Gold Home Appliances Design · 2023
Lavazza Tiny Eco Espresso Machine
- A' Design Award 2023 Gold Winner in Home Appliances Design
- Awarded April 15, 2023
- CLIENT: Lavazza
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 84,030
- Verification code ADB89C2FF9 · Verify this award
About Lavazza Tiny Eco Espresso Machine
Lavazza continues its commitment to sustainability by launching Tiny Eco, it's first coffee machine made from recycled plastic and compostable coffee capsules. Overall life cycle assessment, energy consumption and noise level were important aspects in the product development process. Designed with lots of love in Italy, it celebrates its Mediterranean identity with attention to detail, colours and finishes. The shape is made from intersecting volumes to reduce visual mass. It is simple and easy to use. Only one touch and just a few seconds. Enjoy!
Within the evolving landscape of domestic appliance design, this espresso machine emerges as a compelling exemplar of the contemporary approach to elevating everyday objects into aesthetic statements worthy of display rather than concealment. The designer appears to engage with a rich heritage of sculptural product design, wherein functional necessity becomes the armature for formal exploration, recalling the tradition established by mid-twentieth-century masters who refused to accept that utility precluded beauty. The sophisticated rose-gold finish, with its warm metallic luminosity suggesting precious materials and artisanal craft, positions this machine within current design movements favoring jewelry-like treatment of domestic objects, transforming the quotidian ritual of coffee preparation into an encounter with considered elegance. The formal vocabulary demonstrates confident command of compound curvature, the housing swelling and tapering in ways that suggest both organic growth patterns and the deliberate refinement of serial prototyping. Material selection and surface treatment reveal thoughtful attention to tactile experience and visual hierarchy, the reflective metallic shell contrasting purposefully with matte black operational elements to guide the eye and hand toward functional interfaces. The proportional system achieves that elusive quality of visual rightness, neither top-heavy nor bottom-heavy, maintaining graceful equilibrium while accommodating the internal mechanisms necessary for espresso extraction. One might observe how the design honors the ceremonial dimension of coffee culture, presenting an object that rewards contemplation before, during, and after use. What aspirations toward domestic beauty and daily ritual does this object embody for those who encounter it?
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Lavazza continues its commitment to sustainability by launching its first machine made from recycled plastic. Tiny Eco is part of A Modo Mio, a system offering compostable caps. Life cycle assessment, energy consumption, and noise level were important in the development process. Designed with love by Lavazza in Italy it celebrates its Mediterranean identity with attention to detail, colour and finishes. All surfaces and details are precisely controlled to achieve a coherent design.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Dimensions 139mm x 260mm x 270mm
Weight 2,7kg
Power 1450W, Voltage 220-240, Frequency 50-60 Hz
Energy Efficiency Rating A PLUS
Removable parts are dishwasher safe.
It comes nicely boxed in a recycled cardboard along with a Quick Start Guide and a more detailed instruction booklet. - Tags
- Lavazza, coffee, espresso, recycled plastic, sustainable packaging
- Production Technology
- main shell, cup rest: injection moulded plastic (ABS), finishing textured/glossy, use of recycled plastic up to 61% (depending on colour)
water tank: injection moulded plastic (SAN)
logo: pad printed
feet, UI: silicone rubber - Design Challenge
- Tiny Eco has just been launched and is replacing a successful product. It is the smallest member of the A Modo Mio range. It is the baby of the family and an entry level product. Easily accessible and priced competitively. But definitely not cheap. The design has a lot of personality, is well executed, and builds on the existing Lavazza form language. It manages the use of recycled plastic while maintaining the same high standard for aesthetics and perceived quality.
- Project Duration
- The project was designed in Turin, Italy. The complete product development from initial concept to final product took about two years.
- Operation Flow
- Lavazza Tiny Eco is simple and easy to set up and use. The transparent water tank is giving immediate visual feedback, so you will know when to refill. The cup rest can be removed for tall cups and smaller cups remain closer to the spout. This reduces splashes and benefits coffee temperature and crema. The backlit Stop and Go button, emphasized visually by its shape, is placed prominently on top and lets you choose how much coffee you want. Only a few seconds and just one touch. Enjoy!
- Research
- Development process through conceptual and formal research, 3D modelling, physical mock-ups, prototyping.
- Inspiration
- Tiny Eco has a compact footprint and is easy to read and use. The overall shape is well structured and separated into two intersecting volumes to reduce visual mass and evoke a sense of stability and purpose. While the elegant, sinuous front is colourful the rear remains black supporting the easily accessible water tank and showing glossy Lavazza logos on the sides. The frontal pattern repeats the typical horizontal theme present on Lavazza products.
- Image Credits
- Lavazza
- Patents
- design patent/registered design
Colors of Lavazza Tiny Eco Espresso Machine
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Sustainable Product Design Services
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G0E2 ShopDesign Interview about Lavazza Tiny Eco Espresso Machine
The internal project name was "Compact & Sustainable". We were aiming to create a very compact, entry level machine that was also as sustainable. We reduced power consumption and used as much recycled plastic as possible.
Apart from focusing on the use of recycled plastic we designed the product in a way to reduce the visual mass. The main body is made up from several intersecting volumes and contrasting colours and materials.
At the moment the product is on the market and quite successful. We're currently considering some minor updates to keep the product relevant.
The complete product development - from the very first initial concept to launching the final product - took about two years.
Actually the product was developed to replace another existing appliance. So overall we had a good reference and a solid starting point.
The appliance has been developed by Lavazza in Italy and is currently in production. It is an important part of the product range.
We had to develop a new design replacing an existing model. All this while staying true to the brand identity and form language of Lavazza.
We initially developed several different proposals and then selected one to develop further and bring into production.
It is an entry level product for us. This means it is accessible to everybody, but it is definitely not cheap. So the target group is really quite universal - everyone looking for a compact and well designed espresso machine.
The product was also designed to be part of the Lavazza product range. It therefore uses the sophisticated form language specific to the Italian brand.
This is quite easily explained. The previous, outgoing model was called TINY. So the new product kept the original name, to signal a certain continuity, but also added the ECO part to underline the new focus in the design.
The design process involved everything from analog and digital sketching to 3D modeling, mock-ups and prototypes.
The design is massively influenced by the mission to create a sustainable design. This was the guiding concept and had implications on the chosen colours or surface finishings.
The design was developed by the small in-house team in collaboration with colleagues from the technical department.
The product itself is actually not overly complex, since it is an entry level product. It still makes an authentic italian espresso with every preparation.
The design was developed based on many years of experience operating in this specific market. During the development we also made sure some key aspects were consolidated and verified through consumer tests.
Using a high percentage of post consumer recycled plastic is quite challenging. Especially when you're aiming for product aesthetics that are on the same level as products that use virgin materials. We had to develop the colour range and the surface textures accordingly to make sure we'd reacht the expected product quality.
Design competitions play an important part in communication. They help in product and brand positioning. This is why we submit our products to these competitions.
With every new product you gain experience and learn. In this specific case we learned a lot about the use of post consumer recycled plastics. All the challenges and opportunities they represent.
That's all.
Grand Interview about Lavazza Tiny Eco Espresso Machine
We decided in the very beginning that the projects main concept should be based on sustainability. In fact the internal project name was "Compact & Sustainable". So we looked into the use of post consumer recycled plastics and made sure we used as much of it as possible. But we also had to make sure that the aesthetics and the perceived quality of the product would be in line with our expectations. So we had to carefully choose the colour range and the surface finishings.
We explored a composition with intersecting volumes as this allowed us to visually contain the overall dimensions of the product. The different volumes and also the chromatic contrast help to achieve that and lead to a distinct visual identity as well. The general attention to colours, materials and finishes has always been super important to us and is also a natural expression of our mediterranean identity.
As mentioned before, the internal projects name was "Compact & Sustainable" and from the very beginning we considered the sustainability aspect in all design decisions of the product development process. Using as much post consumer recycle plastic and a low energy consumption are two examples for this approach.
There are several different strategies to lower the energy consumption and make a product more efficient.It all starts with the design of the machine's internal architecture and the choice of the single components. The other big enabler lies in the machine's behaviour. Here a shorter standby time helped us to achieve our energy consumption target.
We managed to maintain that premium quality standard through the actual design of the object. We made sure every little aspect was considered and properly designed. Through high quality surfacing and attention to detail we were able to achieve a balanced and visually engaging object with a great user experience.
Using a high percentage of post consumer recycled plastic on visible components of a product brings many challenges. We worked hard to make sure that the aesthetics and quality were still in line with our expectations. We developed a specific colour range and surface finishings that allowed us to limit the impact and hide impurities and other aesthetic defects.
To be honest, in this case we didn't have to do all that much consumer or user research. However, we did apply a lot of common sense and experience. We've been designing coffee machines for quite some time now and we listen closely to any feedback we get. So we have a rather good idea how our products are placed in modern living spaces and what our users need.
I'd like to believe that all the effort we put into making Tiny Eco more sustainable while also maintaining a coherent design approach and form language with the other products in our range was one of the most important aspects. The result is a compact and friendly little espresso machine that easily wins your heart, don't you think?
I'm not sure we really encountered any truly unexpected discoveries during the design process of Tiny Eco. We have a well structured product development process that is rather consolidated and it allows us to be efficient and follow a streamlined time frame. The one thing that was different in this case though, was the fact that we developed the product during the COVID period and that meant we had to be a bit more flexible.
I think we have definitely learned a lot during this special project. Especially with regards to the use of post consumer recycled plastics and how to integrate them and their specific design requirements in our development process. I'm convinced this experience will have a lasting impact on all our future products.