Moment of truth
Tested by the professionals
At Geberit, we take a close look at how craftsmen handle our (almost) finished innovations. The manner of testing the new Geberit CleanLine shower channel in 2014 illustrates this approach.
At virtually no other place in the bathroom is seamless cooperation between plumbers, screed layers, caulkers and tilers as important as with floor-even showers. Geberit has taken full account of this aspect when developing the latest generation of shower drains with factory-injected sealing foils.
Craftsmen’s reunion
However, it is still necessary to test whether the ideas and concepts from the development engineers will prove successful in everyday use on the building site. For this purpose, Geberit engages the services of plumbers, screed layers and tilers from Germany, Italy, Austria, and Switzerland. Inside the building technology and acoustics laboratory at the company’s headquarters in Switzerland, they are faced with the challenge to install a CleanLine shower channel in two different installation situations. The prepacked prototypes of the product and a draft of the installation manual is all they get - the craftsmen have supplied the majority of the tools and building materials such as cement and tiles themselves.
A worthwhile effort
During the practical trial, the responsible product developers at Geberit have ample opportunity to carefully observe the craftsmen in action, which results in valuable experiences being shared. “Both the prototypes and the installation manuals have passed the practical test with flying colours”, says Andreas Schläpfer, Head of Application Engineering at Geberit. However, the discussions with the craftsmen will lead to quite a number of improvements to product details and changes to the installation manual. The hard work therefore more than paid off.”
Know-How Installed
The Geberit shower channels from the CleanLine series combine elegant design with simple, reliable installation. They can be cut to the required length on site and can be installed close to the wall or in the middle of the shower area. The sealing foil is injected onto the drain flange at the factory.
