Press Release
Bronze A' Design Award in Home Appliances Design Goes to Hedgehog Multifunctional Dryer by Bjorn Holte, Lachlan Dunn and Magne Bolstad
Bjorn Holte, Lachlan Dunn and Magne Bolstad recognized for home appliances design by the international grand jury of the 2023 - 2024 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 17, 2024 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the Bronze A' Design Award in the Home Appliances Design category for Hedgehog Multifunctional Dryer by Bjorn Holte, Lachlan Dunn and Magne Bolstad, designed for Hedgehog AS and Hedgehog Dryer Inc. The recognition forms part of the 2023 - 2024 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who evaluated anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
What the Bronze A' Design Award Means
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.
Regarding Hedgehog Multifunctional Dryer
Hedgehog is a series of multifunctional dryers for shoes, boots, gloves and outdoor sports gear. The dryers use a high-powered fan system developed with hydro power engineers, applying water turbine principles to the impeller and the fan housing. The resulting high-pressure airflow pushes warm air into the fabric and forces humidity out. Adjustable heat protects sensitive materials, and an ionic setting reduces odor and bacteria. A simple interface controls airflow, heat and a timer. Each steel spike can be switched on or off to direct the air. Replaceable parts support longer use.
About Bjorn Holte, Lachlan Dunn and Magne Bolstad
Father of 5 and founder of Hedgehog Dryer which offers a range of premium dryers for boots, gloves and gear, available in over 1200 stores in the Nordic and US. Master in Marketing, specialized in the Internet. Founded first company at 16, raised over 11,5 mill USD in funding, 3 exits, 10 patents and love the challenges of building companies. Other passions are all types of sports, with the main focus on kite surfing. I believe in being good! - if you hang out with good people, you have a good life:)
Award Record
This recognition makes Bjorn Holte, Lachlan Dunn and Magne Bolstad a winner of 1 A' Design Award.
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. It 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. Typical entries include refrigerators, dishwashers, microwaves, washing machines, dryers and ovens. The awarded home appliance designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/home-appliance
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is 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. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously 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. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which 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, uploading a work and receiving a 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. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/159723
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/159723
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!159723
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/336488
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://www.hedgehogdryer.com
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
- Hedgehog Multifunctional Dryer
- Function
- Multifunctional Dryer
- Category
- Home Appliances Design
- Discipline
- Industrial Design
- Industry
- Electronics & Appliances and Furniture & Home
- Colors
- Dark Slate Gray, Dark Gray, Lavender, Gray and Light Gray
- Images
- 5
- Client
- Hedgehog AS and Hedgehog Dryer Inc
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Bjorn Holte, Lachlan Dunn and Magne Bolstad
- Country
- Norway
- Recognition
- Bronze A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2023 - 2024
- Design ID
- #159723
Credits
- Team
- Bjorn Holte, Lachlan Dunn, LDDG, Magne Bolstad, Bolstad Consulting and Vidar Pedersen, Sno Design
- Image Credits
- In house production.
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Hedgehog has created an innovative product series to revolutionize drying and organizing. The result is a more efficient and effective dryer for sports and outdoor gear. It has unique design, functionality, and performance relative to other dryers. Features include a high-quality design, a high-powered fan with quiet and tornado mode, adjustable heat for sensitive materials, ionic technology to remove odor and bacteria, increased fire safety, and replaceable parts for improved sustainability.
- Inspiration
- Widower and founder, Bjorn Holte, lost his wife to cancer and became single parent to three young children. Living in the snowy, rainy mountains of Norway, he quickly realized the daily challenge of keeping multiple pairs of gloves and boots dry and organized. After testing all the existing dryers, which were weak and ineffective with antiquated technology, he decided to reinvent the dryers, and Hedgehog Dryer is the result.
- Research
- The team has qualitatively and quantitatively demonstrated that Hedgehog drying speed is faster than similar dryers during testing. For research, Hedgehog has collaborated with NTNU Hydro Power Laboratory engineers in Norway to optimize airflow. They have run tests to ensure the design is efficient and effective; it dries five times faster than most products on the market that were tested.
- Challenge
- The primary challenge has been combining efficient, effective technology with a sleek, functional design. Existing dryers often have relatively long drying times and basic functioning is often prioritized over product aesthetics. Hedgehog has sought to create products that are effective drying and organizing solutions that people will feel proud to feature in their homes. The goal is to have a rapid drying solution that ultimately enables people to be more active and spend more time outdoors.
- Realization and Technology
- The dryer series introduces new technology to an existing problem to improve efficiency. To make a high-powered fan system that dries fast, the team worked with engineers from the Hydro Power Laboratory at NTNU in Norway and used the same technology as optimized water turbines. The team also designed everything – engine, impeller, housing and electronics – from the ground up. The result is an energy-efficient fan system with a drying time that is multiple times faster than similar dryers.
- Operation and Interaction
- The dryer has a user-friendly interface so a user can turn it on, adjust airflow, select heat, choose ionic odor remover setting, and set timer. What makes this fan much faster is the impeller and the fan house, which together generate high-pressure air flow. Hot air is pushed into the fabric of the item being dried, and humidity is pushed out. In addition, the dryer has various extensions for different drying needs. On/off switches for each steel spike help focus air where needed most.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project started in 2019 in Norway. The first version launched in retail stores across the Nordic region in the fall of 2021. The new Ionic i3 version that removes odor was released in 2023.
- Specifications
- The optimized Hedgehog Dryer fan delivers 105 cubic meters of hot air per hour with a pressure of 300 pascal. This is enough to heat up a small room or cabin. Energy consumption is low and goes from 35 to 750 watt, depending on the setting. Depending on model, the sizes fully assembled are: Width 22-33 cm x Depth 8.5-16.5 cm x Height 65-125 cm. They also pack in a very compact way for shipping: Wall and Hanger 22 cm x 18.2 cm x 28 cm, Octopus 22cm x 14.5 cm x 40 cm, Buddy 22 cm x 14.5 cm x 46 cm.
- Keywords
- Hedgehog Dryer, boot dryer, shoe dryer, gear dryer, glove dryer
