Electrolux Silver Generation Project

‘Silver generation’ project yields creative designs

The ‘Design tomorrow’s kitchen for the ‘silver generation’ project’ is yielding fascinating design concepts, with 39 Singapore design students presenting a range of innovative kitchen ideas.

At a session held at a Singapore university, the student teams first presented the persona they developed earlier in the project. The persona represents the future ‘silver generation,’ the elderly people students will design a future kitchen for.

The ‘Design tomorrow’s kitchen for the ‘silver generation’ project’ is yielding fascinating design concepts, with 30 Singapore design students presenting a range of innovative kitchen ideas.

The designs drew from a broad range of influences. These included science fiction, Singapore’s old coffee house culture, and grocery store displays.

Laser counters
A kitchen island developed by one team featured a kitchen island with laser counters that project outwards. The left side of the island contained refrigeration and freezer units, on the right were heating units.

Another group presented a new idea for the humble kitchen counter. The counter is divided into a grid with each square capable of elevating individually, helping an older person to see taller items at the back of the counter. Some of the grid squares included induction heating units, and even a water basin that appears only after the user turns the water tap on.

“It’s still early, however there were a few impressive concepts already being articulated, and most of the research is well thought through,” says regional design head Pernilla Johansson.

Ergonomic tips
Pernilla Johansson had a number of helpful suggestions for the students. The kitchen island concept, for example, required users to bend down to place things in the oven, which would be challenging for an older person. The concept refridgerator developed by one team would require five or six compressors, rendering it very expensive to produce.

The students are revising their designs based on the feedback from Pernilla Johansson, Kong Wei, manager of Singapore’s >60 Design Centre, and Peter Knipp, a prominent former chef who is today an entrepreneur in the hospitality industry.

Another critique session will be held in the coming weeks prior to the project’s climax in November, when the student’s designs will be on display at the Singapore Design Festival.

By Greg Waldron, gregorywaldron@gmail.com

Students get to grip the Silver generation

Singapore design students recently participated in a “creative kitchen studio” workshop, which is part of the ‘Design tomorrow’s kitchen for the ‘silver generation’ project.

About 30 students attended the one day session held at Singapore’s LaSalle College of the Arts. 

The students came with the personas they developed after the first ‘silver generation’ session in late August, which are meant to be representative of the future ‘silver generation.’ The students will use the personas’ lifestyles and needs to design tomorrow’s kitchen.

“This session offered students a chance to interact with subject experts and enrich their understanding of the problems they are designing for,” says regional design head Pernilla Johansson.  “The students developed some interesting personas. Some students drew conclusions from a larger group, others selected a single person and delved into that person’s life,  needs, and routines.”

Pernilla Johansson makes her view clear

One group selected a persona who is a retired professional chef.  To her, preparing food equals love.  Problem is, at 60+ years of age it is very difficult for her to find and reach things in a large refridgerator.

Another group’s persona was a sophisticated, affluent mother whose daughters live overseas.  When the family lived together preparing food was a communal activity.  The students are looking at concepts where they can bring internet video conferencing into the kitchen.  This would allow the family to cook together, even though they live far apart.

Pernilla Johansson also gave a presentation discussing how radically technology will advance in the coming decades, and how this could affect the kitchen.  Technologies that could have an impact include improved sensors, new interfaces, and wireless communications in the home and beyond.

Designers from Singapore Design Centre were on hand to provide feedback and answer questions.  Also in attendance were Kong Wei, manager of Singapore’s >60 Design Centre, and Peter Knipp, a prominent former chef who is today an entrepreneur in the hospitality industry.

At the next session, in early October, students will present their designs for critique and discussion.

By Greg Waldron, gregorywaldron@gmail.com

Electrolux and >60 Design Center challenge Singapore’s design students

Electrolux, in collaboration with Singapore’s >60 Design Center, has challenged 40 design students in Singapore to design tomorrow’s kitchen and kitchen appliances for the growing ‘silver generation’ of those over 60. The result of the students’ work will be displayed at the Singapore Design Festival in November.

As with may developed nations, Singapore has an aging population and a falling birth rate; by 2050 it will have the fourth oldest population in the world.  This group of people would not want kitchen products that are less attractive than what’s offered to the younger generations and they know their spending power.

A student learns that it is not all that easy to be old.

 “Solutions for the ‘silver generation’ need to be inspiring, supporting their active lifestyle and making them feel young, and not restricted in any way”, says Pernilla Johansson, Design Director, Electrolux Asia Pacific.

“With modern technology being more sensorial, adaptive and automated, there are great opportunities for solutions answering to the >60 needs, without highlighting that they are designed the >60 group in mind.”

Forty students from Singapore Polytechnic, Temasek Polytechnic, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and Lasalle College of the Arts have accepted the challenge.

“Singapore has a big group of design students and very good design schools,” says Johansson. “We are interested in the students’ “out-of-the-box-thinking”, as well as letting them learn about our insight led Design and Innovation process.”

The project offers students the possibility to work with professionals from the industry who are experts in kitchen appliances, the kitchen environment and the targeted consumer group. Apart from Electrolux and >60 Design Center, the team has engaged Peter A. Knipp, a prominent former Raffles chef who is today organizer of the World Gourmet Summit and publisher of Cuisine & Wine Asia, to give the students a good understanding of the cooking process.

Apart from developing exciting solutions to the silver generation’s needs, the aim is to promote a fruitful dialogue and learning process on the >60 theme between the organizers and the participants.

By Greg Waldron, gregorywaldron@gmail.com