Although architects might propose universal design principles, it seems that Australia is not the only country where clients are ambivalent at best and resistant at worst in terms of inclusive thinking. In Clients’ Approach to Universal Design – A Slow Change? Sidse Grangaard of the Danish Building Research Institute reports on the research into why client acceptance of UD thinking is not going beyond basic building regulations. It would seem the design and construction industries share much in common across the globe. A useful research project. The full paper is available from the link.
From the abstract
When new buildings do not comply with the accessibility requirements of the Danish Building Regulations, the main reason is often attributed to a lack of knowledge and prioritization.
Clients decide their own focus on accessibility during the design process, and also whether the level of accessibility should be higher than that stipulated in the Danish Building Regulations.
When the client is ambitious about accessibility/Universal Design (UD), the result is a building with an extensive level of accessibility. Thus, the client is a key figure for the project and the level of ambition.
As a concept, UD has not gained currency among the clients. Their ambition level remains defined by the Danish Building Regulations. The analysis shows three concepts about accessibility/UD can be characterized among the clients. 1) accessibility by design, 2) broad accessibility 3) added value. Above all, the findings show that a development is going on towards UD, although slowly.
The article is from the proceedings of the UDHEIT 2018 conference held in Dublin, Ireland, an open access publication.