Missions

The HU2F (Humans in Ultra-Flexible Factories) project aims to characterize and deepen knowledge of the human issues surrounding industrial proposals for “ultra-flexible” factories. The Michelin Group supports this perspective and wishes to conduct prospective studies on the consequences of this significant flexibilization of production for human labor. The flexibility sought implies a high level of automation and therefore a significant restructuring of the professional practices that will remain present in this environment. Within the framework of this future organization, it is anticipated that the role of operators will increasingly shift away from performing often repetitive production tasks toward a role of regulator, coordinator, or even supervisor of the flexible production machine system.
In the first phase, our objective is to capitalize on the information we have gathered to propose a number of probable scenarios that would reflect human organization in the future ultra-flexible factory. These scenarios aim to simulate future work situations in order to identify “what is necessary for an operator or a group of operators to perform a work task” (Maline, 1994). These scenarios will constitute typical configurations, linking Organization-Skills-Tasks, developed from the results of the HU2F project: they will eliminate elements and configurations identified as unfavorable for humans, and promote the combination of favorable conditions and configurations. The literature review carried out and the cases of high automation studied previously constitute the raw material: several Michelin, Schneider, and Decathlon sites. Other sites may eventually be added to this initial panel. These scenarios will be evaluated and enriched by working groups composed of various stakeholders such as operators, designers, ergonomists, etc. Our objectives will then be to examine different design hypotheses from the point of view of the work of future operators; to identify needs, i.e., “what is necessary for an operator or a group of operators to perform a work task” (Maline, 1994); and to anticipate future room for maneuver that will allow for more autonomous work that is better suited to specific uses. In a second part, these scenarios will be enriched by an approach drawn from social psychology, particularly the importance of values in highly automated work situations. Indeed, a recent study conducted by Langstedt (2021) sheds essential light on the impact of technology on the fit between workers' personal values and the demands of their job (work-values fit). Langstedt (2021) studied the professional values (based on Schwartz's model, 2006) of more than 32,000 European employees across 126 professions, assessing their susceptibility to automation. The results reveal that highly automatable occupations favor values such as security, conformity, tradition, and power, in contrast to the human-centered values espoused by Industry 5.0. Nevertheless, as Fischer and Schwartz (2011) point out, values are more closely linked to individuals than to groups (in this case, professions). To overcome this limitation, this second part will include a study aimed at measuring operators' values using standardized questionnaires. These measurements will be taken before and after the presentation of the future factory scenarios, with an emphasis on technocentrism or humanocentrism. This empirical study will therefore provide a direct assessment of the alignment between operators' personal values and industrial practices, and an initial approach to the acceptability of the scenarios developed.
This postdoctoral position will involve:
- continuing to monitor scientific research (in ergonomics and psychology) on the issues below and existing industrial experiences;
- leading a collective reflection involving various Michelin stakeholders to identify and anticipate the nature of future technical systems and components of the ultra-flexible factory;
- measuring the challenges relating to operator values using standardized questionnaires. These measurements will be taken before and after the presentation of the scenarios for the future factory.

Activities

The candidate's main tasks will be 1) to monitor scientific developments in similar projects (in ergonomics and/or psychology) at the national and international level 2) reporting on scientific literature on the subject 3) conducting experiments 4) analyzing the results obtained from the various methodologies used 5) promoting the project through scientific publications targeting international journals 6) communicating with various stakeholders.

Skills

The candidate must:
- Hold a PhD in ergonomics or psychology
- Be fluent in French and have a good command of English
Experience or knowledge of the industrial environment is a plus.

Work Context

The Laboratory of Social and Cognitive Psychology (LAPSCO–UMR UCA-CNRS 6024; www.lapsco.fr) is located on the Carnot campus of Clermont Auvergne University, in the heart of Clermont-Ferrand. This joint research unit (UMR) currently has 43 permanent researchers and a total of 102 staff, including contract staff, doctoral students, and postdoctoral researchers.

LAPSCO conducts research on the behaviors and cognitive processes involved in major mental functions (perception, attention, memory, language, temporality). Its work explores the cerebral bases of these functions, as well as their social and cultural determinants, with applications in key areas such as education, health, and industry.

At the interface of experimental psychology (social, cognitive, and developmental) and integrative neuroscience, the laboratory is structured around four main teams:

- Cognition-Behavior-Context
- Social Behaviors and Collective Dynamics
- Physiological and Psychosocial Stress
- Social and Cognitive Ethology
LAPSCO collaborates with Michelin as part of FactoLab.
This project is part of FactoLab, a joint laboratory implementing a medium- and long-term research and development program on human-machine cooperation. The goal is to develop collaborative robots and connected devices for production operators, in order to eliminate some of the physically demanding or stressful tasks and thus improve working conditions.

Constraints and risks

None