Welcome to the Design Lab 2008 blog

Electrolux is once again inviting industrial design students around the world to create tomorrow’s home appliances in its annual Design Lab competition. This is the sixth edition of the annual contest and the theme is Appliances for the Internet Generation.

The Internet generation comprises brand-conscious, busy young professionals who are independent, concerned about the environment, and whose lives are intertwined with technology and social networks. This year’s submissions should be for 2-3 years into the future and address food storage, cooking, and/or washing.

“We are looking for daring ideas and solutions,” says Henrik Otto, Head of Global Design at Electrolux. “Entries should reflect the iGeneration’s core interests and concerns like mobility, convenience, time, materials, personalization, entertaining, technology, and sustainability.”

We’ll be updating this blog regularly with progress reports on the contest, interviews with past winners, as well as links to news and feature articles relevant to this year’s theme.

Details about the competition, including how to enter, can be found at www.ElectroluxDesignLab.com. The deadline for entries is May 30.

About Design Lab
Since 2003, thousands of design students have participated in the Electrolux Design Lab competition, which culminates in a different city every year at an international press event. Previous venues include Paris, Barcelona, Stockholm, New York, and Budapest.

Last year’s competition “Green designs for 2020” was won by Levente Szabó from Moholy-Nagy University of Art & Design, Hungary, with E-wash, a compact washing machine that uses soap nuts instead of detergent.

The Design Lab 2008 has a First Prize of 5,000 Euro and a six-month internship at one of Electrolux’s global design centers. The second prize is 3,000 Euro and third prize 2,000 Euro. An international jury will judge the entries based on intuitive design, innovation, and consumer insight.

Entries must be submitted by May 30, 2008 via the website. A limited number of finalists will be chosen by the end of June and invited to Zurich to make a final presentation to the jury on October 8 & 9 where the winner will be announced and the prizes awarded.

For more information about the competition, high-resolution photos of previous finalists and their concepts, broadcast quality b-roll, and to watch videos from last year’s competition on Design Lab TV, visit www.ElectroluxDesignLab.com.

Media inquiries contact: Ulrich Gartner, +46 8 738 6396, designlab@electrolux.se.