KITCHEN DESIGN Basic Terms To clarify the

By admin on November 12th, 2007

KITCHEN DESIGN Basic Terms

To clarify the terms which are used in this quick reference, please refer to the following definitions:
This is the main body of a kitchen cabinet.
CASE - This is a decorative frame at the front of a kitchen cabinet and is typical for North America.
Variations by manufacturer in kitchen design construction may purposely have a clearly

FACE FRAME - visible face frame that is a part of the kitchen aesthetics. European design and styling of
cabinets (frameless cabinetry) typically do not have a frame.
The kitchen cabinetry door panel is the element of kitchen furniture largely defining the
aesthetic design of a kitchen. It can have any conceivable look from modern to traditional.

DOOR - In this quick reference a (19mm) thick door panel is presumed.
The FREEDOM COLLECTION refrigerators are intentionally designed to be equipped and
APPLIANCE DOOR delivered with custom made appliance door panels that perfectly match the end-user s
installed kitchen cabinetry. Typically the normal appliance door panel thickness is expected

PANEL- to be (19mm). However, a thicker appliance door panel can be accommodated if such
door panels are used on the end-user s kitchen cabinetry or in order to emulate the look of
the visible face frame (addition to the door) on the refrigerator as well.

NICHE - The niche is the cavity where a FREEDOM COLLECTION refrigerator is installed. The width
of the niche (18 ,24 ,30 ,….) is dependent on the appliance. The niche depth is equal to
(Installation Cavity)
the depth of the kitchen cabinet (case+face frame). It does NOT include the thickness of
the cabinetry door panel. For proper planning of the niche depth, please refer to the
respective chapter on page 9 in this quick reference.
The main idea of the FREEDOM COLLECTION is, that you can simply replace any standard
size kitchen cabinet with a refrigerator column. You can create a suitable niche by leaving a
respective gap between two tall cabinets. Alternatively you may create an enclosure, that
the appliance will fit into. However this is not the original design intent (basic idea).
When planning the installation niche, it is important that the side walls are completely flush!
Please make sure that there is not any kind of face frame at the front of the niche. If, for
some reason this is not the situation, please make sure that the depth of this face frame
(furniture return) is more than 4 (100mm) so that the appliances can be properly secured.

Gather Ethnographic Research The first phase of this

By admin on November 11th, 2007

Gather Ethnographic Research

The first phase of this project consisted of gathering ethnographic research from 3 families
in the greater Chicago area. The families were middle and upper-middle class with 3 or more
members in their family. Each family were in different phases in the kitchen redesign from
planning, executing, finishing, to finished. Each family was given 3 disposable cameras to
take at home and outside whenever they were making a kitchen redesign decision. They were
also given instruction sheets to help guide them in their picture taking. (See Appendix Fig. 1)
After they had finished taking the pictures, a team was sent to the family s home to interview
them using the photographs as prompts. Three experts, an architect, a designer, and new
construction manager were also interviewed to gather an expert perspective. All data was
entered into the field books. (See Appendix Fig. 3) All interviews were also videotaped for
later perusal.
Analyze Through User Insights Tool
After careful gathering of the data from the interviews and video tapes, the data was entered
into the User Insight Tool (UITool). (See Appendix Fig. 2) The UITool was structured in excel
around frameworks that corresponded to the field books. Using the UITool each entry in
the field book has a comprehensive set of data. This is useful when later looking at the tool at
different levels of granularity. Patterns unnoticeable at an entry level are seen when looking at
several entries together.
Synthesize Through Insight Matrix
Several passes through the UITool output a comprehensive list of insights for a total of 68
user insights and 87 expert insights which were scored separately. A range of 0-2 was used to
score the data in the insight matrix. Several clusters were found for both groups which led to
design criteria and framing solutions.

Family Selection Requirements
A rich set of data was gathered from the three families since they were all in different phases
of their kitchen redesign process. After recruiting and selecting the families on this criteria,
we found one family in the pre-redesign process. Another family had already done one
redesign on a previous home and was in the middle of a second redesign. The last family was
almost complete with their redesign.

Research Study A small sampling of middle and

By admin on November 11th, 2007

Research Study

A small sampling of middle and upper-middle class American kitchens
was observed and analyzed using the same methods as was used in this study. The purpose
was to inform design decisions for kitchens. Previous studies the Fall 2005 study was based
on were the Design Continuum research conducted in early 2005 on specific kitchen patterns
of use, the video ethnography conducted in the summer of 2005 to better understand the
natural habits of families in the kitchen, and the secondary research conducted in 2004 and
2005 deriving cooking trends.
Major patterns gleaned from the 98 insights are the following:
Organization in the Kitchen
Information exchange and management and space usage
Kitchen space supports family & social life
Dissatisfiers caused by kitchen not supporting varying users
Traditional uses of kitchen: cooking & cleaning
Design criteria were then developed from the above patterns.
Innovations in the kitchen should support family and social life.
Innovations in the kitchen should support non-food activities and multiple uses.
Innovations in the kitchen should support media and information management.
Innovations in the kitchen should support storage and activity space.
Innovations in the kitchen should support multiple users including children.
Innovations in the kitchen should support convenient cleaning and food management.
At the conclusion of this study, it was suggested to focus on users who pursue extreme
activities in the kitchen such as entertaining multiple times a week, cooks with professional
cooking skills, users with large families, etc. A new direction also suggested was to pursue
users who are undergoing or had undergone the kitchen redesign process. The latter
direction is the focus of this study with an additional focus on new construction for large
complexes.

The kitchen design process is a complicated one

By admin on November 10th, 2007

The kitchen design process is a complicated one with many different aspects to consider. The
primary objective of this research project is to find out what the aesthetic considerations are
for kitchen users before and during design process. A secondary objective developed further
into the project is to delve into and classify the considerations of new construction to the
kitchen design process.
Various considerations that fall into the scope of this research are the following:
Functional considerations
Information Sources
Key decision-makers
Retail sources
Expert/professional involvement

The most exciting kitchens are a dynamic blend

By admin on November 10th, 2007

The most exciting kitchens are a
dynamic blend of classic and per-
sonal styles. A practical and
straightforward design will have
more longevity. This approach nei-
ther eliminates function nor gen-
uine beauty.
Meeting your needs and budget
Whatever your budget, the ultimate
goal is to have a kitchen that is prac-
tical and functional as well as attrac-
tive. High-end budgets may include
every storage option possible, gran-
ite or solid-surface counters and
back-splashes, solid wood cabi-
netry, state-of-the-art appliances,
sinks and faucets. If your budget is
limited, anticipate your needs at the plan-
ning stage and choose only the finishes
that are most practical for your use and
which express your personal style.
Tackle counters and cabinets first.
Wood or laminate are the two basic cabi-
net choices. Define your need for details,
such as door style, finish or colour, trim
and storage components. Select only stor-
age spaces that are absolute musts for
your needs.
Instead of granite or a solid surface
material for the entire counter area, limit it
to the island or back-splash only and use
ceramic tile and Arborite on the remaining
areas. Instead of hardwood floors, select
ceramic to cover the kitchen floor area.
There are many products available that
imitate the look of real granite or marble.

The first thing to do is plan the

By admin on November 9th, 2007

The first thing to do is plan the basic
layout for the space. Different plan lay-
outs, from the simplest to the most elabo-
rate, will feature three primary work cen-
tres, each related to one of the basic pieces
of kitchen equipment: receiving and stor-
age, food preparation, and cooking.
Ideally, kitchen planning places the
three centres in sequence, starting with
receiving and storage, proceeding to
preparation and ending with cooking and
serving. This leads to a typical layout with
refrigerator, sink, and range in that order,
spaced out with work counters and stor-
age between the major appliances.
The most favoured arrangements are:

Straight Line the three centres lined
up in order.

L-Shape the centres are in order but
are bent around a corner to fit the space
available in the kitchen and to reduce
paths of work movement.

U-Plan one centre is on each of the
three sides of the layout. This is the most
popular layout.

An island in an L-shaped or U-shaped
plan makes either the range or the sink
accessible from several directions.
After selecting the basic layout that suits
your needs, it is time to move on to the
detailed planning of work surfaces, storage,
and equipment selection and placement.
This is the stage where your budget is the
key factor in determining your selec-
tions.

Successful kitchen design plans begin with a careful

By admin on November 9th, 2007

Successful kitchen design plans
begin with a careful review of the real
needs and desires of the homeowners. It s
wise to begin the design process by first
determining how you plan to use the space.
Consider the type of meal preparation
you usually do, the number of people
helping in the kitchen, whether meals will
be eaten in the space and whether or not
the kitchen is going to be open and acces-
sible to other areas of the home. You may
want to incorporate a new function into
the kitchen by adding an informal eating
area or office-like work space. It is also
important to give thought to the type of
appliances you want in your kitchen.
It is most important to set a realistic
budget. I strongly recommend hiring pro-
fessionals to assist you with your renovation
project, whatever your budget. This is
definitely not an area to skimp on and you
want to avoid costly errors, so it is a good
idea to let a professional take all measure-
ments and do the installation. Regardless
of all the practical reasons to renovate this
space, when it is all finished what you
want is a kitchen that is visually attractive,
well lighted, and has inviting personal
touches.

Sinks The sink and an adjacent work surface

By admin on November 8th, 2007

Sinks
The sink and an adjacent work surface shall be a minimum of 820mm in length, with
under bench clear space as above.
The main sink bowl shall be 150mm maximum depth.
Taps or operating handles to be within 300mm from the front of the sink.

Storage
Shelves 800mm above the floor, should not exceed 600mm depth.
Shelves 800mm to 1500mm above the floor, should not exceed 450mm depth.
Shelves above 1500mm from the floor should not exceed 300mm depth.
For cupboards 800mm and above, the handles should be installed within 150mm of
the bottom edge.
For cupboards below 800mm, the handles should be installed within 150mm of the
top edge.
D handles are preferred.

Power Outlets
To be located with a horizontal accessible reach over a work surface at a maximum of
300mm from front of work surface.
At a height of 600 to 1000mm above the floor.

Lighting
For general kitchen tasks 160 Lux, or 300 Lux for people with vision impairment
For task lighting, 240 lux, or 550 600 lux for people with vision impairment

Circulation
Clear floor space of 1500mm x 820mm minimum in front of work surfaces.
The space required for a wheelchair to make a 360 degree turn, is 2250mm by
2250mm.

Floor Surfaces
Flooring should be slip resistant.

Windows
To have a sill height of 950mm 1000mm.

Major Appliances
When selecting the appliances to install in the kitchen, consider:
Height ensure shelves, handles and controls can be reached
Door Opening check that the door of the refrigerator, oven or microwave opens to
the side, does not block access and there is clear bench space adjacent.
Ease of Cleaning try to select simple profiles with smooth, unbroken surfaces.

Cook tops
Should have controls positioned at the front or side to avoid reaching over hotplates to
adjust them.
Should be flush with adjacent work surfaces to permit sliding of pots.
If a knee space is left underneath then the underside of the cook top should be
insulated. See Work Surfaces for dimensions.

Ovens
To be located adjacent to a work surface of 820mm minimum length, with knee space
underneath.
Side opening or drop-down slide-under doors allow closer access.

Microwave Ovens
Located between 750 1200mm above the floor.
Ensure adjacent bench space or pull out shelf for lifting hot and heavy items onto.

Kitchen Shape
An L-shaped or U-shaped layout is generally preferred, however a corridor
arrangement may be suitable for an ambulant person who can use the benches on
either side for support.
Some ambulant people with disabilities prefer to work while seated on a stool,
consideration should be given to this when determining layout and bench height.
To move towards making a kitchen accessible when building a new home, in the early
stages, is to make a property more marketable when selling or prevent costly
alterations at a later stage

Principles for good kitchen design & work simplification

By admin on November 8th, 2007

Principles for good kitchen design & work simplification

Keep items within the users reach.
Store frequently used items between knee and shoulder level.
Avoid over stretching, bending or reaching.
Install user friendly cabinets, such as pullout pantry, walk-in or wheel-in pantry, lazy
susan corner cupboards, pull down cupboards, pull out baskets, pot drawers.
Reduce the distance to travel or move items, or have sufficient space to slide items.
Provide benches suitable for sliding, kitchen trolleys to move items.
Minimise fatigue
Have seating available to enable sitting whilst undertaking meal preparation.
Allow sufficient turning or circulation space.
The Australian Standards
Adaptable Housing AS 4299 1995 and Design for Access and Mobility: AS 1428.2
- 1992 recommend the following with regard to kitchen design. However different
users abilities need to be considered specifically. A kitchen designed for a wheelchair
user can be more easily modified for an ambulant person than the other way around.
Work Surfaces
Bench height between 750mm to 850mm for a wheelchair user.
Under bench clear space for wheelchair access of 820mm minimum length, and
between 500mm to 600mm depth.

So where to start Consider Who are the

By admin on November 7th, 2007

So where to start

Consider
Who are the current or future users of the kitchen?
What are their physical requirements?
Are they Wheelchair users, walking frame users, tall or short?
Is the person restricted in Upper Limb movement?
Do they have difficulty with bending or over reaching?
What is the persons vision, hearing, co-ordination, strength, hand function?

Activity
Then begin with thinking of the pathway the user would have to take around the
kitchen to make a cup of tea.
Where is the electric jug?
How far does it have to be moved to fill with water?
Where is it plugged in?
Where is and how far to the tea, sugar, cups and saucers, teaspoons?
How far to the fridge and what way does the door open?
Where will the cup of tea be made?
How far does the cup of tea need to be moved to sit and drink it.
This task can give you an idea of the flow in a kitchen. How many journeys must you
take to complete the activity? Are the readily used items the most accessible? Are the
benches at the right height? Are the cupboards easy to access? Where are the power
points?