Hansgrohe Expands Contemporary Metris S Series, Adding Lever Handles and Polished Nickel FinishWater-Saving Lav Faucets, as well as Bidet and Tub Models, Now Feature ADA-Compliant Lever Handles and a New, Warm-Toned, Polished Nickel Finish

July, 2009 -- Looking to give designers, architets and consumers a wider choice in styles as well as more convenient operation, Hansgrohe recently unveiled new, easy-to-use lever handles and a vibrant polished nickel finish for its contemporary-styled Metris S offering of bathroom faucets and showers.

New handles: Featuring a no-frills minimalist design, the new lever handles mirror the clean contemporary look of the Metris S faucet spout, while also echoing its smooth, rounded edges and wide, flat surfaces. Four different models, all of them compliant with the requirements of the American with Disabilities Act, are available with the new lever handles:

Hansgrohe's Metris S Series Widespread Lavatory Faucet

• Widespread Lav Faucet, with a flow rate of 1.5 gallons per minute (GPM), representing a 30% water savings over conventional faucets;
• Widespread Bidet Faucet, with a flow rate of 2.2 GPM and a swivel aerator;
• Three-Hole Roman Tub Set, with a flow rate of up to 10 GPM with a water pressure of 44 pounds per square inch (psi);
• Four-Hole Roman Tub Set, again with a 10 GPM maximum flow rate, but also including a Raindance S 100 AIR 3-Jet Handshower with a flow rate of 2.5 GPM.

Also available in the original "full" handles, these four Metris S faucets feature solid brass construction and 90° ceramic cartridges, designed to provide consistently superior performance over many years.

New finish: Like the rest of the Metris S offering, all four lav, bidet and tub faucets with the new lever handles are also available in a new polished nickel finish, in addition to the original chrome and brushed nickel finishes. The radiant mirrored surfaces of the polished nickel possess a golden tinge that warms the collection's modern European styling.

The finishes are applied at Hansgrohe's state-of-the-art PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) operations in Alpharetta, Ga. "The PVD performance coating is an advanced, proprietary technology, combining high performance and durability with a beautiful, stylish appearance," explains Nicolas Grohe, Hansgrohe Director of Product Development and Marketing for North America. "This technology ensures a long-living, scratch-resistant finish that maintains its exceptional appearance over decades."

To ensure the highest quality, Hansgrohe performs exposure, abrasion and chemical testing to make certain its various finishes will maintain their durability. "If our products do not pass the rigorous testing," adds Grohe, "they are simply dismantled and recycled — no exceptions allowed."

Hangrohe's World of Styles: Metris S is part of Hansgrohe's growing World of Styles, a highly diversified offering of faucets, showers and accessories for the modern bath and kitchen. Spanning contemporary (the "S" Series), transitional ("E" Series) and traditional ("C" Series) elements, the World of Styles gives designers, architects and their clientele more design options and more product choices than ever before.

Like the other two styles in the "S" Series — Talis S and Focus S — Metris S embraces minimalism with clean lines and geometric precision. The goal is to bring modern to the mainstream, but without the added flourishes that so often diminish the spirit of contemporary design.

About Hansgrohe
Founded in 1901, Hansgrohe is the premium brand for bathroom and kitchen fixtures, and a market leader in showers and shower systems, as well as thermostat, pressure balance and ceramic cartridge technology. A winner of numerous awards throughout the world, Hansgrohe is regarded as one of the leading innovators in technology and design, with inventions such as the adjustable showerbar, multiple-spray handshowers and showerheads, the Quiclean® function, AIR and water-saving EcoRight™ technology. These and other original products have helped reinvent the modern bathroom as a more functional, more comfortable and more beautiful living space.

Based in Schiltach in the Black Forest region of Germany, Hansgrohe has a global workforce of more than 3,200 and serves customers in over 80 countries through 28 subsidiaries. Known for taking tough action against product piracy and intellectual property theft, the company currently operates 10 manufacturing facilities, including six in Germany, as well as single plants in France, the Netherlands and China. In addition, the company manufactures and assembles most of its Hansgrohe-branded products for North America at its modern manufacturing facility in Alpharetta, Georgia, in the United States.