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Supporting Consistent Design
segment of the population that are employed in a relatively transient manner. Seafarers
may work on different types of contracts and sign on/ off different ships and ship types
( whether within a single company, across multiple companies or across industry sectors). Work periods at sea may be organized by different durations ( e.g. days, weeks
or months at a time) and across short- or long-term work contracts ( e.g. a single trip at
sea for a specific time period vs. multi-trip contracts and more permanent/ reoccurring
employment opportunities). Thus, seafarers moving between different ships require a
high degree of adaptability to potentially unfamiliar and inconsistent work environments, operational systems and GUI ( in addition to different work colleagues, cultures, policies, procedures, routes, etc.).
Design consistency is critical in supporting sensemaking during operations, as sensemaking requires interpretation and action, enacting a more ordered environment from
which further cues can be drawn to create a shared understanding ( Kilskar, Danielsen &
Johnsen, 2019). The performance of users is directly influenced by design, and poor
solutions can introduce negative effects for the user and the system ( Dul, Bruder,
Buckle, Carayon, Falzon, Marras, Wilson & van der Doelen, 2012). In order to reduce
usability problems and increase quality of interactions, design should provide affordances, or cues, that users can recognize, make decisions from and then implement correct actions in order to fulfil a desired task and outcome ( Pucillo & Cascini, 2014). This
is true of very simple interactions, from correctly interpreting and turning on a faucet for
desired water temperature and rate of flow ( e.g. “ which handle for warm water?”, “ What
angle or rotation for optimal flow?”) or opening an unfamiliar door (“ Do I push or pull?
Will it open automatically… from the center?”) to complex safety-critical interfaces
and working environments, such as airplane cockpits or central control rooms of power
plants. Similarly, in the maritime context of a ship’s bridge, the design quality and design
consistency across interfaces and interaction devices between navigator and equipment
are critical for reducing user errors and increasing productivity. Design should impart
relevant information and effectively communicate how to achieve the intended task or
tasks to its users. Interaction with an object, interface or system, whether physical or
digital, should easily communicate relevant information to the user that is interpretable
and enables optimal decision-making for their intended actions.
Good design enables sensemaking in navigators by supporting and guiding expectations of a system, its current operational status and future requirements. This is
becoming increasingly relevant with digitized interfaces and the characteristics
of information on screens. In particularly, how information is organized in digital
menus and sub-menus has implications for how users navigate through a software
program and the ease of access to relevant and desired information. As the investigation of a recent United States Navy accident found ( USS John S. McCain collision with Alnic MC in 2017), the design of digital systems and how information
is presented can mislead or inhibit users from correctly interpreting a situation and
operational status ( National Transportation Safety Board, 2017).
SenSemaking for current anD future ShiPPing oPerationS
Like most industries, throughout the 20th and 21st centuries automation has led to both
higher operational productivity, which, in turn, also reduced the number of required
Supporting Consistent Design
segment of the population that are employed in a relatively transient manner. Seafarers
may work on different types of contracts and sign on/ off different ships and ship types
( whether within a single company, across multiple companies or across industry sectors). Work periods at sea may be organized by different durations ( e.g. days, weeks
or months at a time) and across short- or long-term work contracts ( e.g. a single trip at
sea for a specific time period vs. multi-trip contracts and more permanent/ reoccurring
employment opportunities). Thus, seafarers moving between different ships require a
high degree of adaptability to potentially unfamiliar and inconsistent work environments, operational systems and GUI ( in addition to different work colleagues, cultures, policies, procedures, routes, etc.).
Design consistency is critical in supporting sensemaking during operations, as sensemaking requires interpretation and action, enacting a more ordered environment from
which further cues can be drawn to create a shared understanding ( Kilskar, Danielsen &
Johnsen, 2019). The performance of users is directly influenced by design, and poor
solutions can introduce negative effects for the user and the system ( Dul, Bruder,
Buckle, Carayon, Falzon, Marras, Wilson & van der Doelen, 2012). In order to reduce
usability problems and increase quality of interactions, design should provide affordances, or cues, that users can recognize, make decisions from and then implement correct actions in order to fulfil a desired task and outcome ( Pucillo & Cascini, 2014). This
is true of very simple interactions, from correctly interpreting and turning on a faucet for
desired water temperature and rate of flow ( e.g. “ which handle for warm water?”, “ What
angle or rotation for optimal flow?”) or opening an unfamiliar door (“ Do I push or pull?
Will it open automatically… from the center?”) to complex safety-critical interfaces
and working environments, such as airplane cockpits or central control rooms of power
plants. Similarly, in the maritime context of a ship’s bridge, the design quality and design
consistency across interfaces and interaction devices between navigator and equipment
are critical for reducing user errors and increasing productivity. Design should impart
relevant information and effectively communicate how to achieve the intended task or
tasks to its users. Interaction with an object, interface or system, whether physical or
digital, should easily communicate relevant information to the user that is interpretable
and enables optimal decision-making for their intended actions.
Good design enables sensemaking in navigators by supporting and guiding expectations of a system, its current operational status and future requirements. This is
becoming increasingly relevant with digitized interfaces and the characteristics
of information on screens. In particularly, how information is organized in digital
menus and sub-menus has implications for how users navigate through a software
program and the ease of access to relevant and desired information. As the investigation of a recent United States Navy accident found ( USS John S. McCain collision with Alnic MC in 2017), the design of digital systems and how information
is presented can mislead or inhibit users from correctly interpreting a situation and
operational status ( National Transportation Safety Board, 2017).
SenSemaking for current anD future ShiPPing oPerationS
Like most industries, throughout the 20th and 21st centuries automation has led to both
higher operational productivity, which, in turn, also reduced the number of required