Smeg () is an Italian upmarket

home appliance A home appliance, also referred to as a domestic appliance, an electric appliance or a household appliance, is a machine which assists in household functions such as cooking, cleaning and food preservation. The domestic application attached to ...

manufacturer.

History

Founded in 1948 by Vittorio Bertazzoni as an enameling and metalworking company, the company preserves the memory of its original purpose and location (

Guastalla Guastalla ( Guastallese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Reggio Emilia in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Geography Guastalla is situated in the Po Valley, and lies on the banks of the Po River. Guastalla is located at around from the citi ...

Reggio Emilia Reggio nell'Emilia (; ), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until Unification of Italy, 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 172,51 ...

) in the name acronymised as Smeg, Smalterie Metallurgiche Emiliane Guastalla ("Emilian Metallurgical Enamelling Works Guastalla"). During the 1950s, the company’s metalworking background was accompanied by the production of its first cooking appliances. In 1956, the company presented "Elisabeth", one of the first gas cookers equipped with automatic ignition, a safety valve in the oven and a cooking programmer. In the 1960s, Smeg introduced its first washing machine, the Leda, and then the large 60 cm Niagara dishwasher, with capacity for 14 place settings. In 1971, the company began production of built-in hobs and ovens.

Other activities

Smeg started in the residential sector, and later entered the commercial market. Smeg Foodservice manufactures appliances for the hotel, restaurant and catering market, and Smeg Instruments supplies disinfection equipment to hospitals and dental surgeries.

Business

The design and manufacture of Smeg appliances is concentrated in four factories based in Northern Italy, each specialising in a specific type of appliance. Smeg has subsidiaries worldwide, overseas offices and an extensive sales network. Smeg has developed products in collaboration with architects and designers including Guido Canali (who also designed the company headquarters in Guastalla), Mario Bellini, Renzo Piano, Marc Newson and deepdesign. Production takes place in six plants in Italy and China (Guastalla, Milan, Turin, Chieti, Bonferraro and Shenzhen). The subsidiary SMEG Deutschland GmbH is active in Germany. SMEG is represented worldwide with 16 branches, in Great Britain, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Portugal, Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, South Africa, USA, Australia, Mozambique as well as two representative offices in Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia.

FAB 1950s-style appliances

In 1997, Smeg introduced refrigerators styled similarly to 1950s models. The refrigerators were available in several colours, with model names prefixed "FAB", and bearing the distinctive SMEG logo. The FAB line remained in production, with technically modern appliances with 1950s appearance. The FAB28 had deep curved doors and a large handle. Fridge-freezers were later introduced, with more colour options, and special editions such as a

Union Jack The Union Jack or Union Flag is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. The Union Jack was also used as the official flag of several British colonies and dominions before they adopted their own national flags. It is sometimes a ...

door. In 2014, small domestic appliances such as toasters and kettles were added to the FAB 50s range.

Awards

* 2010: Good Design Award granted by the Chicago Athenaeum, Museum of Architecture and Design and the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies, for the FP610SG oven and the P755SBL hob from the innovative Newson product line.

References