FURNITURE


A HEALING ENVIRONMENT A spokesman for Renray Healthcare told hdm: “We are seeing calls for a lot more vinyl wraps and wood-like materials that are hardwearing and robust, but that look more homely. They also need to be very easy to clean in order to meet infection control guidelines. “In addition, we are seeing a demand for more colour. Coloured drawers, for example, as it is recognised that colour can be healing.” With this trend in mind, Tough Furniture’s modular wardrobes can be specified with coloured cubes which fit into the shelves. Nigel Lester, business development manager, explains: “There is a big shift away from dark colours to lighter, wood-effect materials that promote a much-more-healing environment. Where darker colours are used, they are contrasted with light shades.”


It’s about finding that balance between having a domestic feel, but not compromising on the quality of the furniture


Wardrobe designers are also being driven by a move towards more open-style products. “We are seeing demand for doorless wardrobes, with less hanging and more shelf storage,” said Lester. “In fact, in some cases, specifiers do not want any hanging space at all.


“But, when designing these solutions, shelves need to be shallow in depth so that service users cannot hide things at the back, and wardrobes need to have sloping tops to stop people from climbing on them.” Workspace worked with one client to introduce secure storage within the wardrobe space, providing a section above the usable wardrobe space as a lockable, staff-only area. George Nutall, managing director of Poppi Contract Furniture, adds: “There’s a definite trend now in mental health units for open-fronted wardrobes in more-modern finishes. “Trusts are moving away from the more-common finishes like beeches and oaks and we are seeing ashes and greys and some brighter colours which are enabling people to personalise spaces.”


FUTURE DESIGN Baxter concludes: “In the future I expect that wardrobe designs will continue to evolve, led by evidence-based guidance. “However, it would be good to see more from the Department


of Health as, across its vast estate there must be recurring themes that can help to drive product development. “There will also be further developments in materials and more offsite manufacturing which, in turn, could lead to standardisation of products as far as this is possible. “In addition, integration of IT, Bluetooth and interactive screens has already begun and will no doubt continue to impact on future design.”


weareworkspace.com www.toughfurniture.com www.poppifurniture.co.uk


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mhdf magazine


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