Wayfinding Solutions in Retail and Commercial Spaces

By

Abstract

This study will be based on wayfinding design. Access to communities and activities is of vital importance to all members of a community including those with disabilities. In increasing numbers, people with disabilities of all types are living and working in community settings and accessing the goods and services available there. Since community settings must accommodate an increasingly diverse population, it is critical that they be designed to be as inclusive and universally accessible as possible, addressing the requirements of a wide range of physical, sensory, and cognitive abilities and needs.

Table of Contents

Abstract1

Background3

Aim of the Project13

Objective13

Research Question13

Rationale and Context13

Outcomes14

Methodology14

Benefits of Methods15

Data Collection15

References17

Wayfinding Solutions in Retail and Commercial Spaces

Background

Architectural wayfinding design is important to inclusive design because it facilitates user access, increases satisfaction, and reduces stigma and isolation of users with disabilities. It reduces the confusion of visitors and mistakes by employees, saving time and money and preventing accidents. It also reduces stress, boosting health and productivity (Evans and McCoy, 1998). “The ability to find one's way into, through, and out of a building is clearly a prerequisite for the satisfaction of higher goals,” observed Jerry Weisman in 1981. Weisman argues that “'legibility' of an environment - the extent to which it facilitates the process of way-finding” have significant behavioral consequences, citing its effects on the adaptation of elderly residents to group housing as an example (Weisman: 189, 204). As Evans and McCoy argue, “purposive actions require legible interiors. Coherence enables users to make reasonable deductions about the identity, meaning and location of objects and spaces inside of buildings” (1998: 87; for other significant behavioral consequences see Wayfinding Design Process, and Building Form and Architectural Features?).

Kevin Lynch first discussed the impact of “the apparent clarity or 'legibility' of the cityscape” on urban quality of life in The Image of the City in 1960, and similar effects have been documented for interior spaces (Evans and McCoy, 1998). Lynch defined legibility as “the ease with which [the] parts can be recognized and . . . organized into a coherent pattern.” Because legibility and clarity facilitate movement within the built environment, Lynch claims they are integral to personal growth and “furnish the raw material for the symbols and collective memories of group communication.” Legible surroundings promote “emotional satisfaction, the framework for communication and conceptual organization, [and bring] new depths to everyday experience (Lynch: 2-4).

Legibility of the built environment is served by clear articulation and coherent grouping of interior and exterior spaces, legible circulation systems design, and integrating communication systems (Arthur and Passini, 1992). These tthree objectives can be divided into the following components:

Objective

Components

Elements

 

 

 

Clear articulation and coherent grouping of exterior and interior spaces

Shaping site and setting?

Landscaping, bermingRoadways, entrances/exitsPedestrian routes sidewalks, pathways

 

Building form and architectural features?

Overall building form

Building volumesPhysical separation or clustering of componentsRoof designPlacement of openings

Cladding (skin) - textures, materials, colors Decoration, ornamentation

 

Articulating interior spaces?

Design concepts (paths, markers, nodes/ intersections, edges/links) Approach from streetRoadwaysParkingExternal paths and walkways Entrances and exitsConnection to ...