Flexible furniture: help for handicapped

摘要

Preparing food in a Fleksibo kitchen, or washing up in front of a Fleksibo bathroom console, is a godsend for anyone who uses a wheelchair. This common household equipment looks ordinary, but it isn't. Fleksibo, a small family-owned business in Balestrand, Norway, has been manufacturing kitchens - cupboards, sinks, drawers and bathroom consoles - since 1972, exclusively for the Norwegian market. Its products for the handicapped are ingeniously and ergonomically constructed, based on actuators instead of hydraulics, but they have yet to make a splash on the world market. The need is there, and the company is trying. Fleksibo's Bergen showroom is full of enticing models, such as the Providence line - a modern, light ash-panelled corner-fitting kitchen with stainless steel grips, lots of bevelled glass in the cupboards, and a centrepiece stove set. Then there is the pine-and-tile Warwick model that has the homey feel of a farmhouse kitchen.