AI PROCESS INTEGRATION IN DESIGN-ORIENTED SMES: ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR A MULTILEVEL ERGONOMIC INTERPRETATIVE FRAMEWORK

This study investigates the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) within design-oriented SMEs through the lens of Human Factors and Ergonomics (HFE). As AI integration outpaces theoretical modelling, two research questions are addressed: how professional agency is conceptually redefined in human-AI co-design ecosystems, and what systemic risks and cognitive frictions emerge from unmediated automation. The paper adopts a three-stage argumentative structure: a critical review of traditional NPD and design cognition models in SMEs; their intersection with current AI trajectories to identify emerging HFE tensions; and the formalization of these tensions into the Multilevel Ergonomic Interpretative Framework (MEIF). The analysis suggests that AI shifts the designer's role from creator of form to curator of algorithmic outputs, while introducing critical frictions such as curatorial fatigue, opacity of meaning, cultural bias reproduction, and inter-departmental asymmetries. The MEIF also serves as a diagnostic tool that intersects HFE dimensions with product development phases. The research ultimately advocates for a Human-Centred Design approach ensuring traceable and explainable AI workflows, establishing a foundation for future empirical validation.