Office Machines Everyone Can Use

lectronic and digital technologies are taking over the workplace. The next big change will be the redesign of copiers, faxes and other communications equipment so that people with disabilities can use the machines on their own.

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998, which mandates new regulations for federal development and procurement of communications technology, is driving the trend toward more access. The law says that federal agencies must ensure, to the extent that it does not impose an "undue burden" on them, that technology is accessible to employees and members of the public with disabilities. Final regulations are expected in September; agencies will have several months to comply.

Products in the Works

Of course, agencies cannot comply with the regulations until equipment is available for them to buy, but some equipment manufacturers are taking a wait-and-see approach before changing their products. Canon U.S.A., for example, is reviewing its product line while awaiting the final regulations, and the company says it will modify its products if necessary. In the meantime, according to Dennis Kless of Canon's government marketing division, the company has worked with customers to modify equipment as needed.

Xerox, too, works with its customers to adapt equipment to their needs. Modifications include tilted consoles so that people in wheelchairs can see the controls, bigger buttons on controls for people with limited dexterity, and Braille legends so that blind and visually impaired people can use the machines. According to Dick Schieck, customized applications manager at Xerox, all the company's copiers are designed so that people with limited strength, or those who can't fully use both arms, can operate the machines. Thus, trays and door panels can be opened easily, and paper jams can be cleared without the user having to reach far into the machine or use both hands to remove stuck paper.

The Right Thing to Do

Xerox has provided retrofits and accessories to accommodate people with disabilities since before the Americans With Disabilities Act was passed in 1990, notes Schieck, "because it was the right thing to do" for customers and employees. The company won an award from Careers & the Disabled magazine for its efforts to both provide products for people with disabilities and recruit and hire disabled employees.

Pitney Bowes began marketing its Universal Access Copier System almost two years ago. The copier employs advanced speech-recognition technology, Braille labeling and several design adjustments allowing use by blind people and people with mobility limitations, including those in wheelchairs. The copier is lower to the ground than other copiers, and users can operate it via voice, touch screen or keypad.

The copier has been well received-so much so that last May, it was added to the collection of the Smithsonian Institution, joining such famous technological innovations as Samuel Morse's telegraph and the Apple I computer as part of the National Museum of American History's permanent record of the information revolution.

Minolta, too, has introduced new products designed to improve access for people with disabilities. The DiALTA Di250 and Di350 copier-printers have modular designs that allow users to configure them as needed. The controls extend in front of the unit and can be lowered to a height ideal for wheelchair users; in addition, users can feed documents, program the machine and pick up the finished job all from in front of the computer.

What will be on the market a year from now is anyone's guess. But the increased availability of accessible technology is likely to help more than just people with disabilities as we traditionally think of them. The aging workforce is sure to welcome features that make life easier for arthritic hands and eyes that aren't as sharp as they once were. And those injured through weekend athletic endeavors or recovering from surgery also will benefit from the enhanced equipment.