Few manufacturers in the world can boast as long and influential a history as Villeroy & Boch’s. With origins that stretch back to 1748 as a small ceramic manufacturer in Lorraine, France, Villeroy & Boch has also developed a deep, guiding sense of tradition — a tradition of always staying on the cutting edge of technology, innovation, and design. It’s this drive that has made the 267-year-old brand synonymous with quality craftsmanship and beautiful European design for the bathroom today.
“There is not just one powerful trend that determines bathroom design and equipment,” says Constantin von Boch, Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Villeroy & Boch USA and a ninth-generation von Boch family member. Mr. von Boch continues, “In 2015, features like sustainability, hygiene, and comfort are the topics Villeroy & Boch is focusing on.”
Answering the challenge of creating functional, beautiful pieces that are also more hygienic is not an easy task. However, Villeroy & Boch has made great strides in this area and continues to find ways to improve on them. “One of the latest new products on the market that has made an impression on Villeroy & Boch and the entire sanitary industry are rimless toilets,” von Boch says. “We launched the innovative rimless DirectFlush WCs in 2013, and it is still a story of success.”
The rimless DirectFlush utilizes an intelligent water flow that completely rinses the interior of the bowl, while a specialized splashguard on the upper edge and higher water jets prevents splashing outside the bowl. Consuming only 0.8 to 1.28 gallons of water per flush, the system is highly efficient, keeping it at the forefront of sustainable bathroom solutions. But Villeroy & Boch decided to push these ideas even further and recently released its hygiene champion.
The hygiene champion combines the efficiency and smart design of the DirectFlush with two other innovations: CeramicPlus and AntiBac. Developed by Villeroy & Boch, CeramicPlus is a specialized finish that can repel dirt and water, making it easier to clean and ideal for high-traffic areas. Thinking about where this material would be the most useful and how it could be improved, Villeroy & Boch has also developed AntiBac. This special glaze contains silver ions, which have been shown to reduce the growth of bacteria by 99%. In combining these with DirectFlush technology, Villeroy & Boch has made an easy, efficient WC that can keep homes, businesses, and hospitals more hygienic.
Of course, the hygiene champion is only the latest in a long line of bathroom designs that have made people’s lives more hygienic, and has made the brand a modern proven partner for large-scale and residential projects. Villeroy & Boch has been intertwined with the rise of ceramic bathroom products throughout history: the company was one of the first and only manufacturers in 19th-century Europe to answer scientists’ calls for improved sanitary-ware and pioneered large-scale ceramic manufacturing, bringing to the masses versions of its beautiful, ornate products initially created for royalty. This is one of many stories documented in the manufacturer’s own sanitary-ware museum located in its headquarters in Mettlach, Germany.
Innovations aside, Villeroy & Boch also possesses a history of staying at the forefront of design and aesthetics. In the 1970s, it partnered with Luigi Colani to develop a new and influential bathroom that was ergonomically optimized and focused on making the bath a place of relaxation and regeneration. These themes are just as relevant today.
“In the future, having a shower or a bath will not serve simply as a way to keep clean but will develop into an experience for the physical and spiritual well-being of a person — for relaxation and rejuvenation,” says von Boch. “Our programs of tomorrow will reinforce this trend: we intend to resurrect the fountain of youth.”
Taking innovation even further, Villeroy & Boch is even a trailblazer digitally, which was seen during ISH 2015. The company set up an interactive booth and gave users 3D glasses to give complete, 360-degree simulations of bathrooms designed with Villeroy & Boch products. With the introduction of such inventive planning and visualization tools, the company has and continues to improve on aesthetics, hygiene, efficiency, and, now, user experience.
Explore the European design, quality, innovation, and tradition of Villeroy & Boch. Click here to be inspired by Villeroy & Boch reference projects and find the perfect match for your bathroom project with Architectura, Subway, Memento, Strada, or other premium collections.