Kitchens are becoming leaner and greener. High-performance, lightweight construction, like that used to build race cars and maxi yachts, might form your next kitchen cabinets. Any new appliances will put current energy ratings to shame. And the materials used to make all things within that kitchen will be considerably downsized.
The toned silhouette of the modern kitchen is evident in hi-tech aluminium alloys, tempered glass, carbon fibre and stain-proof stainless steel, the likes of which Italian kitchen designer and manufacturer Valcucine recently showed at its new Hong Kong showroom.
It's a far cry from 1980, when the brand was established, and kitchens 'were stiffly designed with no creativity and were predominated by old-school materials like lacquered boards, plastic, wood or stainless steel', says Roy Leung, from Mooi Living, Valcucine's distributor in the city.
The new materials allow a diversity of design possibilities with superior functions, he says.
These advances also enable designers to conceive simpler yet stylish designs with more luxury features. Carbon fibre, for example, is used extensively in ultra-modern formula racing cars and Valcucine incorporates it into kitchen cabinet design.
It's not alone. US tapware company Kohler has incorporated carbon fibre into its innovative, functional new sink tap, the Karbon. Designing a pull-down tap with a spray head that can point exactly where it's needed, leaving the user's hands free, is a tall order, but this new technology makes it possible.