Looking for fixtures for the bath or kitchen – something one-of-a-kind, something no one has ever seen before? Whether it’s a faucet, shower system, or an accessory, you can source that product with the highest quality materials from the inside out and backed by a customer-first culture.
This is where Symmons® Design Studio™ can offer custom solutions. For the past 15 years, Symmons design professionals have designed custom fixtures for the biggest names in the hospitality industry, from Waldorf Astoria to MGM Grand properties. For the Waldorf Astoria in Beverly Hills, the studio created entirely custom faucets, shower trim, accessories and even Roman tubs no other vendors could create. Neil Sullivan, Director of Design Studio™, commented, “A Roman tub is being made in the model shop now, with two 17-inch tub spouts that weigh 30 pounds each. When you pick one up, you know it.” He adds, “For Disney, we’ve been putting the Mickey Mouse insignia into fixtures for years — on the faucet handles in brass and bronze.”
The Design Studio™ concept goes from “ideation-to-creation.” Every year, Symmons creates 30 to 40 new products for more than 350 successful projects to date.Because every project entails different specifications, Symmons Design Consultants guide customers through a curated process to a solution that works perfectly for them—no matter what the timetable or budget constraints are. Design Consultants collaborate with customers to create custom solutions using the following four-step process:
Step One: Ideation
The process starts with an idea and a meeting with the Design Consultants. They listen to the customer, capture their thoughts, and then do a rough sketch. “They’ll draw up what the customer wants,” Sullivan says. “We have talented industrial designers in the studio who know exactly what clients are looking for.”
Step Two: Vision
The designers provide customers with realistic digital renderings, A&D specifications, and three-dimensional plastic prototypes to help the customer visualize—and touch—their custom design. These prototypes are delivered to you at no cost.
Step Three: Definition
Symmons engineers take the rendering and create a prototype that ensures that the product can be manufactured cost-effectively without sacrificing quality. Metal mock-up samples are delivered to you, again at no additional cost.
Step Four: Creation
With a final design commitment, the operations team produces the customer’s equity-building, one-of-a-kind products on time and on budget. “Once they get the okay and fully engineer it, they liaise with quality vendors or make it in-house — and it comes to life fully,” Sullivan explains. “The whole process from ideation to creation (shipment) takes approximately 20 weeks from the time we get a purchase order.”
The studio is no stranger to innovative, cutting-edge solutions. For an Autograph Collection J.W. Marriott in Chicago last summer, the client requested two custom finishes of matte black and polished copper for the faucets and shower systems of 200 rooms. “It was the first-ever [order] we shipped with matte black,” Sullivan shares. The client was more than pleased with the outcome.
The studio’s overarching goal is for the entire process to go as smoothly as possible for every client. Sullivan expands on this: “We’re trying to achieve a unique customer experience. We’re not talking standard plumbing fixtures. We want them to be exceedingly happy with the product and with Symmons.”
Since 1939, Symmons Industries has been a premier manufacturer of commercial and residential plumbing products, producing a variety of durable, reliable and beautifully designed products for everything from private homes to five-star hotels. Built on a 75-plus-year foundation of quality craftsmanship, Symmons places a premium on exceptional service. Beginning with the Temptrol® pressure-balancing, anti-scald shower valve, Symmons has always known that what is inside matters most. Today, the brand innovates with the Symmons Design Studio, which creates distinctive custom design solutions for commercial projects. Inner strength and outward focus makes Symmons the smart choice.
