Ergonomics in warehouse design and operations: a systematic literature review

Humans play a pivotal role in the manual order picking process within warehouses. Warehouse pickers engage in repetitive tasks that can lead to fatigue, physical discomfort, and injuries. Recognizing the importance of human well-being, it becomes imperative to integrate human factors into the design and operations of warehouses. This paper undertakes a comprehensive examination of ergonomic concerns discussed in prior research. The identified studies are organized into thematic categories such as Technological Interventions, Assignment, Human Factors, Learning, Fatigue, Pallet Selection, Load Speed Variation, Safety and Incentive. Further research is suggested in safety and incentive studies to enhance ergonomic practices in warehouses.These categories are further segmented based on research methodologies, encompassing mathematical, experimental, and theoretical studies. Many studies applied multi-objective and Mixed Integer Programming models with heuristics and meta-heuristics to address ergonomic considerations. Few studies suggested exact solutions, indicating an opportunity for further research in precise modeling. Additionally, the paper offers a nuanced analysis of core themes and utilizes Bibliometric tools to extract critical insights from the existing literature. The analysis highlighted Germany and Italy as prominent contributors to ergonomic research in warehouses. Managerial perspectives and potential avenues for future research are also presented in this paper. Integrating ergonomic-focused thematic areas offers warehouse managers practical solutions for improved productivity and employee well-being, balancing economic and ergonomic goals.