Several years ago, Ford developed the "Third Age Suit" to gain insight into how they could better accommodate the Europe's quickly graying population. The Suit offered Ford engineers a visceral glimpse into everyday "Golden Age" scenarios. Ultimately, the experience provided invaluable inspiration for designing Ford cars that offer old and young drivers alike a distinct sense of comfort and ease.

Now, Ford is sharing their "Third Age Suit" with professionals from another industry, specifically architects keen on designing homes that better meet the needs of their older clientele. A group of architects from Hahn & Helten GmbH, for example, recently visited Ford's Aachen research center to test out the suit for themselves. The architects reportedly returned to their office with 20/20 insight into the design features and specifications older homeowners might need in a house. For example: senior-friendly stairs and higher seating.

"For the first time, we intensively felt the restrictions of our target group and got much closer toward their real needs," said Günter Helten, Managing Director, Hahn & Helten. "For the first time, we intensively felt the restrictions of our target group and got a much closer understanding toward their real needs. We are going to take what we've learned from this [Ford] suit and apply those learnings in a practical manner so that our accommodation is the best it can possibly be for our elderly target market."¹

Stay tuned to learn more about how Ford innovations are being used across different industries. Lewis Ford, located at 3373 North College in Fayetteville, AR, is dedicated to keeping you informed.

Source: ¹ http://www.autoblog.com/2011/04/18/special-ford-suit-used-to-mimic-the-elderly-finds-use-among-arch/