William S. Marras, PhD, CPE - Ergonomics

Dr. William S. Marras reviews medical content for Healthwise, a nonprofit organization with a mission to help people make better health decisions. Dr. Marras is a Professor and holds the Honda Endowed Chair in the Department of Integrated Systems Engineering at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. He serves as the director of the Biodynamics Laboratory and for the Center for Occupational Health in Automobile Manufacturing. He is also Executive Director for the Institute for Ergonomics. His research is centered on musculoskeletal causal pathway investigations, including occupational biomechanical epidemiologic studies, laboratory biomechanics studies, mathematical modeling, and clinical studies of the back and spine as well as the upper extremities. His findings have been published in over 195 peer-reviewed journal articles and numerous books and book chapters including a book titled "The Working Back: A Systems View." He holds Fellow status in five professional societies and has been widely recognized for his contributions through numerous national and international awards including an honorary Sc.D. degree. Professor Marras currently serves as the Chair of the Board on Human Systems Integration at the National Research Council and in 2009 was elected to the National Academy of Engineering (the National Academies).

Education and Training

MSIE: Industrial Engineering, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 1978

PhD: Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 1982

Academic Appointments

Ohio State University, Columbus, OH:

  • Adjunct Professor, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2005-present
  • Honda Chaired Professor, College of Engineering, 1998-present
  • Professor, Department of Integrated Systems Engineering, 1992-present
  • Adjunct Professor, Department of Physical Medicine, 1992-present
  • Adjunct Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, 1992-present
  • Associate Professor, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, 1987-1992
  • Associate Professor, Department of Physical Medicine, 1987-1992
  • Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering, 1987-1992
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, 1982-1987
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Medicine, 1982-1987

Financial Disclosure

The final approval of Healthwise content is always made by a clinician with no financial conflicts.

Dr. Marras owns shares of SpineDynx.

Current as of: January 10, 2014

Author: Healthwise Staff