Universal design takes into account the needs of all users by adding flexibility to designs. When an Interior Designer works with a client who requests a universal design, he or she must strive to produce a broad-spectrum solution. Universal design produces buildings and interior environments that are usable for everyone, not just people with disabilities.
Examples
- Smooth ground surfaces of entranceways, without stairs
- Wide interior doors and hallways
- Lever handles for opening doors rather than twisting knobs
Often, old buildings outlive their original purposes. Adaptive reuse is a design process that adapts an older building for new use. Adaptive reuse strives to maintain the original envelope of the structure and interior details in order to retain its historic features and/or value. The interior most often under goes major changes and it is often necessary in order to provide for the new function of the building.
Examples
- A closed factory or abandoned school may become an apartment building
- An old railroad station may become a mall for shops and restaurants
- A restaurant may become office space.
Click here to view a PDF of a proposed adaptive reuse project.
Sustainable design is the philosophy of design that creates objects, architecture and environments by eliminating a negative impact on the environment through skillful and sensitive design practices. It is a philosophy that can be applied in most of the design fields including, interior design, architecture, landscape architecture, urban design and industrial design.
In interior design, sustainable design is not the attachment or supplement to the interior space, but an integrated design process. This requires close cooperation of the interior designer and the client at all project stages, from the material selection to the project’s completion.
Some common principles of sustainable interior design:
- Select non-toxic materials and products
- Select products that use manufacturing processes that require less energy.
- Selecting products that last longer and function better will have to be replaced less frequently. This reduces the impact of producing replacements.
- Select products designed for reuse and recycling.
- Select recycled materials that require little energy to process.
- Select materials should come from nearby renewable sources that can be composted when their usefulness has been exhausted.
