Invest in a productive kitchen workspace.

Businesses invest in making offices comfortable places to work to increase the productivity of their staff.

But what about your kitchen? It’s a place where you spend a considerable amount of time and do a significant amount of work. Is it worth your investment in making it a more user-friendly space?

The idea behind ergonomically designed workspaces is to create a comfortable and practical environment that’s in tune with how we operate. The aim is to avoid chronic pain from repetitive movements such as bending or reaching, and to make tasks easier by designing a fluid pattern of movements.

This is a concept that can be transferred to great effect into kitchen design.

Zone your kitchen

A simple way to bring ease of movement into your kitchen is to divide it into zones. By creating areas allocated to carrying out specific tasks, you can cut the amount of lifting and carrying you do.

In smaller kitchens, cooking, cleaning and food preparation zones are sufficient. In larger kitchens, you can extend this to include drink preparation, entertainment or relaxation areas.

The zones work by bringing structure to the kitchen plan and a practical flow to the layout. Therefore, a food preparation zone can be positioned next to the cooking zone, making it easier to transfer food from place to place.

Allow space between zones

The cooking, food preparation and cleaning zone each have a central item, i.e., the oven, fridge and sink. These are generally linked by worktops.

The space between these three key areas of the kitchen should be easy to navigate. This is a significant part of ergonomics. You should be able to move between zones with ease and transfer food, crockery, pans and other items without obstacles in your way.

For example, if you have a kitchen island, it should form part of a zone and earn its space by having a specific function. If not, it can end up getting in the way.

Visualise your journey between the fridge and worktop and then to where pots and pans are stored. From there, carry the pots to the oven and onto a serving area. How easy is it to clean as you go? And after you’ve eaten, can you clear up and stack the dishwasher efficiently?

Another point to consider is whether there will be other people in the kitchen doing separate tasks at the same time. How best can your kitchen layout accommodate them?

Work at your height

The height of your worktops, cabinets, shelves and appliances can make a big difference to how much bending and reaching you have to do.

Choose a worktop height that allows you to maintain a comfortable standing posture. If you’re leaning down or stretching up, you need to adjust it. However, your hob can be slightly higher than your worktop so that you can look down into pots and pans.

Also, the position of your kitchen sink should be based on the sink’s rim, not its depth. Bending over while washing up is a common cause of backache.

Would you love an ergonomically designed kitchen?

We can design a completely bespoke kitchen to match your lifestyle and home perfectly.

At K Interiors, we’re dedicated to delivering a seamless experience from initial project planning and kitchen design through to ordering, delivery and install.

Why not book a FREE kitchen design consultation and let us show you how we can transform your kitchen?

Call us on 01525 851830 or email: sales@kinteriorskitchens.co.uk