Accessibility and International Standardization as Technical Support to Legislation, Planning, Design, Negotiation and CertificationEduardo Alvarez, Architect, A&A - Accesibilidad y Arquitectura, Uruguay Amparo Alvarez, Architect, A&A - Accesibilidad y Arquitectura, Uruguay Sections
The effective implementation of an inclusive physical environment - with universal values of effectiveness and sustainability, requires concerted actions, a negotiation through collective and personal actions, committed on the day-by-day bases and technically supported. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights presents us the right of all people to access public services and to realize their economical, social and cultural fulfillment. The transit towards the effective exercise of this right, is dependent four ingredients: technical support, education, social and politic action and personal commitment. Technical SupportTechnical standardization can help to establish precise lines of voluntary application, that count with the consensus of the interested parties and helps in the achievement of a collective benefit. Concepts that define and Distinguish a StandardThe concept of a Technical Standard is applied in a strict and restricted sense. It is elaborated by following a universal methodology, by a recognized standardizing organization. This process is different from a technical specification, which is elaborated under the exclusive responsibility of who is writing it. ExamplesQuality outlined in ISO 9000 has universal acceptance. The country code it is supported in the Technical Standard ISO 3166. The identification cards (of transactions) have as support the Technical Standard ISO/IEC 7812. Scope of the Technical SupportA national, regional or international Technical Standard, due to the way it is elaborated and the circumstances under which it is created takes on a "voluntarily character", when:
The basis of the standard is embedded in common law and of tradition and it does not necessarily conform to a part of the written law. To the concept of "independence" of the countries we must add the concept of "interdependence" generating a needed for technical standardization at regional and international level that establishes basic uniform guidelines. Scope ExamplesThe Municipal Administration of Montevideo, Uruguay (IMM) has subscribed in 2003 an agreement with the Uruguayan Institute of Technical Standardization (UNIT) and with the Architects' Society of Uruguay (SAU) in order to implement and update the Edict and the Special Dispositions of Projects and Urban Conditioning for People with Disabilities of 1985 and 1989. The Inter-American Development Bank is following a process of elaborating a guide that allows and facilitates the incorporations of principles of universal designs to the design and execution of the projects for urban development and transport financed by the Bank, by following accepted technical standards in the countries of the region (COPANT). Certification help to establish that an environment, product, etc. have been evaluated and it conforms to what is proposed in the technical standards and corresponding guides. The Uruguayan Institute for Technical Standards (UNIT) and the International Commission on Technology and Accessibility for Latin America (ICTA LA) have subscribed an Agreement for Inter-Institutional Cooperation to support the Process of Technical Standardization, Capacitation and Certification in areas of Accessibility to the Infrastructure since last 21st of September of 2002. In September of 2003 it was granted the certificate UNIT / ICTA LA to Accesibilidad Total, integrated by the Technological Institute of Monterrey, CEMEX, Libre Acceso and DIF Nuevo León of México. Additional Information Sources
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