause and effect exists between the new design and business success through results.  Winners are announced in November every year.
• http://www.arthritis.org/resources/sponsors/Ease_of_use/easy_to_use_products.asp  The Arthritis Foundation created a program to encourage manufacturers to design user-friendly products and packaging.  Manufacturers submit their products(s) for testing by an independent lab experienced in the design and evaluation of products that are accessible to people with functional limitations due to the effects of arthritis.  Winners can display the Ease of Use Commendation on their packaging.

Thanks for your interest in and support of products with good human factors/ergonomics design features. If you know of another annual award program not on this list that uses ergonomics as one of its judging criteria, then please send a note to ila.elson@abbott.com so this list can be updated.

HFES is grateful to members of the Product Design Technical Group for evaluating this guide.