Research project

Certification-D NWE938

The project’s vision is that people living with dementia should be supported in living at home as safe, as well and as long as they can : the mission of the project is to guarantee good quality products, systems and services for people living with dementia and support and encourage companies to design well for people with dementia.
Within the project, products from small and medium companies are tested and improved with the support of people living with dementia.
The researchers contributes to the recruitment and selection of companies for the testing phase in the Living Labs, where people with dementia are involved in meaningful interaction with warm technologies. The outcome of the testing includes a design support for the companies participating to the study, and gives access to the certification process developed by the partners.

Duration

September 2019 - March 2023

Partners

Systemic Change

Project Manager

Rens G.A. Brankaert

Official project's website

From 2018 to 2050, the number of People with Dementia (PwD) will increase from 3.3 to 8.5 million in NWE. Because the supply of care places cannot expand at the same rate as the number of PwDs there is a shift by local government and PwD to remain at home for as long as possible, in the future more PwDs will live longer at home and need more support-products. However, studies show that PwD and their support network do not always know and trust existing solutions (TRL 6). It is then necessary to define standards for these products and, through certification, increase confidence in them and encourage SMEs to focus on this
market (TRL 8). Our project supports SMEs in NWE that develop and market innovative, reliable, self-determined home living products for PwD.
This increases the SMEs turnover, competitiveness and job creation. In collaboration with partners from research and care institutions, SMEs, associations and PwD, design standards will be developed. Together with a certification company, new and existing products for PwD will be evaluated and certified. Following the project’s completion, enterprises in NWE will be able to
work and develop further in this area. The main outputs of this project are: an improved innovation network, a certification process and test mark, 24+ products, services or processes tested in Living Labs, 30+ SMEs supported by the project partners, and an ongoing cooperation of companies, research institutions, care providers, PwD and caregivers in NWE.
In the future, business and PwD lobby associations will recommend the certified products, will ask for and value these reliable standards. The certification body and the Living Labs of the partners will form the basis of a European Dementia Living Labs Alliance supported and financed by the certification of further products and, post project, it will expand of the customer base to all PwD, who live at home.

Funding figures:
• Funding amount is € 2.23 million
• Overall budget is € 3.71 million