In a new partnership with Milan's Domus Academy, Electrolux will mentor 10 students in its Masters Program in Product Design. Students will propose solutions for the kitchen inspired by the home, sustainability and culture, and rethink the kitchen and its appliances based on the theme "Re-Source".

"To re-source oneself is to re-generate, re-energize, re-mix and re-lax," said Bruno Lizotte, Design Manager of accounts at Electrolux, "and the appropriate space for this multi-tasking is, more than ever before, the home and its vibrant centre - the kitchen."

The students also need to weave sustainability and culture into their work. The design concepts must be based on currently available technology, not what might be available in the future. The students will use a mix of material from the Academy and Electrolux.

“It’s a true collaboration not just teaching,” says Bruno Lizotte who will tutor ten international industrial design students – reviewing their work and giving them feedback. “The initial study already shows a dynamic new way of looking at our industry and promises novel solutions for the kitchen environment. The students will deliver their projects in late November and we’ll share the results right here."

“As a designer myself, my role is to support and help the students based on my experience as a professional designer and the insights I have gathered from two decades in this industry. But it also goes the other way. I expect the students will show us fresh new ways of approaching our everyday tasks.”

The students are a very international mix from Argentina, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Italy, Turkey, India, Taiwan, China, South Korea and Hong Kong.

Besides the Domus Academy collaboration, the Electrolux Design team is currently participating in a similar project with the Interaction Design Masters Program at the Umeå Institute of Design in Sweden, focusing on user experience.