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Friday January 11, 6:17 PMTemasek Poly unveils new design centre catering to needs of elderlySINGAPORE : Temasek Polytechnic has announced that it is setting up a "Greater than 60" Design Centre that focuses on designing age-friendly products for the elderly.Minister-in-Charge of Ageing Issues Lim Boon Heng said the centre, which opens in April, will receive S$3 million in seed funding from the Community Development, Youth and Sports Ministry. Students at Temasek Polytechnic's new design centre are designing clothes for their parents and grandparents. From comfort to 'elderly' design aesthetics, there's also the "glow-in-the-dark" slippers so that wearers won't fall at night. "A designer who is working on design for the ageing needs to be very sensitive to the needs of the ageing population. Being sensitive allows them to calibrate and bring them to the next level of understanding (the ageing population)," said Moses Wong, director of Temasek Design School. The centre will harness ideas not just from design students but every student studying at the polytechnic, as it intends to go beyond gadgets and fashion. For example, a white bread specially made for diabetics was created by a Temasek Polytechnic team, showing that design can mean anything from fashion to even applied science. The centre has plans to bring its new products and ideas to not just the local market, but globally as well. It intends to do this by working with its industry partners as well as SPRING Singapore. "We now have partners in the medical field, the needs environment. What I mean by the needs environment are people who are familiar with ageing issues," said Wong. The school said it is currently looking at some 800 design ideas and expecting more, as the notion of design for the elderly takes off. - CNA /ls |
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