ID/Lab are specialist wayshowing strategists (see below for the difference between wayshowing and wayfinding).
Most people think that creating a wayshowing* system equals designing signage. We believe it is much more than that. Users find navigation easiest in a ‘Legible Environment’, a space where signage, people, architecture, landscaping, interior design, lighting, art, printed and digital information all play an important role in providing navigational stimuli.
Therefore, we create Legible Environments, in buildings, offices, hotels, hospitals, airports, towns & cities, where navigation is easy because the environment explains what the users need to know, when they need to know it.
Of course, we design signage…… but only as one of the tools required to assist people finding their way!
Wayshowing versus Wayfinding
The Danish Professor Per Mollerup, who first coined the term wayshowing in his book titled, “Wayshowing”, describes its relationship to wayfinding:
“Wayshowing relates to wayfinding as writing relates to reading and as speaking relates to hearing. The purpose of wayshowing is to facilitate wayfinding. Wayshowing is the means, wayfinding is the end.”
Our approach to delivering wayshowing /wayfinding solutions are based on many years of experience, researching and developing, designing, testing and implementing wayshowing strategies in Australia and Europe. We believe that a quality wayfinding system is a vital aspect of any built environment assisting with core navigation. Our goal is minimising the amount of time and energy staff, customers, patients and clients spend finding their way or helping others find their way around a space.
We work at the master planning level, liaising closely with architects, developers, interior designers, graphic designers and urban planners as well as other key stakeholders. We undertake human factors engineering research to ensure that “gut feeling” is not used in a built environment navigation system, but rather qualitative and quantitative data. We work closely with our customers to develop innovative approaches to their business challenges and built environments and in turn help our customers to deliver an efficient wayfinding/wayshowing system to ensure people get to their destination quickly and easily.
