Sugatsune Concealed Hinges:
Lifting the Lid
on an Evolving Concept
Lift-assist Free-stop Soft-close
Allows for light
opening of doors Enables doors
to hold in position
(30°–Max.). OLYMPIA's built-in
damper makes doors
close slowly.
Lift-assist Free-stop Soft-close
Allows for light opening
of doors Enables doors to hold
in position (30°–Max.). The built-in damper
of OLYMPIA makes doors
close slowly.
If there is one thing we have learned at
Sugatsune from more than 80 years in
the component engineering business,
it is that design never stands still. Even
when innovative new concepts break
through and seem to redefine the
thinking around a particular product
type, there is always room to improve,
always new places to explore.
Our 230 range was part of what you
might call the ‘first generation’ of
concealed hinges. Designed and en-
gineered to Sugatsune’s usual im-
peccable standards, it was a more
than serviceable, hard-wearing, reli-
able concealed hinge option, doing
everything other concealed hinges
could do.
But we’ve never been satisfied with
our products just matching the com-
petition. We are always looking for
ways to go above and beyond.
Introducing the Olympia concealed
hinge. The Olympia improves on the
form and function of its predecessor in
several ways - it has a slimmer, sleeker
profile so takes up less space, it is eas-
ier to install onto the mounting plate,
and once in position it is easy to adjust
alignment using three screws.
But the real innovation behind the Olym-
pia range is the inclusion of our Lapcon
technology in a soft close damper sys-
tem. Door dampers are used to create
slow closing motion, to prevent slam-
ming and trapped fingers but also to
give a sense of precision and control
to the swing of a door. What is unique
about the Olympia damper system is
that it offers five-point adjustment, so
you can alter the counter-force to get
the right amount of control for different
sizes and weights of door.
By integrating the damper mechanism
within the Olympia hinge, we have
been able to offer two solutions in one
- a premium quality concealed hinge
with flexible soft close functionality,
without any need to install a separate
damper. We have taken the concept
further again with the AILERON Olym-
pia lid stay. The AILERON can actually
be described as a three-in-one solu-
tion - a concealed hinge for two orien-
tations; vertical-opening flaps and lids
that also include soft close control and
an adjustable stay that will hold the lid
in any open position past 30 degrees.
With no need for side mounting for this
stay your toy box or overhead cup-
board becomes easier to access and
with no need for partitions to mount
from, you can decide how big you
want your space.
Our concealed hinge journey is far
from over. This summer, we will add
safety caps and a new slimline mount-
ing plate to the Olympia range - as well
as relaunching the entire line in black,
giving furniture makers and interior de-
signers a new look to incorporate into
their plans.
Watch this space for where we might
take the concept next.