Today’s homeowners are increasingly embracing the sleek style of European design – with crisp lines and clean surfaces making a dramatic statement all their own. In the kitchen and bath, the demand for this look is especially prevalent with regard to cabinetry, which often anchors the entire room’s design.
“We’re beginning to see a trend away from face frame cabinets to frameless slab doors, which look amazing with contemporary materials in modern interiors,” says Jesse Collins, senior marketing specialist with REHAU’s furniture solutions division.
Recognizing this rising trend, REHAU has launched a new line of fully fabricated, custom cabinet doors for modern kitchens and baths. Seven collections encompass more than 50 finishes in high-gloss, polymer glass, matte and natural textured woodgrain materials, allowing designers to achieve the look of high-end lacquered, solid wood and back-painted glass cabinetry easily and more affordably with laminates.
“Our success with seamless REHAU LaserEdgeTM technology served as the foundation for expanding over the past few years into modern surfaces and now to custom cabinet door production, allowing us to offer a complete high-quality solution” Collins reports.
REHAU LaserEdge adhesive-free technology is a two-layer edgeband comprising a surface and a color-matched functional layer that welds to the carrier board. The resulting seam-free board offers increased aesthetic appeal with no joints to stain or discolor, as well as superior heat and moisture resistance compared to EVA glue.
The new custom cabinet door line is designed to give woodworking shops the ability to provide high-quality cabinets built from durable, easy-to-process surfaces without investment in machinery or inventory. All REHAU finished components are fabricated using adhesive-free REHAU LaserEdge.
FINISHING TOUCHES
The new custom cabinet line features slab-front doors in an expanding range of surfaces. Among the collections are: RAUVISIO crystalTM polymer back-painted glass, RAUVISIO brilliantTM mirror high gloss, RAUVISIO terraTM textured woodgrain and FENIX NTMTM nanotech matte surfaces.
The RAUVISIO crystalTM polymer back-painted glass surface collection provides a seamlessly glassy finish without the disadvantages of real glass. Available in eight colors in high-gloss or frosted matte, doors made with this acrylic glass surface are lightweight, scratch- and impact-resistant and can be cut and drilled during installation.
Unlike competitive surfaces that use a clear top layer, RAUVISIO brilliantTM mirror high gloss features a PMMA (acrylic) top layer that is co-extruded with a color-matched ABS base layer. This process enhances both the depth effect and the UV resistance of the laminate, which lasts for 20 plus years, notes the firm. Offered in 12 colors, doors made with RAUVISIO brilliant feature double-sided high-gloss with mirror-like reflective quality and matching mirror-gloss edgeband.
Newly introduced is the RAUVISIO terraTM textured woodgrain surface, a durable deep-embossed laminate made from HPL rather than melamine paper. Offered in five woodgrain prints with matching deep-textured REHAU LaserEdge, RAUVISIO terra surfaces are soft to the touch and moisture- and impact-resistant, creating durable modern cabinets inspired by reclaimed wood.
REHAU also produces custom doors using FENIX NTM nanotech matte material, produced by Italian-based Arpa Industriale. The technologically advanced surface material was developed by an international team of specialists using acrylic resins and electron beam technology to achieve a soft-to-the-touch, light-absorbing, “super-matte” texture.
FENIX NTM is characterized by its abrasion resistance and the ability to “heal” itself though thermal scratch regeneration. It is resistant to fingerprint marks, dry heat, mold, acid solvents and household reagents, and features anti-bacterial properties. Offered in 12 solid colors and prints, FENIX NTM can be used for both horizontal and vertical surfaces.
ORDERING MADE EASY
To streamline the ordering process for the new line, REHAU has launched the cabinet door order portal, in addition to a live chat option that instantly connects website visitors to a customer service representative. Ordering through the portal, cabinet makers can choose custom door sizes in a variety of modern finishes and receive instant pricing. Custom doors can be ordered online and are ready to ship in just seven days (in popular colors).
On the portal’s dashboard, users can also view outstanding invoices, see their account status, view open orders and see existing company contracts. The order portal is accessible at http://na.rehau.com/cabinetdoors
“As the modern trend picks up in North America, we want to make it easy for every cabinet maker to offer frameless cabinets that rival the best in European cabinetry. With seamless slab-front doors, online ordering, delivery in about a week and no MOQ’s, we’re removing all of the barriers to entry,” stresses Collins.