Design for All can help both disabled and industry

Like most young people, Rachid is inseparable from his mobile phone. He uses it to send text messages, to play games and to check the time. One thing Rachid never does with his mobile, however, is speak into it. Because Rachid is deaf.

For Rachid, the mobile phone is a welcome aid to communication, breaking down barriers between himself and the rest of the world. But many of the 38 million Europeans with a disability feel excluded from the modern, technological world and are unable to play their full role in society.

As often as not, the barriers confronting disabled people are physical rather than technological. In Brussels, for example, only one of the top hotels - the Crowne Plaza - is fully accessible to people who use a wheelchair. Elsewhere in Europe, public transport systems, pavements, and even such simple objects as knives and forks, represent a daily challenge for the disabled.

The European Commission has come up with an inspired idea for improving matters, timed to coincide with the European Day of the Disabled on December 3rd. On that day, the Italian designer Alberto Alessi will present the Breaking Barriers awards for designs that make life easier for both disabled people and everyone else.

The concept, known as Design for All, centres on the idea that, instead of designing solely with the disabled in mind or, more commonly, without considering them at all, manufacturers should look at ways of satisfying everyone.

Dublin's leaning buses are regarded as a good example of Design for All in practice, making access easier for the disabled at the same time as they make life more comfortable for everyone else. The Swedish airline, SAS, came up with a Design for All classic when it discovered its in-flight staff were straining their wrists pouring coffee from conventional pots.

It commissioned a coffee-pot that prevents such strain and subsequently discovered that the design was suitable for disabled people too.

Everyone who sips morning coffee through the lid of a plastic cup has reason to thank Design for All principles. The design was originally meant for disabled people before it was taken up by fast-food retailers.

The European Social Affairs Commissioner, Ms Anna Diamantopolou, argues that manufacturers who ignore the needs of the disabled are preventing millions of Europeans from participating fully in society.

"Failure to apply the Design for All principle and to take peoples' needs into account in the planning, design and adaptation of environments can force people unnecessarily into a situation of dependency and social exclusion. Moreover, inclusion of Design for All features or approaches in the standard products or services can be of substantial benefit to society as a whole in that it enables individuals with disabilities to lead more independent and productive lives," she said.

Many manufacturers assume that disabled and elderly consumers are too few in number to represent a significant market. Indeed, many products specifically designed for elderly and disabled people are poorly designed and sometimes unsuitable for their intended purpose.

The Commission argues that consideration of disabilities adds little to manufacturers' costs but can hugely enhance a company's relationship with consumers. For example, Apple Computers has incorporated a number of special features into its standard operating system to satisfy the needs of people with various disabilities. Once the company developed these features, it cost practically nothing to include them in new products.

Among the entries for the Breaking Barriers awards is Norman Foster's redesigned Bundestag in Berlin, which is the most accessible national parliament in the world. The very features that make the building so easy for disabled people to use make it a pleasure for the able-bodied to visit. And few of the wheelchair-friendly design features cost any more to install than any of the traditional alternatives.

Ms Diamantopolou argues that, although better design benefits the disabled, the biggest winners from the Design for All approach are the businesses and industries that adopt it.

It is true that successful enterprises in today's world are becoming more conscious than ever that they have a responsibility to put something back into the communities where they make their profits. But successful enterprises also recognise that putting something back into the community can give them a real commercial edge. It is not about charity or corporate philanthropy. It is about recognising the benefits that come about when an inclusive approach to people with disabilities as customers is taken," she said.