First day at Interzum and my feet hurt and my head is spinning! So much to see and some great ideas on display. First stop on Day 1 was the Blum stand where we met Australians Brett Ambrose, David Noakes and Ron Redman as well as Austrian Mathias Oelz who looks after the Australian market from Blum’s headquarters in Dornbirn.
Ron and Mathias took our group on a guided tour of the stand where we were able to experience the products first hand. This year’s theme is 1/3/4/infinity (it’s meant to be the infinity symbol but I can’t get it to display properly!).
1 stands for Handle-less furniture, a trend Blum sees as strong and ongoing.
3 stands for Applications – lift-up systems, hinges and pull outs.
4 stands for Motion Technologies – Blumotion, Tip-On, Servo-Drive, and Tip-On Blumotion.
Infinity stands for the infinite solutions possible when the above are combined.
The stand this year is an incredible design – it’s large, one of the largest at Interzum, with a gorgeous, curved fringe in white and orange tracing the infinity symbol in the air. Geometrically-shaped panels make up the walls, laid at angles to create the visual illusion of differing shades of the one colour.
The products are almost invisible, integrated into the stand walls so show how smooth and seamless a finish can be created. Yet, the simplest of touches reveals the magic behind. Some of the products we have seen at the show are prototypes and some are in production but we won’t see in Australia until late 2016 or early 2017 but it’s a great indication of how far the technology has progressed, and will continue to progress.
My pick? I just love the Servo-Drive Flex – a nifty little function that will automatically pull the fridge door closed if it’s left open a few centimetres. Having spent what feels like half my life closing the fridge door behind my lazy children, I think this one is a winner. This electric, motion support system can be used for fridges, freezers and dishwashers and also sports a feature that stops accidental opening if the unit is bumped.
For more information visit www.blum.com/au
