Zuliz, a leading company in the elderly industry, was recently invited to attend the seminar on the establishment of the industry standard “General Design Requirements for Home Products for the Elderly” and the group standard “Technical Specifications for Age-Friendly Product Evaluation” in Beijing. The conference was successfully organized by the China Light Industry Information Center. As one of the drafting units, Zuliz actively participated in the discussions on the main contents of the two standards, providing valuable insights and contributing to the demonstration of standard system construction in the field of age-friendliness, thereby supporting the high-quality development of the industry.
The elderly population is becoming a major consumer force, and the establishment of age-friendly standards is becoming increasingly urgent.
According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, in February 2023, the elderly population aged 60 and above in China reached 280 million, accounting for 19.8% of the total population. This proportion is continuously rising, and it is projected that by around 2035, the elderly population aged 60 and above in China will surpass 400 million, representing over 30% of the total population. China will then enter a stage of profound aging. With the increase in the elderly population, the elderly will undoubtedly become a significant consumer force, leading to the rapid development of the “silver economy.”
The current trend shows that elderly consumers’ demand for household products is shifting from meeting basic functional needs towards more age-friendly and elderly-assisting features. While companies are vigorously implementing the “Three Excellence” strategy of increasing variety, improving quality, and building brands, which has brought significant benefits by enhancing the convenience and happiness index of the elderly population, there remains a noticeable lack of age-friendliness in household consumer products. The insufficient consideration of elderly behavioral characteristics and usage habits has resulted in poor usability, increased difficulty in usage, and potential unexpected situations during use.
Therefore, standardizing age-friendly home design will help better meet the diverse and multi-level needs of the elderly, providing convenience for their daily lives. This will further drive the industry to accelerate the adoption of sustainable advanced manufacturing models for assisting and catering to the elderly, fostering a societal trend of respect and love for the elderly.
Zuliz, as a leader in the elderly shoe industry, has actively participated in various standard constructions. With a deep understanding of elderly foot shapes to address footwear challenges for the elderly, Zuliz is committed to serving the elderly population effectively. By actively engaging in standardization efforts to enhance product and service quality, Zuliz has made significant progress in standardization.
To date, Zuliz has led and participated in the drafting of 22 elderly shoe-related standards, including 1 national standard, 12 industry and group standards, and 9 enterprise standards. Notably, the national standard “Elderly Shoes” is expected to be released by the end of this year, with Zuliz being the first drafting unit. Additionally, the Q/ZLJ 006-2022 “Casual Shoes” and Q/ZLJ 007-2022 “Travel Shoes” have surpassed national and industry standards in key technical indicators, filling relevant gaps and earning the “Trailblazer” and Advanced Standard certificates for enterprise standards.
Zuliz’s elderly shoes were invited to participate in the standard-setting seminar, leveraging their solid foundation in standardization system construction and nearly a decade of experience in the elderly industry to provide valuable feasibility references for drafting standards. In the future, Zuliz will place greater emphasis on the guiding role of standards, using standards to drive innovation within the company. They will continue to actively participate in the drafting of national, industry, and group standards, collaborating with the industry to contribute to the establishment of standardization systems.
It is believed that the two standards discussed in this seminar will play a significant role in improving age-friendly home product design. Through standardization, the performance of age-friendly home products will continue to improve, eliminating product safety risks and driving the continuous development of related industries such as big data, industrial internet, and electronics technology.
