CHAPTER THREE

3.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

In this chapter, the methodology for design staircase with the view of

making vertical movement easy for the elderly will be discussed.

The survey and interview have been conducted on the four objectives of this

study.

3.1 Survey Analysis

A survey regarding to design staircase with the view of making vertical

movement easy for the elderly has been conducted by using Google online

survey forms. The survey includes six questions and in multiple choice

format.

Question 1 asks about the individual age.

Question 2 asks about how often do they use staircase.

Question 3 asks about the suitable rise for the elderly.

Question 4 asks about the materials that is suitable for the use of the elderly.

Question 5 asks about the suitable going for the elderly.

Question 6 asks about the suitable length of flight for the elderly.

3.1.1 Analysis on Survey Response

1. How old are you?

 Survey response to question 1.

Out of 130 individuals who respond to survey, 100 are older adults while 30

are young adults. In percentage, 97.5% of older adults respond to the survey

while the rest are young adults.

2. How often do you used staircase?

Survey response to question 2.

Out of 130 individuals who respond to survey, 70 of them used staircase at

least once a week while 60 of them used staircase more than once a day.

3. What is the suitable rise for the elderly?

Survey response to question 3.

Out of 130 individuals who respond to survey, majority of them considered

100mm as the most suitable rise for the elderly and the rest considered

150mm. In percentage, 71% of the individuals considered 100mm while

29% of the individuals considered 150mm.

4. What is the material that is suitable for the use of the elderly?

Survey response to question 4.

Out of 130 individuals who respond to survey, all of them considered

finishing step material as the most suitable material for the use of the

elderly. Finishing step material represents the texture, pattern and color of

the finishing of each staircase step.

 5. What is the suitable going for the elderly?

Survey response to question 5.

Out of 130 individuals who respond to survey, 120 of them considered

280mm as the preferred going for the elderly while the rest considered

250mm. In percentage, 90% considered 280mm while 10% considered

250mm.

6. What is the suitable length of flight for the elderly?

Survey response to question 6.

Out of 130 individuals who respond to survey, all of them considered 10

steps per flight is the optimal staircase design for order adults.

3.2 Analysis on Interview

An interview has been conducted with 11 older adults. The interview took

place at their residential house on 20th March, 2021.

During the interview, the tread, the riser, the handrail, the going, the flight,

the nosing, the width, the light of the staircase design were mainly

discussed.

Here are their recommendations for staircase design.

1. All tread and riser dimensions should be uniform through the entire

stairway.

2. Riser height should be 100mm and tread depth should be 280mm.

3. Tread surfaces and floor surfaces leading to the stairway should be

slip-resistant.

4. Stairways with more than twelve steps should have an intermediate

landing.

5. Handrails should be 900mm from the pitch line or the floor.

6. On the upper floor surface, the handrails should start out

horizontally at the beginning of the demarcation zone. This gives

elderly people one more visual cur to the stairways presence and

allows them to grip the railway before they begin to descend the

stairs.

7. Handrails should continue at least 300mm beyond the top and

bottom of the stairs and should be finished in a way that reduces the

risk of clothing being caught.

8. The 10 steps per flight is the optimal staircase design for order

adults.

9. Providing consistent lighting through out the entire staircase is a

very important factor that contributes to reducing the risk of falling

for older adults.

CHAPTER FOUR

4.0 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION