Press Release
Merel Philippart Receives the Bronze A' Design Award for Terra Induction Cooktop in Home Appliances Design
Merel Philippart recognized for home appliances design by the international grand jury of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 23, 2026 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the Bronze A' Design Award in the Home Appliances Design category for Terra Induction Cooktop by Merel Philippart. The recognition forms part of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition and was reached through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
About the Bronze A' Design Award
The Bronze A' Design Award is given to outstanding designs that showcase a high degree of creativity and practicality. It recognizes the dedication and skill of designers who produce work that stands out for its thoughtful development and innovative use of materials and technology. These designs are acknowledged for their professional execution and potential to influence industry standards positively. Winning this award highlights the designer's ability to blend form and function effectively, offering solutions that enhance people's lives and wellbeing.
About Terra Induction Cooktop
Terra is a built-in induction cooktop designed to form part of the kitchen interior. Most induction cooktops use black glass, which can visually dominate a room. Terra uses a coloured ceramic glass plate in a warm natural tone, developed with specialist glass partners. The touch interface is colour matched to the glass, and the controls stay understated when not in use. The cooktop has four induction zones, two of them expandable, with pan detection and residual heat indication. The smooth surface is easy to clean.
About Merel Philippart
Makus is a Netherlands based design company focused on induction cooktops for contemporary kitchens. Known for introducing the cooktop in color, the company combines product design, engineering, and interior sensibility in a category often defined mainly by function. Its work centers on the integration of technology, material, color, and interaction, with the cooktop approached as a visible part of the living space. Makus collaborates with specialized partners in design and manufacturing to develop products shaped by both use and environment.
Award Record
Merel Philippart is a winner of 1 A' Design Award, including this recognition.
About the A' Home Appliances Design Award
The A' Home Appliance Design Award is an international competition recognizing good home appliance designs by best appliance designers and brands worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to home appliance designers, industrial designers, product engineers and appliance brands from all countries. Entries typically include refrigerators, dishwashers, microwaves, washing machines, dryers and ovens. Awarded home appliance designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/home-appliance
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/178449
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/178449
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!178449
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/376283
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://makuskitchen.com/collections/firstcollection/product
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Terra Induction Cooktop
- Function
- Induction Cooktop
- Category
- Home Appliances Design
- Discipline
- Industrial Design
- Industry
- Electronics & Appliances and Furniture & Home
- Colors
- Gainsboro, White Smoke, Gray, Dark Gray and Dim Gray
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Merel Philippart
- Country
- Netherlands
- Recognition
- Bronze A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2025 - 2026
- Design ID
- #178449
Credits
- Image Credits
- Makus owns all material.
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Makus Terra introduces colour to induction cooking, turning the cooktop into a part of the interior palette. It replaces the visual weight of a black appliance with a warm, natural tone that integrates into its surroundings. Every detail, from glass colour to interface layout, is designed to support softness and harmony in the kitchen. Makus is the original coloured induction brand, established to make induction desirable through design rather than obligation.
- Inspiration
- The shift away from gas cooking in the Netherlands in 2018 created an opportunity to rethink induction. All induction cooktops were black. And pure designed as a functional device: hard and visually dominant. While kitchens were becoming softer and more personal. Instead of trying to convince people through obligation to cook induction/electric, the idea of Merel was to make induction desirable. This led to the concept of a cooktop designed as part of the interior. Natural colours, soft shapes and subtle detailing inspired both Terra and Moon. Allowing them to blend into the design of a home instead of interrupting it.
- Research
- The development of Terra required research into coloured glass stability, heat resistance and optical behaviour. Makus collaborated with tno for this and found a strong partnership with schott ceran.
- Challenge
- The main creative and research challenge was developing a coloured induction cooktop in a category that had exclusively used black glass. Achieving soft, natural tones while meeting strict thermal and mechanical requirements demanded new approaches to glass colouring, coatings and reflection control. Makus collaborated with designers from the Dutch Design Academy, with tno on performance research, and with schott ceran on material development.
- Realization and Technology
- Terra is produced using high-quality induction engineering combined with a coloured ceramic glass plate developed specifically for this project. Since coloured induction glass did not exist, MAKUS sourced specialized partners able to experiment with pigments, coatings and processing methods. Schott Ceran supported the glass development, while the manufacturing partner adapted its production line. Previously used only for black cooktops, to accommodate new colour-controlled processes. Final assembly combines precision induction hardware with the customized coloured top. Ensuring stability, performance and long-term colour integrity.
- Operation and Interaction
- Terra operates as a standard high-performance induction cooktop, but its interaction is designed to feel calm and intuitive. The touch interface is colour-matched to the glass to reduce visual distraction. Controls appear only when needed and remain understated when inactive. The smooth surface supports effortless cleaning and a clear workflow around the cooking area. Terra is part of the kitchen interior rather than a dominant technical element.
- Project Duration and Location
- The development of Makus Terra started in 2018 in the Netherlands and continued through prototyping, colour testing and engineering refinement until its launch in 2020. The project was based in Amsterdam, with production and material development carried out in collaboration with European manufacturing partners.
- Specifications
- The MAKUS 80 cm induction cooktop is a built in electric appliance with a total connected load of 7.4 kW, configured for a 2 phase Perilex connection. It features four induction zones, including two standard and two expandable zones, with individual outputs ranging from 1.4 kW to 3.0 kW with boost. Installation requires a 750 × 490 mm niche and a construction height of 55 mm, with 20 mm ventilation clearance. The unit integrates a ceramic glass surface with capacitive touch and slider control, offering 10 power levels from 0 to 9 and boost mode.
- Keywords
- induction, kitchen, cooking, decorating sustainability, design induction, makus
