Confidently building the living spaces of tomorrow

Living, living and working spaces are becoming more and more compact, while comfort requirements are increasing. A fascinating challenge for interior architects, furniture makers and interior designers who must come up with intelligent and ergonomic solutions.

_{Text: Elise Noyez Image: LMC Benelux}

In many European cities, we see that available space is shrinking and the price per square meter is rising. At the same time, we are demanding more and more comfort and, especially in the past year, sufficient flexibility. Consequently, there is a growing demand to convert small rooms into multifunctional spaces that integrate a folding bed as well as a home office and walk-in closet, where every available cubic decimeter is used as practical storage space.

Ergonomics and functionality

The challenge for interior designers and furniture makers is not simply to provide sufficient multifunctionality. They must ensure safe and comfortable use. The right hardware is the key to success.

"Comfort is a feeling you experience without seeing it," states Philip Maljers, managing director of specialist in functional hardware solutions LMC Benelux. "In this respect, the hardware claims a starring role in the experience, and technological innovation provides ever more ergonomics and ease of use. Think of the feather-light running of drawers and sliding doors or a solution that ensures that the plinth of the kitchen unit can also serve as a drawer or step."

Demanding consumers are diligently looking for such solutions, according to Maljers, and high-end manufacturers continue to develop them accordingly. "Our product managers deliberately search for the latest exponents of their expertise. For the sixteenth edition of our LMC catalog, they have thus added another 1,500 product codes. Paying attention to the latest trends in color and design, but above all to solutions that manage to combine intelligence, multifunctionality and ergonomics."

From connecting hardware to lighting

The catalog is structured into eight families, based on the logic of production process and assembly. "The craftsman cuts and mills his panels first, so we start with connecting hardware. In the second family you will find hinge hardware, including hinges and swing door hardware. If you then mount drawers or sliding doors - a must in many compact concepts - you will find all possible guides in the third family. Furniture locks follow in family four and then it is the turn of the now indispensable cabinet systems and drawer fittings. Finally, in family seven there is a choice of 2,000 references for handles, and the latest innovations in furniture lighting are listed in family eight. As more and more applications require a combination of products, we also offer as many set references as possible. For example, all individual components for BLUM drawers can be ordered under a single article code."

For those who place their orders through LMCstore.com - some eighty percent of customers, Maljers said - the catalog is also designed to be interactive. "With the e-codes you quickly conjure up the various product groups on the screen. By the way, our Customer Care Agents can be reached not only by mail or phone, but also in real time via the chat box."

Between technology and aesthetics

However, the higher the (aesthetic) requirements, the more they approach the limits of what is technically feasible. "What seems obvious on the drawing board is not always so in practice," Maljers knows. "It takes a lot of knowledge and skill to translate the design and the desired functionality and ergonomics into a qualitatively durable piece of furniture with high user comfort. That's why our account managers are always on standby to guide the craftsman and we provide training courses to permanently hone our customers' expertise. As we say here, 'we got it right'."