Reinventing the bathroom: Laufen’s Sonar collection sets new standards

Thanks to the SaphirKeramik material developed by Laufen, the Sonar bathroom collection brings new washbasins to the market that offer innovative design possibilities.

Winner of an iF Design award, the Sonar collection now offers a greater variety of products, increasing the already existing range of sinks, but also adding new sanitary items: freestanding bathtubs, toilet bowls and bidets. To complete the collection, Laufen has also created a line of bathroom furniture.

In recent times there has been a sense that the sink has reached its natural design limits, as conventional ceramic materials used in the bathroom can be used to produce a limited range of shapes. This imposed certain constraints, both functional and aesthetic.

When developing the Sonar collection, Laufen particularly focused on exploring new solutions that can be created with the innovative SaphirKeramik material. The innovation consists of a material that is both hard and malleable and which makes it possible to design sanitary facilities with thin edges (3-5 mm), with fine and elegant lines.

Besides improving the appearance of the sanitary ware, another benefit of designing with SaphirKeramik is the use of fewer materials, which is therefore environmentally friendly and sustainable. In addition, thanks to their slender shapes, SaphirKeramik sanitary ware can be successfully used in the design of small bathrooms.

For the Sonar collection, for example, the SaphirKeramik material facilitated the development of a 1,000-millimeter double sink, as wide as a standard sink and larger.

As a result, double sinks can now be installed even in bathrooms with a small area, in city apartments, without affecting their performance or the arrangement of other elements in the bathroom space.

Laufen also has the only pedestal sink in the Sonar collection which, despite its small footprint, hides all the accessories, a useful feature in renovation projects.

SaphirKeramik redefines the aesthetic rules of bathroom design

Not only functionality, but also the rules of aesthetics have been rewritten using the SaphirKeramik material.

Patricia Urquiolathe internationally renowned designer with whom Laufen collaborated, managed to leave his mark on the Sonar collection, creating all the sinks in this collection in the shape of the letter “D”, semi-oval in shape. This unique design is complemented in some cases by an inclined front or by a subtle three-dimensional line on the exterior surface of the sinks.

Patricia Urquiola’s inspiration for the texture that highlights the delicate appearance of the SaphirKeramik material was given by the way sound propagates in water. Such bold ceramic shapes and surfaces have never existed in a bathroom before.

An innovative detail added later is the base of the basins with a marginal slope which gently captures water through a transverse recess. From this slope, the water is led to a drain hidden under a removable SaphirKeramik cover.

New items complete the Sonar collection

The already established collection is complemented by a new 600 millimeter wide and 1,000 millimeter wide sink, with wall (hung) or countertop mounting options. Each features a classic, smooth exterior, without the existing streaks of other bathroom fixtures in the same collection.

Another newly arrived sanitary element in the Sonar collection is the freestanding oval bathtub, with dimensions of 1600 x 815 x 535 millimeters. This is equipped with holes for the bath and shower mixer. Its slim exterior is finished with a distinctive texture reminiscent of sound waves.

For a complete experience of the highest standards, the Laufen brand has created two accessories that promote comfort and relaxation: a soap dish that attaches to the edge of the bathtub and serves as a support for essential body care items, and a headrest-backrest support for the ultimate in pleasure. These accessories can also be combined with Sentec bathtubs from the Val and Ilbagnoalessi collections.

Sonar has further enriched its product range with a free-standing toilet and a wall-hung toilet, both without rim, and with bidet.

The sanitary objects from the Sonar collection are harmoniously complemented by the bathroom furniture from the same collection, designed by the same Patricia Urquiola. With an austere and minimalist design, they join the collection to create a unified and complete bathroom environment, which bears the signature of the Sonar bathroom range. The furniture is available in several shades: gold, copper, titanium or Nero Marquina – black marble look with white inserts.

The new SaphirKeramik material enables a revolutionary approach to sanitary ware, taking interior design to the next level. The superior qualities of the material have enabled new stylistic approaches, impossible to envisage in the past, and started new trends in bathroom equipment.