Some readers may recall that I represent the New Zealand Institute of Safety Management on a joint standards committee that has oversight of IEC standards covering various aspects of dependability.
One standard IEC62508 “Guidance on human aspects of dependability” is about to be reviewed but there seems to be a dearth of human factors professionals in NZ. I will try the HASANZ website but is there someone you know (ie qualified in HF) who I could talk to and who might be able to assist?
Hi Chris, there's not quite a dearth of human factors professionals - there are a few of us around - though probably not enough! you will find Professional Members listed at: https://www.hfesnz.org.nz/find-a-professional/ . Can I suggest you also email me directly at chairathfesnzdotorgdotnz with some more information, and we can get a communication out to our members to see if we can get someone to fit your needs to be in touch. I note that if you are searching the HASANZ website that we've become aware of a systems limitation - searching 'ergonomist' will find the HASANZ Registered Human Factors Professionals/Ergonomists, but searching 'human factors professional' finds all sorts of people from varying backgrounds, not just our qualified human factors professionals! Not ideal, and HASANZ is working to find a technical fix for this. The terms 'human factors professional' and 'ergonomist' are also interchangeable - any difference in perception is not of our making - mostly we will answer to either! (Personally, I go with 'ergonomist' as it is shorter). I look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards' Marion Edwin, Ergonomist, Optimise Ltd, and current Chairperson of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society of New Zealand