Environmental Modifications of the BNI Locker Room

Overview

The objective of the project is to redesign the locker rooms of the Barber National Institute. Barber National Institute’s main campus in Erie was built in the 1970s. The institute’s clients consist of students with disabilities between the ages of 3 and 21. Their current locker rooms fail to fulfil the customer’s basic needs and demands. The locker rooms do not meet current ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) requirements, have a low capacity, and take a lot of time to get each student changed. Moreover, the accident rates in the locker rooms are high

Objectives

The goals of the project are to increase the capacity of the locker rooms by at least 40%, decrease the time spent per student in the locker room by at least 50%, and reduce the emergency calls that the center places by at least 75%. 

Approach

• In order to accomplish these objectives, data was collected in various ways: the team visited the BNI campus and has set up biweekly meetings with senior management to discuss the needs of students and other users of the locker rooms
• A survey was conducted and sent to the nurses and workers in locker rooms
• The customer’s needs and the root causes of the problems were determined. Furthermore, the client has shared a list of constraints that the final design should abide by
• By considering the customer needs, project objectives, and client constraints, the team was able to come up with four different concepts. The concepts were evaluated by using a concept selection that focused on six main criteria; these criteria had different weights within the final score

Outcomes

The final concept includes two toilets, two sinks, two private showers, a communal shower, a private room divided into sections, a locker area, and an area for lifts and machines. Moreover, there is a door between the boys’ and girls’ sections. The estimated cost is $87,600. The selected concept increases room capacity by at least 35%, decreases the time required for a student to change by at least 50%, has minimal structural reconfiguration required, and is more maneuverable and spacious for mobility aids Moreover, the final design assures a safer environment, a greater usable area, and more privacy and space for personal tools.