Swiss mass system
The Swiss Mass System (SMS) , SINK standard until 1996 , is a manufacturer-neutral Swiss standard for fitted kitchens . In contrast to the more recent European standard EN 1116, the measurement system regulates all installation dimensions for fitted kitchens and enables cross-manufacturer device replacement. The basic dimension is 55-60-90: 55 cm element width (compared to 60 cm for the Euronorm), 60 cm working depth and 90 cm working height. The height division is based on a grid of «sixths» (1/6 127 mm ≙ 5 inches).
The origins of the system can no longer be reconstructed today. The Frankfurt kitchen was groundbreaking for the development . Three driving forces can be identified: the electrical appliance manufacturer Therma AG , its technical director and chief designer from 1958 to 1968, Hans Hilfiker , and the metal goods factory Franke . These pioneers were joined by other interested groups in the Swiss Industry Commission for the standardization of the SINK kitchen .
Since the beginning of his work at Therma, Hilfiker has devoted himself to rationalization. He recognized the importance of dimensional accuracy for the fitted kitchen and played a leading role in the development of the system. From the time he joined Therma, all new developments were based on this basic measure. In conjunction with a corresponding design, he succeeded in creating " an exemplary formal unity of product design, construction, function and advertising graphic appearance ".
A prototype according to this standard was shown at the EXPO 1964 in Lausanne. The norm never changed.
With the enforced adoption of the European standard in 1995, the measurement system lost the status of a standard and was downgraded to an industry standard. Generally still referred to as the “Swiss standard” (CH standard), it remained dominant on the Swiss market and devices based on this standard still had two thirds of the market share in 2005.
Derivation
The work to be done in the kitchen and the statistically determined anthropometric measurements formed the basis for the measurement convention.
90, the working height
The mean working height for cooking was found to be 85 cm. For the sink, the basin depth was 16 cm and the mean height was 92 cm (handle axis pointing downwards). Since a stove can easily be placed a little higher, but a deeper sink requires a very uncomfortable stooped posture, the compromise of 90 cm was made in favor of a standard height. Since the base height can be freely selected, individual working heights can also be achieved.
60, the working depth
The working depth of 60 cm is derived from the average arm length (handle axis to the front). Push elements are also 30 cm.
55, the element size
The element size is a purely rationally mathematically derived quantity. The most economical footprint of a device is the square. So it was a matter of calculating down from the worktop depth. At the front it was initially 2 cm overhang for the drip edge, at the side and back 2 cm each for the furniture wall thickness. In order to ensure a hygienic connection to the wall and to be able to compensate for structural tolerances, Hilfiker calculated an additional 1 cm. The side length was thus determined to be 55 cm.
As a result, this dimension should give rise to most discussions, as it deviates from the general 10 cm construction grid. The fact that this measure was not derived directly from a body measure offered a welcome starting point for criticism. But if you compare it with the Gastronorm (530x325) launched a little later and the tray sizes based on it ( VESKA : 530x375 or EN: 530x370), there is no need for a larger width. Interestingly enough , Interlübke came independently of this - albeit much later - by deriving from the shoulder width (bideltoid) also an inner dimension of 55 cm.
Sixth (n / 6)
The sixth is the unit in which the height of kitchen furniture and appliances is measured. With the height grid in sixths (n / 6) all clear dimensions of the niche are determined. This height division is unique in the field of kitchen standards and enables simple, manufacturer-independent replacement of devices even after decades - a weighty reason why this measurement system has held up so well compared to others.
Since it was customary in Switzerland at the time to place the kitchen combination on a brick base of 10.5 cm (base plate of 10 cm plus 5 mm joint) and the worktop made of chrome steel was 3 cm thick, 76.5 cm remained for the device height left, which it was necessary to divide sensibly. The division into six equal parts seemed to Hans Hilfiker to be the most advantageous. Rounded off to the full millimeter, this resulted in a height of 12.7 cm. He justified the remaining 3 mm rounding difference with dimensional tolerances. But they are also necessary for the ventilation of the built-in devices and allow the built-in elements to be pushed in easily.
The space between the lower and upper cabinets (6/6 each) is also measured in sixths (4/6) so that the horizontal division extends over the entire kitchen and also includes the tall cabinets (16/6).
aesthetics
With the front division into three differently sized zones for built-in cookers, Hilfiker visualized the height division and thus set a creative accent.
“With this, Hilfiker implied that we were no longer dealing with a single object made from one piece, but with a modular object that consisted of individual, exchangeable elements and was part of a larger whole. The formal characteristics of the cooker were thus an expression of a creative approach that no longer focused on the individual item, but on the interaction of individual parts in an overall complex. "
The ratio of the working height to the element width is a good approximation of the golden ratio .
Standards dispute
As early as the 1950s - earlier than in other European countries - it was customary in Switzerland to equip apartments with ready-to-use kitchens following the philosophy of the Frankfurt kitchen . Until the 1960s, in the rest of Europe, built-in was understood to mean that devices can be placed under a continuous worktop. This ability to be built under was achieved by means of a removable device cover. The devices were usually checked along with a change of residence. As with the Swedish kitchen , other devices were simply turned on from the side. When in 1967 the SINK presented its standard to the German kitchen association AMK and recommended it to be adopted, there was a huge difference in the view of what a fitted kitchen actually is. The German manufacturers preferred the planning module 6M (60 cm). When the first DIN 68901 “Kitchen equipment - coordination dimensions for kitchen furniture and kitchen appliances” came into force in 1973, the dispute over the correct width arose.
The main point of criticism was and is the niche width of 55 cm, which does not correspond to the usual building module (10 cm). But one was also bothered by the preference for products made in Switzerland. The disputes culminated in the eighties with the split of the former kitchen association and the involvement of the cartel commission. In 1983 the Association for the Promotion of Modern Kitchen VFMK split off from the Association of Swiss Manufacturers of Fitted Kitchens VSFE, which had emerged from SINK in the mid-1970s. He clearly distanced himself from the Swiss norm and maintained contact with kitchen and appliance importers, with whose support he kept the discussion about norms and antitrust violations going. The other side vehemently fought against this “international inadequacy”.
The Cartel Commission decided in 1989 that the SINK standard put foreign manufacturers at a disadvantage, but found this justified because the SINK standard was manufacturer-independent, which cannot be said of the DIN standard. Because the Swiss standard is older than all other standards, one cannot speak of an intentional disadvantage. The commission relied on European harmonization, which Switzerland would have to adapt to.
With EN 1116, a European standard for kitchen furniture and appliances appeared for the first time in 1995. It is based on the DIN standard 68901. The SINK standard was not taken into account. Bound by international treaties, the Swiss Association for Standardization was obliged to adopt them as well. That is why there have been two “official” measurement systems on the Swiss market since 1996, the Swiss measurement system (formerly the SINK standard) as the industry standard and the SN EN 1116 as the Swiss standard.
In 2000, the two associations reunited to form what is now the Swiss Kitchen Association . The attitude towards standards is pragmatic and the choice is left to the customer. In Switzerland, with a very high proportion of rented apartments compared to other European countries, these are primarily institutional investors (pension funds) with a large number of old apartments in which the Swiss mass system guarantees inexpensive equipment replacement.
comparison
The main structural difference between SMS and EN 1116 is that in the Swiss system the device is inserted between flanking walls, while the European standard requires it to be installed in a housing based on the manufacturer's specifications. The spatial definition of the Swiss norm defines the niche. The front surface of EU devices (substructure model with worktop or adjusting device) corresponds to a DIN A1 sheet. The axial definition of the European standard only defines a vertical grid to which both furniture and equipment manufacturers are obliged. This results in a conflict of objectives, because a 60 cm wide device (e.g. dishwasher) cannot be built into furniture that is just as wide. A distinction must therefore be made between substructure models and real built-in devices. The width of the installation niche for European devices is approximately 56 cm and is not defined in detail. The effective difference is very small at around 1 cm. Devices that are on the market in both standards differ only in the front of the device, with the same interior. In this comparison, necessary edge distances that are necessary for operation are not taken into account. In the European system, an additional 5 cm is added on both sides in order to be in the decimeter grid again. With SMS this is only 0–2.5 cm per side. The Swiss measurement system thus enables better use of space.
Both systems are based in the masses on the average height of women. A working height of 86 cm, as stipulated by DIN, is only ideal for cooking. The latest edition of the European standard provides for a working height of 91 cm in addition to the original working height (high-space devices).
Devices with identical dimensions are not guaranteed even from the same manufacturer. The effort to fit into the furniture is usually charged additionally.
market
The EU norm and the Swiss standard compete with each other on the Swiss market. Sufficient devices are available in both measurement systems at comparable prices. For a long time, European manufacturers consistently only offered EU devices. They now also offer products based on the Swiss system of measurements.
See also
- Rack unit and partition unit for electronic devices
literature
- Christina Sonderegger: Between progress and idle: the standardized kitchen - Notes on the development of the Swiss kitchen standard in The Kitchen, Living World - Use - Perspectives , Edition Wohnen 1, Birkhäuser Verlag, Basel 2006, ISBN 3-7643-7280-X .
- Swiss industrial commission for the standardization of kitchens, SINK: Swiss kitchens - kitchens with a system: SINK Swiss made-to-measure system for kitchen furniture and built-in appliances , VSFE 1985.
- Educational network of Swiss carpenters: Specialist drawing kitchen pdf
Individual evidence
- ↑ Christina Sonderegger: Between progress and idling , page 99.
- ^ Claude Lichtenstein in: Architects Lexicon of Switzerland 19./20. Century , p. 268.
- ^ A b Christian Huggenberg: Weisswaren: Eigenart begins in the kitchen , Handelszeitung May 23, 2005.
- ↑ HW Jürgens: current survey of anthropometric measurements to update DIN 33 402 - Part 2 research report 1023 from the series of publications by the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. 2004 pdf .
- ↑ Interlübke: Series S07.
- ↑ Christina Sonderegger: Between progress and idling , page 104.
- ↑ Federal Council: Answer to question 3 regarding refrigerators and kitchen furniture (PDF; 12 kB).
- ↑ Gernot Schönfeldinger, Helga Schimmer: Planning & furnishing kitchens . Association for Consumer Information (2011) 3rd edition ISBN 978-3-9901300-4-9 , p. 72.
- ↑ « Above all, the height grid has enormous advantages and allows repairs and replacements of furniture fronts even after many years. The decision to join SMS with the Siemens brand was made due to the high level of acceptance of Siemens built-in appliances among kitchen retailers and end consumers. » Siemens brochure 2007 pdf ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .
- ↑ Miele presents new dishwasher in Swiss standard. Press releases. Miele, 2014, accessed on March 14, 2017 : "With the introduction of appliances in the Swiss standard ... [Miele] once again proves the high relevance of the Swiss market ..."
