ours has diminished with age, see only gray in packaging that is not printed large enough nor has enough contrasting shades. For instance, the conditioner and shampoo from two different manufacturers are easily mistaken for one another. More importantly, the sell-by-date is often difficult to find and, for the elderly, difficult to read, without the help of reading glasses, because it is small and poorly printed. The sell-by-date, at least, should do what it is supposed to do. Manufacturers are more concerned with the look, the facade, of their product than with the actual functions that such a product should possess. (see Haimann, 2005: 155f) This is due to the fact that free market companies endeavour to achieve the highest possible number of sales with the lowest possible expenditure. In an investigation of screw-top lids, the relationship between subjective and ergo-
KaffeeweiĂ&#x;er The cmparison of packaging A: aesthetic B: open easily
img.5
C: traditional look D: functionality
nomic factors was shown. Thus lids that because their (not round) form or their structure, made it possible to open an object easily (img.5-6), were seen as difficult to open. As a result, round, smooth lids, which are in actual fact more difficult to open, are promoted, and the lack of functionality is kept from the customer. There are results of investigations that are influenced by such subjective judgements and where the ergonomic factors are not the only determinants that the decide the user-friendliness of the product and the simplicity of its use. (see Coleman, 1997:175) More than 90% of those over 60 have problems in opening packaging. 15% to
effort to open
img.6
20% have stated that their greatest problem is with the opening of medcations packaging. Especially the elderly need more and more medicationns as they grow older. In addition, packaging contains a far greater risk than originally suspected. If packaging is difficult to open, the user does not simply throw it away, 18