WOODWORKING QUIZ for 11 Sept 04

[Ralph Jones]

Good Evening Friends,
With my wife being in a wheel chair most times, and we are planning to remodel the kitchen.

What do you fellows think I could do to make the cabinets more wheelchair compatible?

Respectfully,

[Wood Borer]

Ralph,

Sorry to hear of your wife's situation.

Interesting design problem especially if you work in the kitchen also.

How about tambour type doors?

[Robert WA]

Is the wheelchair adjustable as to height? They have wheelies these days with a scissor frame and little hydraulic motor that pumps them up and down.

You need to:

Settle on a counter top height that is usable from the wheelchair.

Replace all cupboards with drawers.

Make sure all drawer handles and the bottoms of the drawers can be reached from a wheelchair.

Have no cupboards or doors under the main work section of the benches so that the wheelchair can fit under to allow SWMBO to get right up close.

Get yourself a back brace, because your back will really suffer when you work at those low benches.

[Ralph Jones]

Good Evening Friends,
Thank you for your concern, and I have already started to doing some of the things that you have mentioned.
People don't realize what it entails to make changes for the handicapped until they get in the situation themselves. There are a lot of changes that must be made such as the following; Lower outlets where the handicap person can reach, lower a counter top with nothing under it to allow the person to just wheel right under it with the top being a work surface. Roll out adjustable shelving under the base cabinets for easy access and any other thing you may use for a person in such a situation.

I in the future intend to concentrate on building cabinets for the handicapped. Putting them on the market at an affordable price should bring in some sales, also the cabinets will be made of quality wood and not the wood grained vinyl junk.

Thank you once again for your support.

Respectfully,

[journeyman Mick]

Ralph,
don't know if you have an equivalent, but in Australia we have an Australian Standard (AS 1428.1-2001) which details bench heights, shower rail placement, etc etc etc for disabled/wheelchair access in any building situation. It's a comprehensive guide to dimensions and placements and would be a real help for anyone in your position (after you wade through all the pages of mumbo jumbo).

Mick

[echnidna]

Your US Occupational Therapists Association should be able to give you ther appropriate recommended dimensions. They may also be interested in promoting your ability to make things for people with disabilities

[bitingmidge]

Now that you blokes have mentioned it, The Americans With Disabilities Act is pretty much a cross between our AS, and our Anti-discrimination Act.

Unlike here the info is available readily on the web http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adahom1.htm and there are the standards for accessable design are available for free downloading. (Wasn't that issue raised on another thread recently? The one about making legislation available for free!)

If you haven't had a look Ralph, there is some good stuff in there among all the scary obligations for businesses, employers and all the other people who are the true victims of discrimination!

I did run an argument in a training session in the States once that not being legally able to refuse a disabled person a job (because they simply could not do it) would give my business a disability...but that is another story!

Cheers,

P

[Robert WA]

BM
Australian legislation, Acts and Regulations, for all States and the Commonwealth is available on the net.
http://www.austlii.edu.au/databases.html
Just be cautious that it may not be right up to date.
For the States:
Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW), Equal Opportunity Act 1984 (Vic); Equal Opportunity Act 1984 (WA); Equal Opportunity Act 1984 (SA); Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 (QLD); Discrimination Act 1991 (ACT); Anti-Discrimination Act 1992 (NT).
For the Commonwealth:
Disability Services Act 1986 (Cth)
No doubt there are Regulations made under the various Acts and, I presume, a set of standards that apply to public buildings.

[Robert WA]

BM.
Having posted the stuff about legislation, I can't find any Act or Regulation that deals specifically with requirements for disabled people.

[gemi_babe]

May I suggest you have two work stations. One for you and one for your wife?
Like those bathroom suites with two sinks.

[Ralph Jones]

Thanks Fellows,
I have bookmarked both links in my favorites under health and safety.

Now I will be able to printout things for my daughter who is the Health and Safety Officer in her place of employment. Also she is the personnel manager and works with the handicapped to make the necessary changes in order for them to be productive in the shop.

Respectfully,

[bitingmidge]

BM.
Having posted the stuff about legislation, I can't find any Act or Regulation that deals specifically with requirements for disabled people.

Robert,

Yep! That was the point someone was trying to make earlier on this BB, although it was a building related matter.

If you are interested you need to by a copy of the relevant Australian Standards, which set out in painful prescriptive detail, what can and can't be done to assist disabled people. Including the requirement for ripple strips before changes in levels, bathroom details etc.

Cheers,

P

[Ralph Jones]

Hello Midge,
I really think those ripple strips are great for use in the home or work place to let someone know of a change of elevation, sounds great to me.

The only place they use them here in the good old USA is on the sides of the roads to wake people up before they run off the road or at a dangerous intersection, and railroad.

This is one thing I am going to point out to my daughter for the shop.

Especially when a person is entering the fork lift area and vice versa.

Respectfully,