YOUR FORUM FOR PLAY, SPORTS UND LEISURE AREAS
A focal point: playground safety. Communal children’s playground as seen by expert observers and from a legal point of view. Speaker Berthold Tempel (TÜV Rhineland) placed playground experts in the spotlight with this statement: more safety for the communal playground! The BSFH (Federal Association of playground equipment and leisure facilities manufacturers) provided the right stimulus with the playground expert. Ralf Mandernach (GVV Communal Insurance) followed on in the same vein seamlessly after the presentation by Berthold Tempel. Liability and insurance in the event of a playground accident. When is the communal insurance liable? A legal viewpoint with practical examples.
Second key topic: A meeting of the generations or “senior citizen playground”?
Speakers involved in both current research projects relating to this topic were available to talk and answer questions in the plenary session: DI Rita Mayrhofer from Vienna (“Gemma Raus!” study) and Prof. Dr. Grit Hottenträger (FH Wiesbaden). From a community point of view, Ralf-Rainer Klatt, city of Darmstadt, tackled the question: What is the point of activity trails? With regards to the pilot project in the auspices of the Hessian sustainability strategy, Dipl.-Ing. Norman Riede (Landscape Architect bdla) considered the multi-generational playground from a planning viewpoint.
The first plenary session motion plan is set to be implemented – and further events will follow.
Opinions of Participants
Bernd Schumacher, Everswinkel local authority:
“Location: In consideration of the origin of the participants and speakers from the various Federal Sates, Fulda is located almost perfectly in the heart of Germany. This meant that it is more central for everyone to reach. The train station is about 15 minutes away. Those travelling by car, had the chance to familiarise themselves with the “thoroughly structured parking regulations” in Fulda. I, myself, solved this problem with a car park at some distance from the Fulda river plain. Making my way to the hotel with the scooter was a pleasure for me (it is indeed a MOTIONplan forum!) The Maritim Hotel in Fulda is high-class, sophisticated and clean in a particularly attractive location at the Baroque Park.
Speakers and presentations: The mix of presentations on safety topics, scientific observation of generations (senior citizens) – as always – play areas, and from the view point of some manufacturers, led to a very varied and lively event. There was a lively dialogue on all topics, an indicator that the presentations were well received by the audience and that there were numerous “affected people”. The speech by Rita Mayrhofer was both interesting and authentic and was met with a tense and excited silence in the room. Standing in the thick of things, she was able to pass on useful planning tips. Extensive experiences on the indicated “senior citizen playgrounds” in Vienna formed the professional background. Both successful implementation processes as well as flawed planning processes were presented. It is only through learning from errors, that we are able to progress in this new area. The same also applies to the usage analyses presented by Grit Hottenträger at the Rhine-Main University. I was also able to obtain valuable information and advice from the charismatic speech by Norman Riede from a landscape architecture viewpoint. I travelled back home with a huge bundle of current, practical knowledge that I’ll certainly be able to use for my work that lies ahead. I was able to establish and get to know useful contacts, with whom I would like to work in the future. I can only encourage the team to continue to authorise this exceptionally useful event and would be delighted to come into contact with a similar group of individuals in future.”
Markus Schönherr, herrburg Landschaftsarchitekten (Landscape Architects), Berlin:
“I found the seminar fundamentally positive, as the topic “exercise parks” will increase in importance in coming years. I.e. a repetition/new edition seems reasonable in order to accompany the process of development of exercise parks. Personally I thought the topic of playground safety was more of a sub-topic and wasn’t necessarily connected to the topic of exercise parks, whereby questions were related to DIN or the classification of exercise devices, and the discussion was good for this purpose.
The mix of company speakers and technical experts was balanced and good. I found the choice of technical experts (Ms Hottenträger, Ms Mayrhofer, ...) very good as it meant that different angles and viewpoints (planners, university, city/town / sports association) in relation to the topic were “highlighted” and discussions were, controversially or in terms of content, correspondingly diversified. In my opinion, I would have been interesting to have the assessment by a sports scientist. This was provided by the company 4circle, but an independent voice would have been even more exciting. In terms of the organisation, it was very good, accommodation, etc., everything was great. The framework certainly contributed to the pleasant atmosphere.”
Waldemar Ziebeker, town of Espelkamp:
“A huge thanks to all participants of the Fulda 2012 forum.
I thought that the initiative shown by the trade magazine Playground@Landscape, in bringing science, technology, law, planners and operators to one table, in order to bring about an exchange of experiences, was a complete success.
For me it was very impressive to see and hear that a lot of good things are set up in the wrong place, or are not accepted and are thereby superfluous. Whereby little that is in the right place and is taken care of by committed people, is crowned by success. Therefore, I’m grateful to science.
Developing the safety standard together and speaking a common language for the checking of play equipment, should be in the general interests of operators. I hope that the new DIN SPEC 79161:2011 was a good foundation for this and becomes the tool of trade for many specialists.
Good, committed manufacturers of equipment deal with the subject matter and harmonise material, purposes of exercise and safety issues. All visitors to the forum could convince themselves of the existence of this kind of manufacturers. Well set-up sites are the lifeblood of planners who deal with a wide range of users and defined areas as well as a targeted choice of equipment. It is always necessary to recognise connections, to question functions and clarify details early on.
Mr Müller from P@L succeeded during his moderation of the event, in giving all speeches a worthy place and making the whole process interesting. The table and counter discussions were very informative and, in my case, also very helpful. Thus, the visit to the forum was worth it and I hope for a continuation in 2013 in these nice surroundings of the Fulda Palace Complex. Furthermore, I’m looking forward to the future editions of Playground@Landscape!”
Ideas for discussion
During the 2012 Motion Plan Plenary Session, the discussion of “Sports facilities or fitness trails?” came up.
In relation to the topic of multi-generation fitness trails, a public discourse is currently taking place in the media, with congresses and meetings, in order to allow the public, decision-makers and planners to form their own opinions. Sports facilities or fitness trails? That is the question that all decision-makers ought to ask beforehand. And into the bargain, among other things a contribution by the manufacturer, Playfit, in the 03/2012 edition of the trade magazine Playground@Landscape
TM
Photos: TM
