Oral Presentation Transform 2021 - Public Works Conference

Engineers that implement Inclusive Design from inception can accelerate their professional development and significantly contribute to the future planning of the Australian economy. This is of particular importance to government departments. Areas that Inclusive Design can be applied to in an engineering context include:

• Planning and design of cities and ‘Smart’ cities
• Transport infrastructure: advanced design methodology benefiting people with disabilities and their ability to access vital services beyond meeting standard ‘Accessibility Standards’ which are often insufficient
• Waste management plants
• design for employees – diversity and inclusion
• workforce demographics – design of plants and machinery
• Sensory mapping: for any areas to be engineered and built so that people who pass through benefit from the most appropriate environments – engineering in this way benefits all people not just those with disability
• Buildings and environmental planning: using Inclusive Design in addition to, rather than just adhering to Accessibility Standards, reduces retrofitting costs of buildings and is often more cost-effective.
• Accessibility vs usability: infrastructure or buildings claim to be accessible, having followed standards, but are often not the case.

Inclusive Design leads to good social design, which in turn is a strong predictor of lower crime rates, better-performing schools, and gains in other measures of quality of life. We will all benefit from Inclusive Design at some period in our lives. As we age, changes in our abilities – which might include loss of hearing, diminished eyesight, and limited mobility – are inevitable. We all will need adaptive measures to continue living comfortably, independent lives. When we use Inclusive Design to create new services, products, and technologies, we’re designing not only for others but also for our future selves.