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Kitchen accessibility solutions

AKW Launches Virtual Showroom to Support Accessible and Inclusive Specification.

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AKW has introduced a new virtual kitchen showroom designed to support architects, contractors and other specifiers working on accessible and inclusive residential projects.

Building on the success of its virtual bathroom platform, the new digital showroom provides a practical resource for reviewing accessible kitchen solutions in realistic settings. The online environment enables construction professionals to explore product functionality, finishes and layout options remotely – helping to streamline early-stage design decisions and reduce uncertainty during specification.

The virtual showroom features two fully realised accessible kitchen environments, demonstrating how key features can be integrated into everyday settings. Specifiers can explore practical solutions including rise-and-fall worktops, drop-down storage baskets, pull-out ironing boards and heat drawers – all designed to improve usability and independence within the home.

Integrated product display boards provide an overview of AKW’s wider kitchen offering, covering doors, worktops and handles. Direct access to brochures throughout the experience allows professionals to move quickly from concept review to detailed evaluation.

Finish coordination is also addressed within the platform. The second virtual kitchen space showcases 28 door colourways alongside four complementary worksurfaces, enabling specifiers to assess aesthetic combinations while maintaining compliance with accessible design principles. This is particularly relevant for projects where inclusive functionality must sit alongside contemporary interior design expectations.

The virtual kitchen showroom complements AKW’s physical showrooms in Droitwich Spa and Middlewich, offering flexible product selection options depending on project needs and location. Together, the digital and in-person environments provide practical support throughout the specification process.

Stuart Reynolds, UK Marketing & Product Management Director at AKW commented: “Our virtual bathroom showroom has been widely adopted by OTs, Installers and end users. Extending this experience to our accessible kitchen range ensures that specifiers can review products in a realistic setting from anywhere in the UK, helping to remove uncertainty and support confident specification”.

By combining functional insight, finish selection and direct access to technical documentation, AKW’s new virtual kitchen showroom offers a valuable resource for professionals delivering adaptable and accessible kitchen design.

AKW Helps Make Kitchens Safer Thanks to New Grab-a-Rail

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AKW, a leading provider of bathroom accessibility solutions, has begun production of Grab-a-RailTM, an easy and quick to install solution that will help to make kitchens safer to move around and more accessible. The strong counter-level grab rail, developed by Steve Michael, Director of Senior Homes Solutions, has been designed to give users increased independence and reduce their risk of falls when navigating the kitchen space. It will be available for purchase for use in AKW kitchens or for any other retrofit counter installations from the second half of 2023.

Grab-a-Rail is initially available in white from AKW and is available in 1000mm and 600mm lengths. It has eight fixing points, ensuring that when it is installed under the countertop it is strong enough to support up to 15.5 stone (100 kg) of downward pressure, as validated by University of Birmingham tests[i]. Designed to be installed on cupboard and drawer units, Grab-a-Rail can be retrofitted to most kitchen countertops, however tests with granite surfaces are still ongoing.

Steve Michael, Director of Senior Homes Solutions, says: “As a home adaptation specialist my aim is to promote safe day-to-day living. The Grab-a-Rail design idea came to me following a training course I was attending at a Parkinson’s centre. I realised the gap in provision for helping those with mobility, ageing and health issues, to navigate around their kitchens more safely. I then undertook months of product development and testing to create the Grab-a-Rail design. The end result is a safety rail that can be fitted within an hour and works in most kitchens.”

Stuart Reynolds, UK Marketing & Product Management Director at AKW, comments: “Our company strapline is ‘Life Made Better’, so when Steve approached us with his design and test results from the University of Birmingham, we were very interested. The kitchen is a notoriously difficult space to move around for those with mobility or visual impairments and this simple, easy to install solution will make life better for many. Its price point has also been set to ensure it is viable for those applying for local council small works assistance grants.”

To find out more download Grab-a-Rail information from https://www.akw-ltd.co.uk/grab-a-rail/

 

For more information contact AKW on 01905 823298, Email: sales@akw-ltd.co.uk or visit www.akw-ltd.co.uk

[i] The University of Birmingham carried out tests under its AMCASH (Advanced Materials Characterisation And Simulation Hub) project.