as I first walked up to the industries of the blind. building, I wasn’t very excited to go inside because the exterior was so bland. I didn’t really even feel like there was much worth taking pictures of except the entrance, “industries of the blind, inc.” sign, and the small tree that was before the entrance. our group then went into the reception/lobby area that had a few chairs and a reception window. we were then lead to the staircase when we first saw the most awkwardly placed sensory area. I already felt like this was a very disorganized entrance and this just added to this effect. the upstairs part of the lobby was fairly generic, with a few hallways and rooms around its perimeter. after sitting down and listening with mr. lopresti however, I became very excited to see the rest of the building and what the employees did. his enthusiasm and respect for the blind workers definitely carried over, and as he told the history of industries of the blind it was obvious how much the industry has grown since it first began. he was saying how before, they tried to keep people in secret about what was going on inside the building, but now they want people to see more and know more. he said how every worker has their own worker and their own life changing experience. mr. lopresti also emphasized how the workers were given now special treatments, that they were expected to meet the standards, and surprisingly how they had no supervisors. there is a high level of trust for the employees that branches down from even the senior management.
we then began our tour of the rest of the building. the first couple things I noticed were that many of the employees were listening to music, and that there were many decorations. also, that there was a floor mat at the entrance to nearly every door we went through, and signs that said “please wipe your feet before entering”. nearly all of the electrical circuits were hanging from the ceiling. this eliminates the clutter of cords and outlets on the floors, which is especially important since the workers have impaired vision or are completely blind. another thing that I think is important to notice is that many of the labeling, signs, and white boards are in very large print. also, there is a constant use of red, yellow, and blue on the floors, corners, and beams. I’m not sure how exactly this is useful to the employees, but it is apparent that these were the colors that were used on purpose. along with that, the colored lines on the floor also had a texture that created a walkway. this is also obviously important to the employees who work at the industries of the blind.
some other things I noticed were that along with mats at nearly every doorway, there were also mats next to many of the machines or work stations that were bordered by a yellow strip of color. the texture/color combination is very helpful to the employees because they rely on both of these things much more than a regular sighted person does. one other thing I noticed was that the fire extinguishers didn’t have glass cases around them, however I’m not sure if this has any significance. after we finished the tour, we had time to walk back through the lobby area were I noticed that the steps all had white dots on them. again, I’m not exactly sure how this helps the employees but it is very apparent that it does.
overall, I really enjoyed my time at the industries of the blind building. this is by far the most exciting, challenging, and enjoyable space that we are working with and I hope I am assigned to the group that works on it.
