Human Performance Limits

We don't just test the mechanical limits of our client's vehicles whenever possible; we also test human performance.  Our philosophy is that optimum performance can only be achieved through exceeding established benchmarks. This results in a lot of broken vehicles and bones, but the upside is that the vehicle damage is billable. 

I was so focused on acquiring data that could be translated into knowledge that I lost sight of the available options. Our weekly lottery for volunteer test dummies was always a tense period because no one on our staff enjoyed being punched in the face by an airbag. I could tell the lottery was causing morale issues and hampering productivity, but I couldn't figure out an alternative. I was looking in the wrong place all of that time. The answer was apparent once a few pieces of the puzzle had been revealed to me. 

http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/features/g6186/crash-test-human-photo-gallery/?thumbnails

The Crash-Test Human in Action: He's No Dummy  I wish we had known about this before we created our human performance testing curriculum.  The option to use human crash test dummies would alleviate a lot of the compliance issues we are experiencing with our full-scale anthropomorphic test device (ATD) units.

We might have avoided our latest legal action if we had plugged in real people instead.

The crash I saw on Tuesday was caused by a perfect candidate for our new initiative. This unfortunate person managed to hit a thick light pole while traveling downhill on a relatively straight road. This is the type of pole you should never hit. The poles always win, and this time was not an exception. The road was slick from a light rainfall, but to crash in this manner takes special skills. These are the types of skills we covet at AcMo. 

The front end destruction and airbag coccon surrounding the driver were impressive. I would have stopped to sign the driver but there were already three other cars on scene, and the last time I stopped to help a crash victim I was run over by an ambulance. It was a simple but painful misunderstanding on my part because I thought the sirens meant they were preparing to stop. We all learn by experience at times. Moments before I came upon this crash, I had been thinking that my day was not going well. The crash was a reminder that someone is always doing worse. And then I made it to our secret base to discover the roof was leaking. That's another problem for another day, but at least I hadn't crunched a client vehicle into a light pole. I hate having to explain that. 

Right now we have a severe staffing problem. We are looking for willing or unwilling volunteers to join our test squad so we can push them past their limits and see where they break. The hours are long, the tests are strenuous, he pain is extreme, the pay is negligible, but the glory is infinite.