Digitalisation of Maintenance Work in Cleanrooms: User Research Insights for Interaction Design

There is a gap of insights for interaction design when it comes to maintenance work, particularly in extreme environments, as is the case of cleanrooms. In this study, we employed a human-centred approach to investigate different aspects of workflow and technology within this context in order to gather insights about core functionalities to guide the development of a digital tool to support these workers in their everyday tasks. We combined a literature review, a comparative analysis of off-the-shelf tools, and semi-structured interviews to eight maintenance workers, including a manager. Our findings led to a suggestion of features for interaction design, but also to the identification of tensions which interaction designers should consider when designing for these contexts.