Just as in any other area of our life, there are specific terms used for furniture and interior design which make it easier for the experts to understand each other. However, these terms often mean nothing to a layman interested in sophisticated interior design culture. Although we aim to avoid the technical jargon, we still use some vocabulary that requires explanation. This is why we offer you our dictionary of technical terms.
Accessories | fashionable extras for the home. |
Add-on system | wall combination that can be individually extended and complemented with additonal units. |
Ancillary units | smaller pieces of furniture that match the larger units within a range. |
Bar lock | Lock of a wardrobe door with a bar covering the full height of the door, therefore avoiding warping. |
Base frame | high-quality "slatted frame of the hülsta sleeping system". |
Bed superstructure | units and shelves fitted above the headboard of a bed |
Blue Angel | Environment protection sign |
Box bed | bed with a box-like frame that can simultaneously be used as a large storage space. |
Bracket | metal or plastic part connecting mobile parts of the furniture, f.ex. hinge, door lock |
Brand furniture | Furniture that is marked with a label characteristic for the origin (the manufacturer). Brands guarantee consistent quality of goods. |
Carcase | the body of a piece of furniture, f.ex. of a wardrobe. |
CEN | European norms |
Chest | low modular unit with drawers (wider than a console) |
Chipboard | board made of pressed and glued wood parts (also from wood shavings) |
Compensation unit | used to ensure the perfect wall-to-wall fit of a wall combination. |
Console | low modular unit with drawers (less wide than a chest) |
Construction shelf | board attached to the carcase, provides stability |
Container | box-shaped unit on castors. |
Corner cover surface | Cover shelf for a corner within a furniture combination. |
Corner fillet | covers the corner joint in the case of a corner solution. |
Corner fillet | covers the corner joint in the case of corner solutions with wall panels. |
Corner solution | units of a wall combination fitted around the corner at 45˚ or 90˚. |
Cover surface | continous cover shelf below eye level |
Depth transition | is created by parts of a piece of furniture with different depths. |
DIN-ISO | international standardisation applied nationwide |
DIN-standards | standardisation carried out by the German Institute for Standardisation |
Edge band | a strip of wood or plastic glued to the edge (cut face) of a piece of wood (board) |
Endless add-on system | a furniture system whose parts (in theory) can be endlessly joined together. |
Extension unit | door-wide add-on unit of a wardrobe system. |
FCKW | CFC chlorofluorocarbon, ozone-damaging. Only furniture without CFC are awared the "Gütezeichen" (quality sign) |
Fillet | (slightly) protuding slat |
Fillet | used to cover "gaps" in a wall combination, can also be used as a decorative feature |
Fitted shelf | shelf that can be attached to a panel |
Fitted unit | see compensation unit. |
Folding door | door of a wardrobe or TV-compartment which is folded once in its longitudinal axis when opened. |
Formaldehyde | pungent smelling gas. Since 1986, furniture in Germany cannot exceed the limit of 0.1 ppm (parts per million). |
Frame | frame-like surrounding on doors and windows. |
Full metal bracket | bracket solely made from metal, without plastic. |
Genuine | can only be used if veneers or solid woods of the visible surfaces of a piece of furniture are made from the same kind of wood. |
Glass cabinet | cupboard with glass walls or doors. |
Grain | the pattern of the wood |
GS-sign | a sign for "proven safety" awarded by a national test institute. |
Highboard | approx.110 to 130 cm high cupboard. |
Interior corner | Corner solution opening inwards. |
Interior fitting | here: standard furniture ranges delivered to customers' specifications |
Light panel | facing of a light source |
Light shelf | indirectly lit shelf |
Mitre | where the end pieces of wood are joined at an angle (f.ex. frame) |
Modular units | box-like units that can be placed next to or on top of one another like building blocks. |
Module | lat. Measurement, here: raster unit |
Open-pored | if the pores of the wood are not closed (f.ex. by lacquer) |
Outer side section | outer side panel of a wardrobe system. |
Panel | wall cladding made from wood |
Panel wall | wall cladding consisting of individual panels. |
Plinth | subframe of a wardrobe or wall combination |
Pocket end bearing | the part of the base frame where the slats are attached to the frame. |
Pocket spring core | mattress with springs, individually sewn in pockets, joined together. |
Precious wood | wood distinguishable by its beauty or its positive properties |
Quality label | also known as RAL-quality label for furniture of the DGM (German Quality Association). |
Raster | a net of lines referring to a basic measurement. |
Raster measurement | the smallest measurement by which a wall combination can be extended in width or height. |
Round corner | rounding of the joint of two vertically joining wood surfaces. |
Safety | plays a major part in furniture, is labelled by norms, quality signs etc. |
Side panel | vertical side section of a wardrobe, wall combination, bed or desks/tables. |
Side panel system | System consisting of side panels (vertical) and shelves (horizontal) |
Side table | a table that is fixed on one side to a panel or similar |
Sideboard | low cupboard, can consist of several units of a wall combination. |
Single unit | an individual piece of furniture, that is not created from a combination of several components. |
Slats | strips of wood made from layers of wood (glued together) of a slatted base or a base frame. |
Slatted base | base for the mattress of a bed made of slats attached to a wooden frame. |
Solid wood furniture | a piece of furniture can only be called "solid wood furniture" if all parts except the back panel, drawer bottom panels and frames are made from the specified wood and are not veneered. |
Spring core | springs of a mattress, often mechanically produced Bonellspring core. |
Suspended units | wallmounted parts of a wall combination. |
System range | furniture range consisting of many different parts (units) manufactured along the same principles of shape, material and craftsmanship. |
Telescopic drawer | a drawer running on metal rails |
Tension mounted floor to ceiling | wardrobe side panels, which are tension mounted floor to ceiling |
Unit | part of a furniture system that cannot be further taken apart, starting point of a system range. |
VDE | abbr. for "Association of German Elelectrical Engineers" |
VDE-sign | lights (lamps) labelled with this sign comply with the safety regulations. |
Veneer | thin sheet of precious wood which covers chipboard (DIN 68330) |
Visible back panel | a back panel of a piece of furniture that can be seen (f.ex. a room divider) |
Wall mounted shelf | shelf that can be fixed to the wall with invisible brackets. |
