Two UK students make Electrolux Design Lab semis

10 Jun, 15

UK product design students in top 35 of global competition

Two UK students have reached the semi-finals of the global design competition Electrolux Design Lab, which sees entrants battle to create the best concept household appliance.

Product design students from Cardiff Metropolitan University and the University of Huddersfield, Angelo D’Onofoio and Jordan Lee Martin, respectively, have been shortlisted with 33 other entrants.

In its 13th year, the competition was based upon the theme of “Healthy, happy kids” and was looking for ideas across cooking, fabric care and air purification.

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D’Onofoio created the Electroluxhub (shown), an educational cooking experience for children in an augmented reality environment. At the core of the design is the notion of earning experience points to advance in levels and unlock recipes.

Martin created Bloom, an educational way for children to take part in the process of cooking, cleaning and growing their own food. It is a ‘kettle’ which uses steam as energy and recycles it through three separate pods in a safe way for children.

Design director of Electrolux Thomas Johnasson commented: “The semi-finalists concepts of design Lab 2015 are original, innovative and thought-provoking. The students have now received expert feedback and a new brief to further develop their ideas. As always it will be very exciting to follow this process online and engage in a conversation with the semi-finalists. In previous years, we have seen good ideas turn into great consumer propositions.”

Based on the next stage concept development, six finalists will be chosen by Electrolux and will be revealed on September 15, 2015.

The first prize is a six-month paid internship at an Electrolux global design centre and €10,000. The second prize is €6,000 and the third prize is €4,000. The competition also presents a People’s Choice Award, with €2,000 presented to the concept which collects the most online votes.