THE UNIT IS OFFICIALLY INSERTED INTO THE ADI INDEX 2024: THE SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION BY EPTA IS AMONG THE ICONIC PRODUCTS OF ITALIAN DESIGN
The solutions by Epta are confirmed as a symbol of Italian design, as recognised by the Permanent observatory of ADI – Association for Industrial Design - which has officially inserted The Unit into the ADI Index 2024.
The eco-sustainable refrigerated display cabinet is among the selection of projects which have particularly stood out for originality, sustainability, functional and typological innovation, for the design methods used, the materials used, and the formal synthesis achieved. Included in the Design for Work category, the model played a primary role during the inauguration ceremony of the exhibition dedicated to the selected products, accessible to the public initially at the Design Museum of Milan from 30 October before moving to Rome, inside Spazio WeGil, from 25 November.
ADI Index 2024 not only provides an overview of the development of industrial design as cultural and economic phenomenon but also the first step towards the Innovation Award ADI Design Index and the next edition of Compasso d’Oro, one of the world’s most sought-after and authoritative design awards, for which these models are automatically nominated.
A GROUNDBREAKING PROJECT: THE UNIT IS THE REFRIGERATION OF THE FUTURE
The Unit is the result of a groundbreaking project, undertaken by Epta with the goal of anticipating the refrigeration paradigm of the future in regulatory and technological terms and interpreting the key needs of sustainability and operational efficiency of the entire sector.
Conceived according to the principles of the circular economy, the modular display cabinet is made of cork, due to its insulating qualities, sheet metal, glass, and PLA, namely a bioplastic derived from renewable resources. Furthermore, supporting the Design for Disassembly strategy provides for simplification of the disassembly and assembly operations of the solution, to the benefit of more rapid maintenance, lengthening of useful life and true recyclability at the end.
The selection and nomination of the model for the Compasso d’Oro Award 2026 shows how The Unit is an innovative solution able to overcome the strict evaluation criteria developed in more than seventy years of experience in the sector, thanks to characteristics with a low environmental impact.
Epta is proud of this achievement, which establishes the significant role of design in its most innovative and sustainable models, geared to conferring functionality and social value to the technologies and to the new materials distributed on the market.