by Brianna Crandall — August 19, 2015—The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) of Singapore introduced new measures during the second Singapore Universal Design Week (SUDW) to champion for a more inclusive living environment in the city-state. The new measures are expected to benefit persons of all ages and needs, including the elderly, persons with disabilities, and mothers with young children.
Enhanced UD Mark
BCA launched a set of enhanced Universal Design (UD) Mark criteria called the UD Mark Version 2.0 (2015) for evaluating UD implementation in buildings. The revised standards will set higher universal design certification benchmarks and provide an expanded design scope for buildings.
This includes the additional criteria of installing assistive hearing facilities for the elderly with hearing difficulties, and design features for persons with visual disability assisted by guide dogs. The enhanced criteria is expected to raise the bar for UD in Singapore.
Introduced in 2012, the UD Mark certification recognizes progressive developers and architects who incorporate thoughtful UD features in project developments. Since then, BCA has certified 85 developments with the UD Mark.
Other initiatives announced during the week include:
- The launch of Singapore standards for age-friendly homes;
- A charity event called the “See the World Differently Fund-raising Dinner” where guests from the built environment sector enjoyed a full-course dinner in complete darkness to experience what it means to carry out simple daily activities such as eating without sight, to gain greater empathy for persons with disabilities and better appreciate the importance of user-friendly features in the built environment;
- The development of a UD Explorers program to further promote and share with the public on the importance of UD in their surroundings, including guided educational tours for primary school students at selected user-friendly shopping malls; and
- The publication of a public education leaflet titled “Shaping an Age-friendly Built Environment,” with simple-to-understand illustrations explaining concepts on age-friendly design to cater to the elderly’s needs as well as the importance of social graciousness in sharing public facilities.
Other outreach efforts announced by BCA include industry conferences and user consultations, as well as public roving exhibitions, to promote greater understanding towards persons of diverse abilities and needs, and the adoption of user-friendly design approaches in buildings.
