The Northern New England Ergo Symposium came about through a marriage of sorts between a leading advocate of workplace safety, MEMIC, and a major educational force in Maine, the University of Southern Maine (USM).

Both realized that while workplace safety had progressed in recent decades, there remained a disconnection that would prevent most employers from addressing ergonomic, or "musculoskeletal," disorders—which account for more than 600,000 injuries in the U.S. that result in time away from work.

This knowledge led to the co-presented first annual New England Ergo Symposium in 2006.

Now in its third year, the symposium continues to refine its one-day conference using dual tracks formatted to cater to all types of business—construction, manufacturing, healthcare, transportation, hospitality, retail, finance and office—and levels of ergonomic experience.