When it’s time for a new kitchen, financial pressures mean it is always tempting to find an inexpensive option and choose that one. However, a cheap kitchen usually increases the financial pressure. Not only will it deliver less value (in rental income or revenue-generating catering), but it will also deteriorate faster, require more repairs, and need replacing sooner.

The financially-savvy option is to invest in the kitchen that meets your specific needs, so that your community group gets long-term savings and more frequent and higher value external bookings.

What kitchen materials should you invest in?

There is a happy medium between a cheap, flimsy, domestic style kitchen that doesn’t stand up to heavy use, and an unfriendly and excessively expensive commercial style fully stainless-steel kitchen, such as you would find in a restaurant.

The choice (and combination) of materials should be based on the use and purposes of your kitchen and the character that you want the space to have.

For the most durable kitchen, we recommend a Zintec polyester powder-coated mild steel carcass with a stainless-steel worktop. Those options give you wipe-clean hygiene by design, and eliminate typical areas of wear like sealant, and vinyl wrapped doors.

You can also choose from a range of 18 colours, which allow you to make the kitchen a vibrant space that reflects the character of your community.

You might instead choose a wooden kitchen carcass, but make sure to take care in your choice of assembly system. When building with wood, many kitchen designers rely on screws for join connections, such as in normal domestic kitchens. That creates natural weak spots, and in kitchens with heavy use, those areas face more stress than they are designed to endure.

That’s why our wooden Titan carcass (Woodplan) uses a tongue and groove system that interlocks along its whole length. It vastly outperforms traditional assembly systems in heavy-use environments, with Gold Level H certification from the Furniture Industry Research Association (FIRA).

How kitchen design maximises your investment

While you can choose your design yourself and buy a ‘flat-pack’ style kitchen to build, that process misses a crucial opportunity to maximise your kitchen’s potential. A design expert with years of experience can spot if there are smart ways to take better advantage of the space and achieve more with the kitchen footprint. Whether it’s layout, space efficiency, or choice of equipment, a designer can identify how to make a kitchen perform better and become easier or more pleasant to use, with budget in mind.

Steelplan’s designers are always happy to speak about your kitchen needs, and if you are close by, they can drop in to take a look at the kitchen and discuss your renovation. They can even design a 3D mock-up to let you see the proposed redesign in situ. All that is free and comes with no obligation. To find out more, contact our friendly team on 0208 254 0090 or send us an email at [email protected].