< PreviousCOOLING DOWN Discover MIDEA Group, a Fortune 500 company leading the way for air treatment and smart home solutions JANUARY 2024 commercialinteriordesign.com 22 PARTNER CONTENT T he ever-mounting climate and energy crisis presents new challenges for companies to think beyond conventional design concepts and create innovative products that will pave the way for a sustainable future. One company committed to pushing the boundaries of sustainable technology is Midea, an innovator and pioneer of smart home solutions. This global giant, originating from a small company in Guangdong, China, has become a household name in the world of air conditioning, establishing an impressive presence in over 200 countries and regions. Midea Residential Air Conditioner Division (Midea RAC) is a business unit under Midea Group, integrating research and development, manufacturing, sales, design, installation, and after-sales service, and one of the world‘s leading HVAC manufacturer and professional air management solution providers. The Midea RAC Division offering includes multi-split systems, ducts, heating equipment, heat pumps, wall-mounted units, cabinets, residential air conditioners, Window ACs, portable units, dehumidifi ers, base station air conditioners, and MHELIOS. Driven by scientifi c and technological innovation, Midea RAC’s research and development team has now reached 1000 people, and, impressively, the ratio of employees with master‘s and doctor’s degrees account for nearly 50 percent including 115 industry experts, 62 foreign experts, and four world- leading experts. Despite its roots in China, Midea’s footprint now extends far beyond its home country. The company operates in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa and Midea RAC has seven production bases spanning Shunde, Wuhu, Wuhan, Handan, Guangzhou, Chongqing, and Thailand, with the annual production capacity of 75 million sets. Bringing its innovative and high-quality products to customers worldwide, Midea’s global reach is a testament to its commitment to delivering comfort, convenience, and effi ciency to homes and businesses around the world. Paolo Lorini, Head of Midea RAC Design Milan (MRDM) recently teamed up with Matteo Nunziati, a top Italian interior designer, to introduce Midea’s new multi-split system with a focus on innovating heat recovery technology – the CirQHP, an all year round one-stop heat pump solution. Matteo Nunziati is considered one of the most talented interior designers of his generation, specialising in the design luxury hotels and residential projects across the globe. For Nunziati, a holistic design takes into account not only sustainability but also functionality and aesthetics, promoting the interrelationships between objects and the environments that surround them. According to the Middle East consumer research by Midea RAC, Nunziati isn’t the only one with economical concerns. In addition to the basic reliability requirements, consumers pain points come down to comfortable cooling, energy saving and convenient control. Consumers in Middle East have a stronger willing on fast, powerful and evenly cooling air treatment, especially in the spaces such as the living room and bedroom. Given the climate, it’s important that the cooling benefi ts everyone, and does so effectively. Research also suggests that features related to energy saving are of the highest priority when consumers are making decisions of purchasing. Respondents also highlighted the need for remote connection and control of the units, outlining such as the scenarios of turning on the AC before arriving home, or forgetting to turn it off on the way out. The new Midea Split AC model addresses all of these concerns. The 180° Spinning Wind Defl ector provides wind volume that far exceeds that of ordinary split ACs, while the horizontal fl ow and vertical fl ow break the limitation of air supply angles in spacious room. The model also features one-click iECO technology that allows the unit to boost energy savings up to more than 20% than regular inverter models. When it comes to remote control, the Location Based Services (LBS) function on the Midea SmartHome APP can remotely control the air conditioning from up to 15km away. Benefi ts of MIDEA RAC Products: CoolFlash: With just one press of the CoolFlash button, your room could be quickly cooled down to your desired temperature. For example, the CoolFlash technology applying on Wonder AC is 34% cooling faster than traditional window AC. Energy Saving Inverter Tech-First window AC in the market engineered with inverter technology, it can cool more with considerably less power. With iECO: Heat load energy saving model, Midea RAC products can save energy up to more than 20% comparing with regular inverter models Hyper Graphene: The outdoor units are inevitably bitten by the external corrosion factors such as salt, acid and rain. Graphene is a single monolayer of carbon atoms, tightly bound in a hexagonal honeycomb lattice. When graphene is added to the anti-corrosion layer, the density of the layer can be improved to resist corrosion. Midea Hyper Graphene adopts the 20 to 50-year corrosion-resistance fi n which is verifi ed by Intertek. And it can also stand up to neutral salt spray test for 1500 hours.Matteo Ninziati and Paolo LoriniJANUARY 2024 commercialinteriordesign.com 24 SPECIAL REPORT MAKING A SPLASH 38 36 Insight from Vrushali Mhatre of Heriot-Watt University Dubai CID editor Holly Byrne explores the impact of the bathroom mirror selfi e Bathroom design has a bold new look, and in this month's special report we take a closer look at what's driving the change 26 Inside 10 of Dubai Mall's newly redesigned washrooms 33 Top Picks: Our selection of the latest bathroom products to hit the marketJANUARY 2024 commercialinteriordesign.com 2627 commercialinteriordesign.com JANUARY 2024 SPECIAL REPORT: BATHROOMS BATHROOMS GO BOLD Colour and creativity are paving the way for washrooms with wow-factor, and the ongoing renovation at Dubai Mall is the ultimate blueprint D ubai Mall is the most visited retail destination in the world, welcoming more than 100 million visitors each year and setting the standard for the ultimate luxury retail experience. So, when it came time to renovate the bathrooms, the pressure to leave a lasting impression was on. “Initally we had worked on a simple, typical mall washroom upgrade with a focus on durability,” explains Jacqueline Shaddock, head of interior design at EMAAR Development. “Right before we were due to start work, we had a visit from our senior management, and the question was asked, if this is the best mall in the world, why do we need to have boring, simple washrooms?” The original design plans were abandoned, and a whole new level of creativity was unleased. “It was important to us that each washroom had a completely unique experience, to cater for those 100 million annual visitors who all have a different idea of what a ‘wow’ space looks like,” Shaddock explains. “Also, the mall itself, having grown over the years, has many areas with very distinct personalities and retail focuses that we needed to consider.” TEAM EFFORT “When we realised we would need 29 completely different designs, we panicked for a minute,” admits Shaddock. “We reached out to a few local designers with a short and simple request for proposal … our thinking was that we could work with all of these teams and have them all represented somewhere within this epic project.” The brief? “People should come to the mall to see the washrooms fi rst. Make them memorable. Think outside the box. The intention was to make all the bathrooms in the Dubai Mall a different experience,” says Shaddock. As well as the inhouse EMAAR Design team, the list of fi rms to get involved included KR studios, XBD Collective, Stickman Tribe, DSZ Design, RSP, KCA, Designsmith and Zebra.29 commercialinteriordesign.com JANUARY 2024 SPECIAL REPORT: BATHROOMS BLUE SKY BRAINSTORMING When it came to fi nding enough inspiration to fuel the original design of 29 different bathrooms, each fi rm looked in a different direction. “Some of the teams found inspiration from the different areas within the mall itself, such as high-end fashion and technology,” says Shaddock. “Some were inspired by the different cultures that can be found within the demographic of Dubai Mall visitors, and some looked to regional historical references.” Once each of the initial deisgn concepts had been pitched and approved, they were allocated to appropriate locations around the mall prior to being fully developed. “They all had really strong and interesting design narratives from the outset,” says Shaddock. FUNCTIONALITY FIRST Creating a world-class experience and stand-out design was the driving Next >