FSB has been a quality brand for door and window hardware for over 125 years. Its “handle culture” expertise recently led the eastern Westphalian company to develop a system of barrier-free bathroom and sanitary fittings that nestle snugly in the hand and whose suitability is by no means confined to nursing homes and hospitals.
Underpinning the ErgoSystem is a handle scheme in satin matt stainless steel comprising a diversity of variants and lengths for all conceivable areas of application. The principle informing it derives unequivocally from the ergonomics of grip. The diagonal alignment of its oval cross-section - a unique market design - affords the hand optimum gripping quality whilst reducing the force it exerts when taking hold of the hardware. The ErgoSystem becomes a truly universal asset when combined with items conducive to significantly greater comfort in bathrooms such as toilet-roll holders, push-button actuators, armrest pads or shower seats with rotating, height-adjustable seat sections in kind-to-the-skin PUR.
The ErgoSystem by FSB makes day-to-day life palpably easier. Handicapped and elderly persons appreciate the way it helps them to be self-sufficient. At the same time, this comprehensive range also includes products tailor-made for those who simply desire a bit more convenience, products which, once used, they will never wish to do without again.
The formal and functional qualities of the ErgoSystem are veritably superlative: Three of its products recently won the “red dot award: product design 2008” - one of the most prestigious international design prizes. The jury made its award for high design quality in respect of a showerhead bracket for single-handed operation, an ergonomic hanging shower seat and an understatedly designed tilting mirror.
FSB was similarly heartened by its winning the “architecture + health innovation prize” in 2008, the fourth occasion on which it has been awarded by the architecture periodicals AIT and XIA. Here, too, the jury enthused over the ergonomic showerhead bracket, a product that breathes the concept of universal design whereby “a thing is not good unless it is good for everyone”, as jury member Eckhard Feddersen put it. The usual screw mechanism, which is invariably scaled up or has been turned through its thread, is replaced here by a handle that makes adjusting the shower head far easier. Thus, an everyday problem is resolved straightforwardly and inconspicuously, practically and beautifully - and a sturdy means of support is provided to boot. “What more can one ask of universal design”, was the jury’s unanimous response. These most recent awards are in good company. Over the past few years, the ErgoSystem has already garnered an iF Award and the Design Prize of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has also been accorded the quality kitemarks of the German Society for Gerontological Technology and the Rhineland Technical Inspection Agency.
FSB feels strongly that “barrier freedom” should not entail compromises as regards visual properties: functionality, aesthetics and ergonomics add up to a compelling whole in the ErgoSystem. In bathrooms, for instance, it is helpfully at hand without having the aura of a clinic or of rehab equipment. With their timeless good looks, these are products that will suit any bathroom architecture perfectly, enhancing levels of comfort without looking out of place.
More information on FSB’s ErgoSystem can be found on the Internet at www.fsb.de/ergosystem.
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