Youth Lab – an innovative multi-functional youth hostel room.

Students from the Munich University of Applied Sciences were invited by the Bavarian Youth Hostel Association to develop a youth hostel room of the future. The international hardware manufacturer Häfele from Nagold was engaged for the realisation of the project. Based on the needs of young people today, such as the integration of digital communication media, opportunities for retreat and well-being, as well as room zones for joint communication, relaxation and play, the room is designed for flexible occupancy. The students have considered the wishes of the individual groups of guests and optimised the room concept for multiple use. It can be used as a 6-bed room, as a 2-bed room with a double bed for couples and as a family room.

Particular emphasis is placed on the protection of privacy. Beds, closets and wet rooms are integrated along the walls in a coherent furniture. The youth target group is in a formative phase for them, with great interest in everything new and progressive. Experimenting with fashion trends and social norms releases creative potential in which young people reinvent themselves and their surroundings. Häfele was involved here as a planning partner from the very beginning with its 360° project expertise. 

For each guest diverse and secured storage solutions. All beds are equipped with their own locker compartments and drawers. Guests can only open their compartments with a transponder card from Häfele's Dialock electronic locking system.

Multifunctional furniture and hardware solutions from Häfele support the room concept so that a single room can fulfil several functions and the space is used to its full potential. The bathroom door, for example, is designed to open 90 degrees inwards to separate the shower area and the washbasin like a mobile wall. In this way, the bathroom can even be used by two people who do not know each other at the same time. Häfele shows another way of creating space in a single room with a double bed and table that can be folded against the wall to save space.

A lockable roller shutter compartment is integrated for each sleeping place at the head end. It offers further storage space to keep personal items safe or to charge mobile devices and a reading light to avoid disturbing roommates at night.