9 minute read
Bathrooms
JIS Europe reminds us of their policy of sustainability and how sustainability is fast becoming the key factor for the businesses of today going forward into the businesses of tomorrow.
What is sustainability? Sustainability can be best described as businesses meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generation to meet the needs of the future. It has three main pillars: economic, environmental and social. People, Planet and Profits.
Advertisement
We formulated our business based on these three premises over twenty years ago. We still, more than ever, hold to these principles. Stainless steel is the environmentally sound choice, it is made from over 90% recycled product and is 100% recyclable in itself. It is durable. It will not rust, flake or corrode, your stainless steel rail when it does eventually end its life, will not end up in landfill. Unlike the manufacture of mild steel, chromed finish towel rails there are no harmful chemical plating processes involved in the manufacturing of stainless steel rails, they are merely polished or satinised. These chemicals are not always disposed of in the most ethical of manners often simply tipped into the nearest local river.
Our rails are sourced ethically, we do not source from countries that do not adhere to the principals we adhere to. We believe in fair pay for a fair days work. We stand by this.
We are a business and we run for profit however we keep our margins reasonable and donate to a program of 12 diverse charities a year and have our formal charity initiative with the Rye rail, donating £20 from our profits for the sale of each rail to Lucky’s Legacy Rescue.
We believe we are the environmental, ethical choice. It is the choices we make today that lead to the choices of tomorrow.
It’s not a hard choice, we offer good product, balanced design, next day delivery on goods that are held in stock, our customer service is excellent and you are dealing with a company that will ensure the companies and society to come are in fact sustainable for all of our children’s tomorrows.
100% Stainless Steel Towel Rails 25 Year Guarantee
ROOM2 CHISWICK LUXSTAINABILITY – THE IDEAL EXAMPLE
Kaldewei is delighted to work alongside the Lamington Group; to be part of the highly sustainable and eco-friendly room2 Chiswick hometel.
The new property uses 89% less energy per m2 than most other UK hotels; and renewable energy is maximised, with on-site solar panels and ground source heat pumps converting 100% of the energy needed for heating, cooking, and hot water. Additional energy comes from wind, solar and hydro, which is sourced offsite. room2 Chiswick is the world’s first hotel that accounts for its entire carbon footprint making it ‘whole life net zero’.
Alongside the sustainable and energy efficiency aspects, the hometel takes its design inspiration from the Arts & Crafts movement and rebellion against the homogenization of design. room2 Chiswick offers guests something that feels real, a space that ditches
plastic veneers in favour of stonewashed linen, reclaimed timber, natural recyclable products, and handmade touches crafted by local artisans. Every facet of the hotel, from the furniture, fixtures, fittings, and carpets, have been selected because of the sustainability, attitude towards the environment and carbon footprint.
The rooms are both quirky and stylish, functional yet friendly, a mixture of hand-crafted combined with state-of-the-art energy saving elements. There are 86 bespoke bedrooms and the ensuite in each is fitted with Kaldewei’s Cayonoplan shower surface plus waste system with matching cover. The Alpine white surface works perfectly with the elegantly designed bathrooms. The finish is extremely durable and can only be scratched by a diamond and stains can be easily removed.
Kaldewei was the perfect partner as the business is also committed to helping the environment. All Kaldewei products are manufactured from 100% recyclable steel enamel and last year the company took another step towards becoming a carbon neutral business; when it started manufacturing with bluemint® Steel, a balance-oriented CO2-reduced steel which will lessen emissions by 70 percent.
Kaldewei also has a long-term commitment with the WWF working with them in Vietnam on a project designed to prevent large amounts of plastic from entering the seas via rivers and canals in the Mekong Delta every year.
room2 Chiswick was created with a similar mindset and ethos, embracing sympathetic technology to achieve pioneering energy efficiencies, some of which has been developed in house. The hometel has two labs collecting data on water and energy use, along with air quality. This is combined with knowledge derived from guest requirements helping the room2 Chiswick team to refine, improve and ultimately increase energy efficiency. Renewable energy is maximised on site; for example, ultra-low flow pressure showers use less water with aerated water fixtures and ultra-energy efficient lighting and appliances are combined with occupancy sensors across the building. The blue roof reduces localised flooding by slowly discharging up to 50,000 litres of rainwater, and the green roof boasts 200 tonnes of soil and wildflowers, planted to increase biodiversity, and absorb CO2, along with beehives and bug hotels.
Kaldewei has an extensive portfolio of over 600 durable award-winning steel enamel bathroom solutions, delivering the perfect sustainable material choice for any bathroom design with its versatile and flexible solutions. This combined with its commitment to sustainability made it the ideal bathroom solution for room2 Chiswick.
room2.com/chiswick
autosizing feature nameTOP 10 REASONS TO CHOOSE WALL PANELS FOR YOUR NEXT BATHROOM PROJECT
Wall panels have been present in homes for years, having first been introduced to the bathroom industry as an alternative to tiles. In recent years, however, wall panels have become a prominent part of the bathroom market beyond simply being an alternative.
Multipanel’s Director of Key Accounts, Michael Dobson, says: “Modern innovation has led to stateof-the-art bathroom panels that serve, not just as an alternative product, but as the optimal choice for bathroom design, with huge benefits to both homebuilders, tradespeople and homeowners.”
Dobson takes us through the top 10 reasons to opt for bathroom panels for your next bathroom project:
1. NO GROUT One of the biggest benefits to using wall panels in a bathroom is that there is no need for grouting. Grout is infamously messy, time consuming and is prone to contribute to installer error—with a relatively short shelf life.
Due to bathrooms being the most humid room in the home, grouting can also be a hot spot for mould and mildew. Using panels for a bathroom is a great choice, because you don’t have to worry about the mess, mould or hassle of grout. If the look of tiles is what you or your customer is after, you can still get the best of both worlds with bathroom panels. At Multipanel, we have recently launched our Tile Collection, with grout lines that have been precision etched by state-ofthe-art machinery which gives you the all the aesthetics of tile, with none of the inconvenience of grouting.
2. SAVE TIME ON
INSTALLATION A real bonus of opting for bathroom panels instead of tiles is that they are quick to install and can be ready to use in just 24 hours. There’s no hanging around for grout to be applied and then dried before you can hop into the shower – which is particularly important if you only have one bathroom. In fact, using bathroom panels instead of tiles saves on average 21 installation hours per bathroom, meaning they can be installed five times faster than tiles, which positively contributes to accelerating home completion timescales.
3. REDUCE SNAGGING Snagging issues can be both costly and time consuming to fix. Some of the most common snags in bathroom projects can be reduced by opting for bathroom panels. By choosing waterproof wall panels instead of traditional tiles, you can eliminate the problem of water leakage due to improper tile installation and grouting in bathroom wet areas.
4. MULTIPLE STYLE OPTIONS Don’t be mistaken in thinking that the look you can achieve with bathroom wall panels is limited. panels have come a long, long way, and as the market leader, Multipanel leads the charge in offering homeowners an array of design options to suit all homes.
Bathroom panels from Multipanel’s Neutral, Tile, Linda Barker, and Classic Collections are both beautiful and versatile, and are suited to almost any interior – from the largest bathroom to the smallest cloakroom. Great for a quick refresh or a complete bathroom revamp.
5. EASY MAINTENANCE As well as being easy to install, bathroom panels are easy for homeowners to maintain. There is no need for harsh bleach or chemicals when it comes to cleaning panels—all you need is warm water, normal soap and a soft sponge.
6. LONG LIFESPAN Bathrooms with tiled walls should be re-sealed every year, and grouting loses its colour after a few years. The grouting used for tiles also needs to be replaced every 8-15 years. Wall panels have the advantage of lasting much longer— our Multipanel bathroom panels come with a 30-year warranty. Using bathroom panels gives your bathroom more life, so you can be sure that the performance of the walls will perform well as long as you need them to.
7. UPSKILL EASILY If bathroom panels are an as-yet unfamiliar part of your trade, you need not worry. Bathroom panels are designed to be easy to install. At Multipanel, we have created Multipanel-U, a learning portal for homebuilders, architects and specifiers to learn how to install our panels professionally. Opting for bathroom panels for your next project means you can add to your skillset, helping you increase your offering. 9. COVER OVER EXISTING TILES Another great benefit of wall panels is that you don’t need to spend time and resources on preparing the wall surface. Panels can be installed directly over old tiles, adding to the list of reasons why panels are easy to install.
10. WATERPROOF
8. SUSTAINABILITY Making sustainable choices when it comes to your bathroom design/ project doesn’t have to be a challenge when you opt for bathroom panels. For instance, Multipanel’s bathroom panels use sustainable timber, and are both Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC®) and Made in Britain certified.
The long lifespan of panels means that you are creating less waste, and additionally, our bathroom panels are recyclable, giving them a new lease of life when they are replaced.
Using panels for your next bathroom project not only means that you can avoid the hassle of grout, it also means you can avoid the worry of water leakage. Joining shower panels has now never been easier or more aesthetically pleasing – particularly with Multipanel. Our unique virtually seamless Hydrolock tongue and groove joint provides a watertight installation without the need for additional profiles so that there’s nothing to interrupt the flow of your beautiful wall of shower panel.
Multipanel is the UK’s leading manufacturer of bathroom wall panels, offering a sustainable and modern alternative to traditional bathroom tiling. Multipanel believes that sustainability should complement performance, in turn creating an easy-to-install, high quality, grout-free product that lasts for years.
Multipanel bathroom wall panels are available in a range of surface designs, including marble, granite, wood and tile effect.
