Kitchens and bathrooms remain the focus of consumer attention. Taps are used widely there to put a personal stamp on the room.  

 

The kitchen of the future

 

Imagine being able to ring your fridge when you are in the supermarket and are suddenly unsure about how much milk you have left. Or if a voice could give you a current weather forecast when you get up. Or if your dishwasher selected the dose of detergent itself according to how dirty the plates were. This may sound like pure science fiction, but according to the US industrial giant General Electrics we may not have to wait too many years for such scenarios. In 20-30 years, an intelligent fridge will be a natural part of the kitchen and it will be quite normal to ring your fridge instead of your partner to find out what to buy on the way home from work. According to General Electrics the kitchen of the future will also be very green. All drinking water will be purified using ultraviolet light and no chemicals at all and the residual water from food preparation will automatically be channelled to other areas of use in the home and garden so that no precious drops are wasted.

 

Visible water saving

 

Enthusiastic runners constantly try to reduce their time. Doing a little better each time, or at least doing the same time, is a sport in itself. The same philosophy is behind a digital display that records water consumption when you take a bath, wash your hands or brush your teeth. The designer hopes that revealing your current water consumption will make people a little greener. Unfortunately, the design concept is still on the drawing board but a digital display that is integrated in a mixer tap or shower head is sure to be put into production before long. 

 

Innovation in small bathrooms

 

What do you do in a small bathroom when you need space for both a shower and storage? Furniture design students from TEKO have developed proposals for a number of exciting solutions that are currently only theoretical but that producers should perhaps consider developing. An adjustable basin that can be raised to become a shower was just one of the exciting ideas proposed. Another flexible design idea is drawers that are attached to tubes and can be raised or lowered according to requirements, space and mood.