The IBV is developing criteria for the design and selection of products and services that promote active and healthy ageing

Population ageing is now a social reality in Europe and also in Spain, which has one of the oldest populations in the world, with almost 20% of the population over the age of 65. This growth situation is not only leading to an increased need for long-term care and preventive measures to enable active and healthy ageing, but also to the consolidation of what has come to be known as the “silver economy”, i.e., the range of opportunities linked to demographic change and the specific needs of older people, including all those products and services they consume because they are older.

In this context, it is very important that products and services are designed so that they can be used by everyone, taking into account the specific needs and characteristics of older people, which are all too often not taken into account today by companies that manufacture products or provide services.

In the words of David Garrido Jaén, Director of Innovation in Smart Health at the IBV, “Every day more and more elderly people are looking for solutions that will allow them to lead an active, healthy and connected life. The incorporation of criteria such as usability, functionality, acceptability, ergonomics and human factors in the design process is a key factor in the definition of products and services for the care of the elderly”.

This reality is the starting point for the MAYORES project, led by the Instituto de Biomecánica (IBV), which aims to develop criteria for the design and selection of products and services that promote active and healthy ageing.

“This project focuses on the need to help and provide solutions for two types of companies: on the one hand, producers of products and services, to ensure they are suitable for use by older people, and providers of social and health services, to ensure that they select, allocate and purchase products aimed at the older population, thus contributing to the promotion of active and healthy ageing”, says Garrido.

Rakel Poveda-Puente, director of the Mayores  project, continues: “We have developed two key methodologies in this research, based on the innovation techniques developed at the IBV and on the experience of older people themselves.  The first methodology is concerned with the selection, allocation and purchase of products aimed at older people, while the second is aimed at manufacturing companies to validate and improve products and services from a healthy ageing perspective. We have developed design criteria to ensure functionality, efficiency, usability, reliability, safety, appropriate maintenance and privacy”.

In order to carry out this research, it was essential to bring together care professionals, older people and companies that produce and provide social and health services.

The following organisations have collaborated in this pioneering research: the Colisee Foundation (a leader in the promotion of healthy ageing), Gesmed (a provider of social and health services for personal autonomy and care of dependent people), Cayro (a manufacturer of games for the elderly), Savia (a provider of social and health services for personal autonomy and care of dependent people) and Visualfy (a manufacturer of products for people with hearing impairments).

It has also received the support and collaboration of Alcoy City Council, the Hoya de Buñol-Chiva Association of Municipalities, Almenara City Council and Sagunto City Council, through their respective Social Services Departments.

Finally, the MAYORES project is supported by the Department of Innovation, Industry, Commerce and Tourism of the Autonomous Government of Valencia, through the IVACE+i programme, and receives funding from the European Union through the FEDER Community of Valencia 2021- 2027 Programme (IMDEEA/2024/10).