ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a brief overview of the use of the concept of human-centered technology in European industry. There are two main aspects of this concept to be considered: the sociotechnical system theory, providing the framework for today’s human orientation, and the paradigm of human-centered technology design in its original sense. Industry is increasingly shaped by technology, for example, the automation of production, computer-supported information and cooperation networks, multimedia applications in production planning, and control. The OSTO approach can be used as a method for analyzing, designing, and monitoring sociotechnical systems. OSTO stands for open, sociotechnical-economic system, that is, the open system comprises social, technical, and economic components. The chapter is concerned with regard to the different dimensions of workplace, groupwork, and networks and in terms of the frameworks of both society and the natural environment. The integration of new technologies and groupwork leads to new concepts of reorganization of a company toward a decentralized structure.
