Red Dot Award: Product Design 2017

ALIAS WINS THE RED DOT AWARD  - PRODUCT DESIGN 2017 WITH THE ROLLINGFRAME 52 CHAIR BY ALBERTO MEDA

The prestigious award will be assigned by the International Jury of the 2017 edition at the Aalto Theatre in Essen, on Monday 3 July.

The Red Dot International jury has awarded the “Red Dot” for quality and innovative design to the rollingframe 52 chair designed by Alberto Meda for Alias. This prestigious award has been assigned to the historical Italian design brand  by an international jury made up of independent designers, professors of design and specialist journalists. The award giving ceremony is scheduled to take place on the premises of the Aalto Theatre in Essen.
“It is a great honour to receive this particularly important prize because it crowns our efforts to expand the Alias product line and to reinforce our roots. The Frame chair is the maximum expression of the Alias DNA and the project is aligned with the philosophy of the most authentic Italian design. This review of the product family is not restricted to new dimensions but redefines the chair components and their proportions, enabling this historical icon to relive and reflect the latest trends and requirements of contemporary living. The Red Dot award assigned to this product confirms that we are moving in the right direction with our research work, our collaboration with talented designers of the standing of Alberto Meda and our brand communication”, states architect  Andrea Sanguineti, brand manager of Alias.

Rollingframe 52  is fruit of research into the proportions of contemporary seating and the changes taking place in office seating, with an increasing resemblance to proper “work stations”, where various activities are carried out associated with social relations and teamwork. To meet this new requirement and starting from the mechanical structure of the rollingframe chair fitted with an oscillating TILT mechanism, Alias invited Alberto Meda to study a new base and mechanism system allowing for the chair width to be increased by 10%. With a different concept from the previous series, the new base is being presented with a diameter of 70 centimetres, and a flat, slender design, with thicknesses that almost defy physical resistance. Even the tilting lever and the die-cast elements have been redesigned in the spirit of the original frame project. With rollingframe 52  Alias and Alberto Meda have shown great attentiveness to typological and regulatory product evolutions: the frame chair, an Alias bestseller, has been radically renewed to respond to today’s work models and product usages.

The rollingframe 52 is characterized by a five-star swivel base in die-cast aluminium on castors; an external sleeve  connects the outer surface of the 40 mm piston to the centre of the base, which mounts a tilting mechanism designed for extra comfort, making it possible for the seat and backrest to tilt at the same time. Based on the user’s weight, it is possible to adjust the stiffness of the spring governing the oscillating mechanism. Rollingframe 52, available with our without armrests, is defined by a structure in extruded aluminium profiles and die-cast elements which may be supplied in different finishes: chrome-plated, polished or enamel painted in various colours. The seat and backrest are presented in polyester mesh coated with PVC in various colours; or, alternatively in Kvadrat® fabrics or in leather branded Pelle Frau® Color System (SC), in a choice of 7 elegant shades.  A SOFT variant is also available with a specially shaped cushion, made up in soft leather branded Pelle Frau® Color System (SC) or in Kvadrat® fabric and divided into four segments, two on the seat and two on the back, making this chair even more comfortable. The rollingframe 52 collections comply with UNI 1335C norms regarding ergonomic principles and the minimum functional requirements for office seating.
So, thanks to their quality design, Rollingframe 52  chairs receive one of the most sought-after and important international design awards, a prize whose aim is to honour the exceptional quality of designers and producers who, since 1955 have been competing for the RED DOT DESIGN AWARD and are celebrated in an annual ceremony in Germany and presented in the Red Dot museum at Zollverein, Essen.