Why did it take four times longer to create the Universal Design solution?

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Björk, Evastina

Affiliations: NHV- Nordic School of Public Health, Box 12133, 402 42 Göteborg, Sweden. E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract: In this paper, different aspects of the development of universally designed (UD) products have been highlighted, and two different product development projects have been compared, in order to try to analyse the challenges companies face when they engage in creating UD solutions compared to the development of assistive technology and modular based solutions. Some conclusions have been drawn: The time before reaching break-even in the project whose purpose it was to create a universal design solution, was many times longer, due to the unstable and complex development circumstances. When time-to-market is longer and project costs are higher for universally designed products compared to modular systems (often represented by assistive technology) or mainstream technology products, there are limited commercial reasons to invest in universally designed solutions.

Keywords: Assistive technology, dynamic product development, innovation, project work, universal design

DOI: 10.3233/TAD-2009-0292

Journal: Technology and Disability, vol. 21, no. 4, pp. 159-170, 2009