TL;DR: ATYP backs every made-to-order piece with a 5-Year Craftsmanship Guarantee. It covers the parts we control in the workshop: structural welds, the powder-coat finish, and the integrity of the steel. It does not cover drops, abrasive cleaners, or the quiet patina metal earns with use. Five years is a number we can prove, not a vague promise of forever.
A guarantee is a claim about how something was built. ATYP makes custom metal furniture in a workshop in Bánovce nad Bebravou, Slovakia, and every shelf, hook, and holder we ship carries the same 5-Year Craftsmanship Guarantee. That includes the METI Bathroom Shelf, the LUMO Livingroom Shelf, and the TONE Shelf with Hooks. Each one is cut from 3mm cold-rolled steel, welded by hand, and powder-coated in one of our finishes. The guarantee covers the part of that process we are responsible for. Here is what sits inside it, what sits outside it, and why the term is five years and not the word lifetime.
What the 5-Year Craftsmanship Guarantee covers
Three categories, named plainly. If any of them fail under normal indoor use within five years of delivery, we repair or replace the piece.
- Structural welds. The joints where steel meets steel. A weld that cracks or separates under normal load is a workshop fault, and it is covered. This is the failure mode that matters most on a loaded shelf like the LUMO Livingroom Shelf.
- The powder-coat finish. The baked-on layer of colour and protection. Flaking, blistering, or adhesion failure that is not caused by impact or abrasive cleaning falls under the guarantee.
- Material integrity. The steel itself. Rust that breaks through from a finishing defect, rather than from a scratch you put there, is ours to fix.
How thick is the steel under the guarantee?
Most ATYP shelves and holders are formed from 3mm cold-rolled steel. Thickness is part of why a five-year term is realistic in the first place. We wrote about the choice in detail in Why We Use 3mm Cold-Rolled Steel.
What the guarantee does not cover
An honest guarantee names its limits. Across the furniture industry the standard exclusions are normal wear, accidental damage, and care mistakes, and ours follow the same logic.
- Accidents and impact. A dropped shelf or a dented edge is not a workshop defect.
- Abrasive cleaning. Scouring pads, harsh solvents, and pressure washers strip powder coat. Most finish warranties, ours included, exclude damage from them.
- Normal patina. Light scuffs and the softening a finish takes on over years are expected. Metal ages. That is not a fault.
- Hard-water scale and standing damp. In a bathroom, mineral residue is a maintenance task, not a defect.
- Use beyond the rating. Overloading a shelf past its stated limit, or commercial abuse a residential piece was not specified for, sits outside the term.
If you are unsure which side of the line a problem falls on, send a photo first. We would rather look than guess.
Why five years, and not "lifetime"
Inside the EU you already hold a legal guarantee. The Sales of Goods Directive (EU) 2019/771 gives consumers a minimum of two years of statutory protection against goods that do not conform to what was sold. From 27 September 2026, EU shops also have to display a standard notice reminding buyers of that right, and it now reaches furnishings and décor, not only electronics. Our five-year term sits on top of that legal floor, not in place of it.
We avoid the word lifetime on purpose. A lifetime warranty can mean the life of the product, the life of the original buyer, or the life of the company writing it, and none of those is a number you can plan around. Five years is. It is long enough to prove the welds and the finish were sound, and short enough that we are still here to honour it.
How a five-year promise changes the build
A guarantee you intend to honour is a constraint on the workshop, not a marketing line. Because we cover welds, we grind and inspect them rather than hide them. Because we cover the finish, the powder coat goes on at a thickness meant to last, which is the subject of our piece on powder-coated steel. You can see the process on our production page, and the material reasoning on our sustainability page.
It also shapes what we make. The TONE Shelf with Hooks carries weight at two points, the platform and the hooks, so both welds matter. The same standard runs through the living room accessories range and every made-to-order configuration we build.
How to make a claim
The process is short.
- Email us with your order number and a photo of the issue.
- We confirm whether it falls under the guarantee, usually within a few working days.
- We repair or replace the piece. Covered repairs are free.
Full terms live on our FAQ page. Finishes, sizes, and configuration options are on the customization page.
FAQ
What does ATYP's 5-Year Craftsmanship Guarantee cover?
It covers three workshop-controlled categories for five years from delivery: structural welds, the powder-coat finish, and the integrity of the steel. Failures in any of these under normal indoor use are repaired or replaced at no cost.
Does the guarantee cover normal wear and scratches?
No. Light scuffs, scratches you cause, and the natural patina metal develops over years are considered normal wear, not defects. The guarantee addresses manufacturing faults, not daily use.
Is the powder-coat finish included?
Yes. Flaking, blistering, or adhesion failure not caused by impact or abrasive cleaning is covered. Damage from scouring pads, harsh solvents, or pressure washers is not.
How is this different from my EU legal warranty?
EU law gives you a minimum two-year statutory guarantee under Directive (EU) 2019/771. ATYP's five-year guarantee is an additional commercial promise that sits on top of your legal rights, not a replacement for them.
How do I make a claim?
Email us your order number and a photo. We confirm coverage within a few working days and then repair or replace the piece. Covered repairs are free.
ATYP is a Slovak design studio crafting custom metal furniture from a workshop in Bánovce nad Bebravou. Every piece is configured to order, hand-finished, and backed by our 5-Year Craftsmanship Guarantee.
Written by ATYP for ATYP, custom metal furniture made in Slovakia.
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