With all of the design choices out there, it’s easy to assume that cabinet design is all about creative aesthetics. In reality, though, function, accessibility, motion economy and space management are equally critical factors in creating a successful cabinet design.

Most kitchen and bath designers agree that the past decade has seen a shift away from long, uninterrupted lengths of wall cabinets in residential kitchen planning. This storage system change has been driven by a series of space management priorities:

1. In both small, loft-like spaces and large estate homes, an open floor plan that integrates the kitchen into adjacent living spaces is high on many consumer wish lists. Young couples want to see a big, flat screen television in the adjacent room, families with growing children try to maximize the quality of their time together, and empty nesting couples plan to “multitask” in the space. Yet, all of these requests tend to focus on a kitchen that is part of a larger living area. This means the cook and other people sharing the space want to see one another – which requires a view unobstructed by hanging wall cabinets.

2. The designer’s focus on large mantel hoods (requiring anywhere from 48" to 72" of wall space) has dramatically reduced the available area for traditional cabinetry on each side of such free-standing structures.

3. Kitchens with islands are very popular. Ergonomically, island design arrangements do not work well when combined with wall cabinets above them. Placing wall cabinets over an island or peninsula high enough for the cook to see below places the shelving too high to be useful. Keeping wall units at a useful height results in people staring into a cabinet door, rather than enjoying time with guests.

4. A shift in who cooks (is it the gourmet “bring home” shop down the street as opposed to the “cook everything his/her homemaker”) has led to less food being stored on cabinet shelving in the average North American kitchen. However, at the same time, the average consumer is storing more infrequently used equipment. This means storage shelving can be loosely tied to (or completely separated from) the traditional centers of activity used by a “from scratch cook,” eliminating the requirement for generous lineal footage of wall cabinet shelving in the prep and cooking areas.

In addition to identifying the need to search out alternative storage areas, colleagues across the country tell me how much their clients search for a design highly personalized for them. Consumers want their design professional to go far beyond functional space management – they want the room to reflect their personality with special, unique storage solutions.

While researching storage solution ideas for this article, I was delighted to see a collage of excellent ideas presented by the winners of the 2007 NKBA Design Competition. Additionally, I have asked several talented designers across the country to share ideas with me. It is my hope that some of these ideas will help designers think “outside of the box” when considering how and where they can plan alternatives to wall cabinets and create a “one-of-a-kind” kitchen for their clients.

Function First

However, before we sprint ahead down the path of creativity, allow me to ground us all in longstanding time management principles as they relate to motion economy. Simply put, saving motion during any activity not only means saving the human worker energy, it also means saving the person’s time. Time is one of our most valuable commodities today – indeed, it’s priceless for many. Therefore, a look back to research projects completed some time ago is worthwhile.

To simplify the work processes in the kitchen, it’s important to be cognizant of the value of energy management. Each person has a finite amount of energy depending on physical heritage, age and general health. Minimizing the efforts needed to cook in the new room is possible if you are familiar with the research and ask the right questions when you first interview your client.