Turkish ceramics major VitrA says it now coats all of its ceramic sanitary ware with VitrA Hygiene, a special glaze which inhibits the growth of harmful bacteria by up to 99.9 per cent.

The glaze acts by destroying the cellular structure of micro-organisms that may contaminate and attempt to colonise the surface, neutralises them and hence prevents germ multiplication, claims a spokesman for VitrA.

“VitrA Hygiene has been tested by national and international laboratories in accordance with global standards such as ISO 22196, JIS Z 2801, ASTM E 3031-15, and TSE 13420, and proven to be effective against gram negative (E. coli) and gram positive (S. aureus) bacteria,” he explains.

The ion-rich VitrA Hygiene glazing process is used to coat all external and internal surfaces of sanitary ware prior to firing in a process that ensures lifetime protection for the company’s ceramic products. From washbasins to WCs (water closets), bidets to urinals, products featuring VitrA Hygiene technology are said to offer superior hygiene throughout the product’s lifetime.

Meanwhile, VitrA won three new Good Design awards in December 2020, for outstanding design, raising to 40 the number of Good Design awards it has received to date. The awards programme, established in 1950, is considered to be one of the most prestigious in the design world.

VitrA’s CementMix tile system won the award in the building materials category, while its Voyage and Sento children bathroom collections won the award in the bath and accessories category.

Voyage, VitrA’s collaboration with the artist and industrial designer Arik Levy, is the company’s most expansive bathroom collection with more than 130 different elements. Sento Kids and CementMix were created by the VitrA Design team, which designs more than 60 per cent of its products and collections.