In the light of demographic change the topic of “Living in old age” can only be viewed as a challenge to be met by society as a whole. Our thoughts and actions must be adapted to the conditions of an ageing society. Small industry and skilled trades are intended to focus on these conditions. The residential surroundings are often not aligned, in particular, to the needs and necessities of people, which result from handicaps caused by age or illness. Small and, sometimes, more comprehensive modifications and extensions become necessary – from new lighting, door widening, the installation of ramps or showers at ground level through the use of high-contrast colour schemes and adapted cabinets up to emergency call systems and safety engineering. The HWK Düsseldorf ( Düsseldorf Chamber of Small Industries and Skilled trades) created the “Handwerkszentrum – Wohnen im Alter“ in 2003 to send an innovative signal to small industry and skilled trades in the area of the health and silver economy in this way. At this stage the Handwerkszentrum is developing an impact beyond the borders of North Rhine-Westphalia. The goal of the “Handwerkszentrum” is the extension and bundling of past activities in the area of “Wohnen im Alter” (“Living in old age”) with the further target of a lasting and trend-setting development. The main emphasis of our activities at present lies in North Rhine-Westphalia. We aspire to an expansion of activities and co-operation with other HWKs. This centre maintains a detailed register of craftsman describing the skills and services offered, with references and qualifications, which points the customer towards experienced specialists from construction related trades to orthopaedic technicians. A printed version of this register is available in German on request. In parallel we are working on establishing a customer information system on the Internet which - presents and explains products and technical alternatives to house customisation,
- shows these products and technical alternatives with photos and illustrations,
- has an easy-to-use graphical user interface
- gives examples of real life house customisation with photographic before and after comparisons.
Each of the above is linked to lists of relevant craftsmen and providers. In the meantime various regional HWKs in Germany aligned themselves to the Handwerkszentrum´s „Start-Set für Handwerksbetriebe“ ("Starter Kit for Small Industries and Skilled trades ") that summarizes the most important aspects for craftsmen:
- continuing technical training (civil engineering and standards)
- illnesses caused by old age,
- financing, promotion, living advice and
- marketing to seniors
The Handwerkszentrum – Wohnen im Alter – has, by intensive committee work and crosslinking with all relevant market participants, promoted the growing interest in economy centred networks throughout North Rhine-Westphalia. This is an important contribution to opening up local markets.
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