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Industrial Design of Front Panel for ATLANT Refrigerators Line

Customer

CJSC ATLANT is one of the leading refrigerators and freezers producing company in the CIS.

The project documents were sent over to the production facilities in 1991.

The mass production of the first refrigerator with the new front panel began in 1993.

Objective

Our objective included renovation of the obsolescent by the 1990s refrigerators design. Promwad engineers team was to create a new product – the front refrigerator panel with the prospective long-term production.

Solution

Promwad engineers started with the analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of the already existing refrigerators design. The attention was drawn to the possibility to eliminate the drawbacks to improve the product.

Industrial Design of Front Panel for ATLANT Refrigerators Line


The first feature to call the designers` attention was a single form of the front panel with control knobs for the majority of the models of refrigerators. Depending on the packaging arrangement some control knobs and/or indicators were unnecessary and instead of them plugs were used which during the refrigerator service turned into open holes. This was an obvious flaw of the design.

Promwad team suggested breaking the front panel form above. Several variants of the length and form of the break were analyzed, and the optimal ratio was found (see the picture below).

This decision is very efficient technologically as depending on the model the packaging arrangement of the interior of the front panel may differ. However, creation of the panels with the necessary number of the control knobs does not demand high costs.
Another thing to draw attention was the temperature controllers of the cooling and freezing chambers. These are placed on the front panel, but the customers almost never use them after the first-use adjustment, thus leaving them on the front panel was of no use. Temperature controllers and other controls were removed down and placed under the front panel; they are accessible when opening the cooling chamber door. Only the indicators of the refrigerator functioning were left on the front panel.

Advantages

  • The front panel is still in serial production (for more than 20 years!)
  • The model is marked by an attractive design and production convenience, as various types of packaging arrangement depending on the refrigerator model may be placed under the panel

Team

Design by Alexey Trufanov and Alexander Bazelevski

Engineering by Mikhail Kiselyov and Alexander Yermolovich

Development environment and technology

ProEngineer
The goal of industrial design is to create ergonomic and intrinsically attractive products | info@dolnikoff.com