Preiser W., Smith K.H. Universal Design Handbook
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22.6 PUBLIC SPACES, PRIVATE SPACES, PRODUCTS, AND TECHNOLOGIES
If water play is provided, a part of the surface area must be wheelchair accessible. If the water
source is manipulated by children, it must be usable by all children. If loose parts such as buckets
are provided and children have access to the equipment storage, the storage must be usable by all
children. When water is provided for play, the following dimensions apply:
• Forward reach: 36 to 20 in.
• Side reach: 36 to 20 in.
• Clear space: 36 × 55 in. The clear space should be located at the part of the water-play area where
the most water play will occur. If the water source is part of the active play area and children turn
the water on and off, it must be accessible. If the water source is part of a spray pool, the area
under the spray should be accessible. Accessibility should involve the dimensions for both clear
space and reach.
• Clearance ranges: top height to access water, 30 in. maximum; under clearance, 27 in. minimum.
Sand-Play Areas
Children will play in dirt wherever they find it. Using props such as a few twigs, a small plastic toy,
or a few stones, children can create an imaginary world in the dirt, around the roots of a tree, or in
a raised planter. The sandbox is a refined and sanitized version of dirt play. It works best if it retains
dirt play qualities. The sand area should be large with small, intimate spaces designed into it, with
access to water and small play props (see Fig. 22.4).
FIGURE 22.3 Water sprays installed below a rubber surface provide water play for everyone.
Long description: This photo shows the water-play area at the Jacksonville Children’s Zoo in Jacksonville, Florida.
In the photo children play in water sprays placed at ground level as well as within large whale sculptures and other sea
creatures found in the ocean near Jacksonville. Rubber safety surfacing covers the ground plane, and planting surrounds
the water-play area.
OUTDOOR PLAY SETTINGS: AN INCLUSIVE APPROACH 22.7
If a sand-play area is provided, part of it must be accessible. Important elements are clear floor
space, maneuvering room, reach and clearance ranges, and operating mechanisms for control of sand
flow. When products such as buckets and shovels will likely be used in the sand-play area, storage
places should be at accessible reach range.
Raised sand play is a very limiting play experience because of the way a raised area must be
constructed. To provide a place for the wheelchair user under the sand shelf, there is very little depth
of sand available for play. Therefore, a raised sand area by itself is not a substitute for full-body
sand play.
If the sand area is designed to allow children to play inside the area, a place should be provided
where a participant can rest or lean against a firm, stationary back support in close proximity to the
main activity area. Back support can be provided by any vertical surface that has a minimum height
of 12 in. and a minimum width of 6 in., depending on the size of the child. Back support can be a
boulder, a log, or a post that is holding up a shade structure. A transfer system into a sand area may
also be necessary if the area is large and contains a variety of sand activities. A transfer system is
appropriate if there are no areas of raised sand play in the primary activity area, or if the sand area is
over 100 ft
2
and the raised sand area would tend to isolate accessible sand-play activities.
FIGURE 22.4 Giant nautilus water-play element.
Long description: This photo shows a child touching a nautilus-
shaped play element with water running through it at Chase
Palm Park in Santa Barbara, California. The nautilus is part
of the sand- and water-play area in the park and is made from
concrete with inlaid stones and pebbles.
22.8 PUBLIC SPACES, PRIVATE SPACES, PRODUCTS, AND TECHNOLOGIES
When raised sand is provided, the following clearance ranges apply:
• Top height to sand: 30 to 34 in. maximum
• Under clearance: 27 in. minimum
• Side reach: 36 to 20 in.
• Forward reach: 36 to 20 in.
• Clear space for wheelchair: 36 × 55 in.
Depending on the site conditions and the amount of sand play, shade may be required. It may be
provided through a variety of means, such as trees, tents, umbrellas, structures, and so forth. This
advisory requirement for shade is based on the site context, program, and users. Some shade in or
around sand is usually desirable, but sand needs sunlight to dry out and keep clean.
Gathering Places
To support social development and cooperation, children need comfortable gathering places. Parents
and play leaders need comfortable places for washing up, sitting, socializing, and supervising (see
Fig. 22.5). If gathering places are provided, a portion of them should be accessible and serve people
of all ages. A gathering place contains fixed elements to support playing, eating, watching, talking,
or assembling for a programmed activity:
• Seating. At least 50 percent of fixed benches should have no backs and arms so they can be used
for a variety of activities, not just sitting.
• Tables. Provide a variety of sizes and seating arrangements.
• Game tables. Game tables provide a place for two to four people to play board games. If fewer
than five game tables are provided, a minimum of one four-sided game table should include an
accessible space on one side.
FIGURE 22.5 Accessible washup sink serves people of all ages and abilities.
Long description: This photo shows an adult sitting in a wheelchair washing his hands at an
accessible sink in Flood Park, located in Menlo Park, California. The sink is made of concrete
and can be used sitting down or standing up.
OUTDOOR PLAY SETTINGS: AN INCLUSIVE APPROACH 22.9
• Storage. If storage is supplied and a part of the gathering area and the storage are used by children,
accessible shelves and hooks should be a maximum of 36 in. above the ground. The amount of
storage is dependent upon program requirements.
• Shade. Shade may be desirable for gathering areas where people will be participating in activities
over a long time. Shade can be provided by a variety of means such as trees, canopies, or trellises,
depending on site context.
Garden Settings
Gardening, a powerful play-and-learn activity, allows children to interact with nature and one another.
Gardens in play areas primarily provide activities of planting, tending, studying, and harvesting
vegetation. Depending on the type and height of plantings, planter boxes may require a raised area
for access or transfer. A garden must provide a minimum of one accessible garden plot.
If a raised garden area is provided, it should have the following features:
• The raised area should be located as part of the main garden area. The amount of raised area is
determined by the program, but a minimum of 10 percent of the garden should be raised.
• The edge should be raised above the ground surface to a minimum of 20 in. and a maximum of
30 in.
The garden growing area should allow access either by side or by forward reach 12 to 36 in. above
the ground.
• Transfer systems. If children are required to sit in the dirt to garden, a transfer point should be
provided that enables a participant to transfer into the garden.
• Potting and maintenance areas. Potting and preparation areas should allow access by either for-
ward or side reach. The amount of area to be made accessible depends on the program. At least
one workstation for potting should be made accessible.
• Storage. Storage areas for the garden should provide access for children who use wheelchairs.
Hooks and shelves should be a maximum of 36 in. off the ground.
• Circulation. Aisles around the garden (36 to 44 in.) should be provided on a main aisle so a child
using a wheelchair or walker can get to the garden. This larger aisle (48 to 60 in.) should also
provide access to the accessible gardening spaces.
Landforms, Vegetation, and Trees
Landforms, vegetation, and trees should be integrated into the flow of play activities and spaces, and
they can be play features in themselves.
Landforms help children explore movement through space and provide for varied circulation.
Topographic variety stimulates fantasy play, orientation skills, hide-and-seek games, viewing, roll-
ing, climbing, sliding, and jumping. “Summit” points must accommodate wheelchairs and provide
support for children with other disabling conditions.
Trees and vegetation comprise one of the most ignored topics in the design of play environments.
They are two of the most important elements for social integration because everyone can enjoy and
share them. Vegetation stimulates exploratory behavior, fantasy, and imagination. It is a major source
of play props, including leaves, flowers, fruits, nuts, seeds, and sticks. It allows children to learn
about the environment through direct experience.
Designers and program providers should emphasize integrating plants into play settings rather
than creating separate “nature areas.” For children with physical disabilities, the experience of being
in trees can be replicated by providing trees that a wheelchair user can roll under. An accessible
mini-forest can be created by planting small trees or large branching bushes.
22.10 PUBLIC SPACES, PRIVATE SPACES, PRODUCTS, AND TECHNOLOGIES
If vegetation, trees, or landforms are used, access also needs to be provided. Tree grates and other
site furniture that support or protect the feature must be selected so as not to entrap wheels, canes,
crutch tips, etc.
Entrances and Signage
Entrances are transition zones that help orient and inform users and introduce them to the site. They
are places for congregating and for displaying information. Not all play areas, though, have defined
entrances. Sometimes entry to a play area can be provided from all directions.
Expressive and informative displays use walls, floors, ground surfaces, structures, ceilings, sky
wires, and roof lines on or near a play area to hang, suspend, and fly materials for art and education.
Signage is a visual, tactile, or auditory means of conveying information, and it must communicate a
message of “All Users Welcome.”
22.4 CONCLUSION
Play is learning. Play helps children to express, apply, and assimilate knowledge and experiences. A
rich play environment encourages all children to grow and develop into healthy adults. Most children
today have very sanitized, “packaged” play experiences. Many urban children have never built a fort
or “claimed” a piece of an outdoor environment as their own private adventure area.
One day the author was walking through a housing development that was under construction.
There were piles of dirt and boards around—great fort-building materials! On top of one dirt pile was
a 5-year-old boy, and at the bottom of the pile was his grandfather watching him play.
The construction foreman soon came over to the grandfather and told him that the boy must get
off the dirt because his liability insurance would not cover it. The grandfather told the boy what the
foreman said. The child looked around and just could not understand why he could not play there.
He knew he was doing nothing wrong. The grandfather tried to explain to the child. Finally the boy
got up off the pile of dirt, looked around, and said to the grandfather, “A kid’s gotta do what a kid’s
gotta do.” It is the responsibility of every adult and every institution that serves children to create
places so that a kid—any kid—can do what a kid’s gotta do.
22.5 BIBLIOGRAPHY
Goltsman, S. M., and D. S. Iacofano, The Inclusive City, Berkeley, Calif.: MIG Communications, 2007.
Moore, R. C., Plants for Play: A Plant Selection Guide for Children’s Outdoor Environments, Berkeley, Calif.:
MIG Communications, 1993.
———, and H. H. Wong, Natural Learning: Creating Environments for Rediscovering Nature’s Way of Teaching,
Berkeley, Calif.: MIG Communications, 1997.
———, D. S. Iacofano, and S. M. Goltsman, Play for All Guidelines: Planning, Design, and Management of
Outdoor Play Settings for All Children, Berkeley, Calif.: MIG Communications, 1992.
PLAE, Inc., Universal Access to Outdoor Recreation Areas: A Design Guide, Berkeley, Calif.: MIG
Communications, 1993.
U.S. Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, Recommendations for Accessibility
Guidelines: Recreational Facilities and Outdoor Developed Areas, Washington: Access Board, 1994.
CHAPTER 23
OFFICE AND WORKPLACE
DESIGN
James L. Mueller
23.1 INTRODUCTION
The unemployment rate among Americans with disabilities remains well above that of nondisabled
Americans (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2009) despite passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA) of 1990 and the American with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA), which
ensured the rights of individuals with disabilities in the workplace and in the community. The Ticket
to Work and Self-Sufficiency Act was passed in 1999 to remove financial disincentives to work for
people with disabilities. As the workforce ages and the cost of work disability rises, demographic and
economic trends have combined with legislation regarding employment of people with disabilities to
make universal design in the workplace a powerful issue. Workplace design that considers age-related
changes in vision, hearing, posture, and mobility will be critical to an aging workforce expected to
work even further into their senior years than previous generations (Taylor et al., 2009).
This chapter discusses how these trends impact designers and manufacturers of furniture, equip-
ment, materials, and other workplace products. This chapter also presents specific examples of how
designers, employers, and manufacturers have responded by implementing the concept of universal
design.
23.2 ECONOMIC BACKGROUND
“What do you do for a living?” is one of the first questions posed when people meet. Especially in
the United States, one’s personal identity depends heavily on what he or she does for a living. But
approximately two-thirds of Americans with disabilities are unemployed. This is an enormous bur-
den on them and on their families. Hundreds of thousands of employees become disabled each year
and leave the workplace permanently. Their former employers must bear the burden of replacing
them as well as paying disability benefits, and taxpayers must help fund public benefit programs for
them such as Social Security Disability Income (SSDI).
The SSDI program is the primary source of income for millions of Americans considered too dis-
abled to work. Between 1985 and 1994, SSDI payments doubled from $19 billion to $38 billion (U.S.
General Accounting Office, 1995). By 2003, this total had reached $70 billion (U.S. Government
Accountability Office, 2004). Realizing that continuing increases like these could destroy the nation-
al budget, Congress passed the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Act of 1999 to provide greater
vocational rehabilitation services and financial incentives to enable more Americans with disabilities
23.1
23.2 PUBLIC SPACES, PRIVATE SPACES, PRODUCTS, AND TECHNOLOGIES
to work (Social Security Administration, 2000). Fostering work among SSDI recipients continues to
be an important priority in the government’s agenda regarding disability policy (Benitez-Silva et al.,
2006). Workplace design that considers the needs of workers with disabilities in both the public and
private sectors promises to continue to be important to the national economy.
The workplace is the site of millions of injuries per year. A permanently disabled employee can
cost his or her employer thousands of dollars in benefits, insurance costs, and lost productivity.
Thirty percent of current American workers will become disabled before retirement. Twenty percent
will experience an accident or illness that will keep them out of work for at least a year (National
Safety Council, 2008). But not all disabilities are caused at work.
Seventy percent of all people with disabilities are not born with them, but develop them during
the course of their lives (Louis Harris and Associates, 1994). As more people live longer lives, the
likelihood of experiencing a disability during one’s lifetime increases. Medical progress has had a
profound effect on treatment of illness and accidents that a short time ago might have been fatal
(Lew, 2005).
Historically, both government and business have been more willing to pay cash benefits than to
provide assistance to help disabled workers return to productive employment. Consequently, federal
work incentive programs for people with disabilities have struggled to gain traction (Ticket to Work
and Work Incentives Advisory Panel, 2007). Among private businesses, costs of insurance, employee
replacement, and workers’ compensation and other disability benefits have prompted long-term
disability insurers to institute comprehensive rehabilitation and return-to-work programs. These
programs have been shown to yield excellent returns on investment (Beal, 2007).
Both the ADA and ADAA, as well as their predecessor, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, prohibit
employers from discriminating against individuals with disabilities who are qualified and able to per-
form the essential duties of an available job, with or without reasonable accommodation. Although
these laws have boosted the employment rights of people with disabilities, they have had little effect
on the level of unemployment among people with disabilities.
Occupational injuries and the steadily aging workforce ensure that disability will continue to be
a common concern among American workers and their employers. Compared with the enormous
cost of paying disabled employees not to work, making accommodations to bring them back to the
job is cheap. According to ongoing studies by the Job Accommodation Network (JAN), 56 percent
of accommodations cost absolutely nothing to make, while the rest typically cost only $600 (Job
Accommodation Network, 2009).
23.3 JOB ACCOMMODATIONS FOR EVERYONE EQUAL
UNIVERSAL DESIGN IN THE WORKPLACE
Job accommodations usually benefit coworkers without disabilities as well as the worker request-
ing accommodation. It is rare that on-site job accommodation needs analysis fails to reveal risks of
reinjury to the returning disabled worker that are also hazards to other employees. Accommodations
developed with this in mind bring employers the double benefit of accommodating as well as pre-
venting disability.
At the very least, job accommodations for workers with disabilities should be “transparent” or
have no effect at all on coworkers or customers. This is not as difficult as it may sound. For employers
with little experience with disabilities, it can be very difficult to imagine how an employee with
very different abilities from his or her coworkers might share similar needs. But the same barriers to
productive and safe work faced by an employee with a significant disability are usually barriers to
nondisabled coworkers as well, although perhaps to a lesser degree.
For example, an individual with limited manual strength and coordination was hired by a window
manufacturer to insert weather strip into 12-ft sections of window frame channel. Previous workers
had used a pair of pliers to tightly grasp the end of the weather strip in order to pull it the length of
the channel. Even for workers with a very strong grip, this was a tiring job that often caused consid-
erable hand pain by the end of a workday.
OFFICE AND WORKPLACE DESIGN 23.3
The newly hired individual with manual limitations was unable to exert adequate grip on the pli-
ers to pull the weather strip through the channel without slipping. To accommodate this limitation,
the author designed a simple tool, shown in Fig. 23.1, shaped to fit the channel, with a large hand
loop and a toothed gripping surface for the weather strip. The worker was then able to hold the tool
without gripping tightly and was able to use his body weight on the tool to supply adequate pressure
on the toothed gripping surface. The rest of the task simply required him to walk the length of the
channel. Both his coworkers and his supervisor were surprised at the ease with which he was now
able to perform a task that had been difficult for even the strongest employees. Not surprising, the
supervisor suggested that all workers use this tool.
There are many examples like this of successful job accommodation benefiting all workers.
Employers in these situations commonly ask, “Why didn’t we do this in the first place?” With
growing emphasis on reducing risk of cumulative and repetitive-stress injuries, the supervisor in the
aforementioned example might well have asked this very question. He realized the importance of the
simple tool in preventing injuries to other employees as well as in accommodating the worker with
the disability. In situations like these, employees formerly seen as “different” due to their disabilities
helped to identify job and workplace design problems affecting all workers. Their ergonomic needs
become effective templates for improvements in job and workplace design for all.
23.4 WORKING TOWARD A UNIVERSAL WORKPLACE
Working with the Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program (CAP) of the U.S. Department of
Defense, the author applied this principle to the development of a workbook for workers and supervisors to
assess the fit between the employee and his or her workplace. The intent of this effort was to identify
workplace design factors that might be barriers to workers with disabilities as well as risks to work-
ers not yet experiencing a disability. The result was CAP’s Workplace Ergonomics Reference Guide.
Two illustrations from this guide are shown in Figs. 23.2 and 23.3.
FIGURE 23.1 Simple tool for gripping weather strip.
Long description: This photo shows an 18-in. section of plastic window frame with weather
strip inserted. Below is a 6-in. tool with handle and protruding points for gripping weather
strip.
23.4 PUBLIC SPACES, PRIVATE SPACES, PRODUCTS, AND TECHNOLOGIES
2. Is all visual and auditory information clear and easy to understand?
2.1 Can see and hear important information from anywhere in your work area? ___Yes ___No
2.2 Can see important information in very bright or very dim light? ___Yes ___No
2.3 Can you hear important information above the noise? ___Yes ___No
2.4 Is your work area quiet enough for conversations and telephone use? ___Yes ___No
Ergonomic Needs Assessment Visual and Auditory Information
FIGURE 23.2 Illustration from the Workplace Ergonomics Reference Guide.
Long description: This line drawing shows a woman seated in a wheelchair facing a computer monitor, telephone,
lamp, and document stand on a table. She is wearing a cordless headset. Her hands are positioned on a keyboard mounted
on a slide-out tray, which also holds a computer mouse. Beneath the table is the computer CPU. In the background is a
window with blinds and a view of trees beyond.
OFFICE AND WORKPLACE DESIGN 23.5
2. Is all visual and auditory information clear and easy to understand?
2.1 To make vital information seen and heard throughout the work area...
2.2 To make visual information understandable in very bright or very dim light...
2.3 To make auditory information heard above noise...
2.4 To make the work area quiet enough for conversations and telephone use...
For numbers, use arabic (1, 2, 3, 4) rather than Roman (I, II, III, IV) numerals
Reinforce text message with familiar symbols wherever possible
Avoid very high or very low tones
Reinforce auditory information with visual signals
Use sound-absorbing ceiling tile, wall coverings, and carpeting to minimize reflected sound
Add volume control or headset to telephone, use e-mail, or set aside “quiet area” for meetings
If work area is noisy, amplify loudness to exceed usual noise level
Locate visual information according to its importance-direct line of sight from workstation to
emergency signs, less important signs away from center of vision
Ensure adequate lighting on all visual information; lighting should strike signs at an angle of about
45 degrees
Wherever possible, communicate information through sight, sound, and touch (example: vibrating
pager with visual display)
Use matte, non-glare surfaces on signs; clearly contrast color, brightness, and texture of lettering
with background
Use sharp san-serif typestyle with clear distinction between similar shapes (0 and O, A and 4, 1
and I, I and I); for large bodies of text, use serif typestyle, such as Times Roman
Use caps and lower case, except for tactile signs, which should be all UPPER CASE, 5/8" - 2"
high, with extended letter, spacing and accompanied by Braille
Tactile lettering should be located 60" above floor; raised 1/32" where dirt may fill recessed
lettering, recessed where raised lettering might cause confusing shadows on raised lettering
Avoid underlining and borders around lettering, and avoid tight spacing between letters, words,
and lines
Minimize or isolate noise from air conditioning and other equipment with isolation mounts or
enclosures; locate copiers, printers, etc. in sound-proof area near work station
Install sound absorbing panels at work stations to minimize distractions or provide privacy: 29–41"
for modesty screens, 41–69" for seated privacy, 70–73" for standing visual and acoustical privacy
FIGURE 23.2 (Continued)