As human factors consultants, we often encounter the belief that the more information operators have available, the better, also known as the “more-is-better” fallacy. It seems intuitive to equate quantity of information with quality of understanding. If operators have access to more data, alerts, and system metrics, it appears logical that uncertainty is reduced and decisions will become better, faster, or safer.
However, although our cognitive abilities are considerable, they do have limits. We cannot notice and process all information available in our surroundings. Being aware of our cognitive limitations becomes especially critical in high-stakes environments like control rooms, where timely and accurate decisions are essential for safety and performance. Control rooms are centralized spaces where operators monitor, manage, and control complex systems. Control room operators are confronted with vast amounts of information from multiple HMI screens, chats, e-mail, phone calls, in-person communication, procedures, aural alarms and more. It is impossible to attend to everything at any given time. Thus, control room operators attend to the pieces of information that appear most relevant and important to the situation they believe they are in. At the same time, the information they attend to shapes their understanding of the situation itself. In scientific literature this process is known as sensemaking[1]. The sensemaking process directly influences decision-making and response times in critical situations.
The maritime sector offers an illustration. Ship bridges are a one example of a of control room. Over the past decades, the number of digital systems and equipment on bridges has grown steadily. As a result, navigators’ roles have shifted: from manually steering the vessel to managing increasingly automated systems. This shift has occurred with little attention to usability in the maritime sector, meaning that interface design often does not reflect operators’ needs[2]. The situation is further complicated by multivendor setups: bridges typically integrate commercial off-the-shelf equipment from numerous maritime subcontractors, each with its own design conventions, interaction paradigms, and alarm systems. The combination of multiple vendors and the pressure to satisfy diverse stakeholders in development projects can result in overly complex and feature-heavy interfaces. This makes it challenging for officers to identify critical information, especially during stressful situations.
ECDIS (Electronic Chart Display and Information System) illustrates these challenges. While it replaces paper charts and supports safe navigation, a study by the UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch and the Danish Maritime Accident Investigation Board revealed that it has also increased the volume of data operators must manage and interpret. They describe decisions to automate and ‘alarm’ certain features seem to have been based on the technical ability to do so rather than on an adaptable blending of human and machine capabilities[3]. This underscores the need for design decisions to be driven by operational context and human capabilities—not just technical possibilities.
Vysus Group: Turning Complexity into Clarity
How can you avoid information overload in your organisation? Vysus Group has extensive experience in working closely with operators, developers, and engineers to design control rooms, HMIs and alarm systems that are both effective and user-friendly. Our approach combines human factors expertise with practical experience in diverse sectors, including oil and gas, renewables and process industry. Our process turns complexity into clarity through five key steps:
1. Understand the Work and the Worker
Analyse workflow: We map out how operators interact with systems in real-world conditions, using methods like Hierarchical Task Analysis and Safety-Critical Task Analysis (SCTA).
Information needs assessment: We identify what information is truly essential, when it’s needed, and how it should be presented to support decision-making.
2. Design and redesign of interfaces and alarm systems
Interface and alarm system design: We lead human-centred design processes to ensure that critical information is prominent, intuitive, and actionable, while unnecessary complexity in menus, displays, and alarms are reduced.
Information prioritization: We apply visual hierarchy and cognitive load principles to make sure the most important data stands out.
Alarm rationalization: We reduce alarm noise and structure alerts to minimize fatigue, support situational awareness, and drive appropriate responses.
3. Involve End-Users
Participatory design: We involve end-users throughout project development in all project phases
Iterative testing: We conduct usability testing under realistic conditions to validate performance and refine designs.
4. Ensure Compliance and Best Practice
Standards alignment: We follow ISO 11064 for control room design and apply relevant standards for HMIs and alarms (e.g., ISO9241:210, IEC62682, EEMUA 191 and EEMUA 201).
Documentation and traceability: Our process ensures that design decisions are transparent, auditable, and aligned with regulatory expectations.
5. Ensure interdisciplinary collaboration
We bring together human factors specialists, engineers, domain experts, and end users to ensure solutions are technically sound and operationally effective.
We use interactive collaboration tools that enable participants to actively contribute throughout the process.
By focusing on human-centred design principles, Vysus ensures that operators receive the right information at the right time enhancing safety, efficiency, and operator performance. In control room and HMI design, less truly is more: clarity, simplicity, and prioritisation enable operators to make timely, informed, and safer decisions.
References
Danielsen, B.E. (2023) Usability in Ship Bridge Design – A Mission Impossible? A Qualitative Study of Maritime Stakeholders’ Perspectives on Usability in Ship Bridge Design. Doctoral thesis, NTNU.
EEMUA (2024). EEMUA Publication 191: Alarm Systems - A Guide to Design, Management, and Procurement (4th ed.). Engineering Equipment and Materials Users Association.
EEMUA (2019). EEMUA PUB NO 201: Control Rooms - A guide to their specification, design, commissioning, and operation (3rd ed.). Engineering Equipment and Materials Users Association.
International Electrotechnical Commission (2022). IEC 62682:2022 - Management of alarm systems for the process industries. Geneva: IEC.
International Organization for Standardization (2000). ISO 11064 series: Ergonomic design of control centres. www.standard.no.
International Organization for Standardization (2019). ISO 9241-210:2019 Ergonomics of human-system interaction — Human-centred design for interactive systems. Geneva: ISO.
MAIB, & DMAIB. (2021). Application and Usability of ECDIS. A MAIB and DMAIB collaborative study on ECDIS use from the perspective of practitioners. Marine Accident Investigation Branch & Danish Maritime Accident Investigation Board. https://www.gov.uk/government/...
Weick, K. E. (1995). Sensemaking in organizations. Sage.
[1] Weick, 1995
[2] Danielsen, 2023
[3] MAIB and DMAIB, 2021