Amdea at the “2050: Fridge of the Future” conference

888

Smart technology, safety and sustainability were key themes of “2050: Fridge of the Future” event. Amdea, Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Appliances, was partner with the Office for product safety and standards (Opss), City of London University and London Fire Brigade.

During the event, Paul Hide, Amdea chief executive, gave a keynote speech on ‘The Road to Net Zero’. He outlined how sales of large and small appliances have risen year-on-year and explained how the energy efficiency of appliances has increased greatly over the past decade and played a positive role in helping to keep overall household running costs down.

«The challenge to ensure appliance owners can be reached in the event of a safety notification or recall continues to be a major one -.Hide also highlighted -. In spite of regular messaging on the benefits of appliance registration, through platforms such as the Amdea-run Register My Appliance, it is still only the minority of purchasers who register their appliances.»

Moreover, on the topic of sustainability and achieving net zero, Hide called for greater collaboration between the supply chain and other stakeholders. «No one in the global appliance industry – Hide said – is under any illusion that the path to net zero for the total circular economy cycle of appliance manufacturing, shipment, use and disposal is a must and the pace of change must accelerate. But this is a challenge that requires joint and collaborative action – it’s not down to the manufacturers alone. We need global regulations and incentives that support the move to net zero. Governments will have a key role to play, laying the foundations upon which a net zero economy can flourish and achieve the challenging time frames that are required.”

Amdea members were also well represented at the event. Guest speakers included Steve Macdonald, business director – freestanding division, Hoover Candy / Haier, and Ian Moverley, director of public affairs and communications, Whirlpool. Mr Macdonald sat on a panel themed around innovation, while Mr Moverley joined Amdea’s Mr Hide to take part in a panel discussion on The Road to Net Zero.

The aim of the “2050: Fridge of the Future conference”, which took place as both an in-person event and online, was to bring together all parties with an interest in understanding the future of large white goods to share perspectives, identify common interests and discuss how they could work together to achieve shared goals.